District court
Boulder County is the 20th Judicial District. Its Boulder County Combined Court is at 1777 6th St., Boulder, CO 80302, and the Judicial Branch also lists the Boulder County Combined Court - Longmont at 1035 Kimbark St.
IT'S MORE THAN MONEY.
Lafayette Bad Faith Insurance Lawyers After a Denial, Delay, or Short Payment
When your insurer sits on a claim, rejects it, or lowballs it, the problem isn’t only the money you’re missing. Colorado law requires your insurer to deal with you fairly. Call (303) 209-9395 and tell us where your claim stands.
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(303) 209-9395
Lafayette, Boulder County
Why policyholders call us
CGH Injury Lawyers represents Lafayette residents against insurers that deny, delay, or underpay claims without a reasonable basis. Your first conversation with us is free, and we do not get paid unless we win.
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- ABOTA trial advocate on the team
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- No fee unless we win
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Trial lawyers, not a settlement mill
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Water from a burst pipe ruined the floors, or another driver with too little coverage hit you, and your insurer has been anything but quick. Talking with a Lafayette bad faith insurance lawyer can help you sort out whether the insurer’s handling crossed the line Colorado law draws.
Lafayette residents can reach CGH Injury Lawyers at our Denver office by calling (303) 209-9395. You can also send the basics of your claim through the contact page.
This page provides content for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always consult a licensed attorney for advice specific to your situation.
What This Page Covers
- The kinds of claims that turn into bad faith disputes in Lafayette
- Colorado’s two bad faith claims and how they differ
- The court, hospital, and fire department records near you
- What you may recover and the defenses insurers raise
- Time limits and answers to common questions
Key Takeaways
- Your insurer has duties to you. Chapter 25 of the Colorado Civil Jury Instructions describe a duty of good faith and fair dealing that an insurance company owes its insureds.
- Unreasonable delay or denial is prohibited. The statute measures reasonableness by whether the insurer had a reasonable basis for what it did (C.R.S. 10-3-1115).
- More than the benefit may be at stake. When a claim was unreasonably delayed or denied, the statute lets the policyholder sue for two times the covered benefit and ask for reasonable attorney fees and court costs too (C.R.S. 10-3-1116(1)).
- The common-law claim takes more proof. It adds the question of whether the insurer knew, or recklessly disregarded, that it was acting unreasonably.
- Don’t wait on the deadline. Common-law bad faith generally carries a two-year period from when you knew, or should have known, of the injury and its cause, and a lawyer should confirm your date.
Claims Lafayette Policyholders Face
Some calls start with a home: a burst pipe, a kitchen fire, or a roof damaged in a storm, where the insurer’s number doesn’t cover the repair. Others start on the road with your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage after a crash. A Lafayette uninsured motorist lawyer can look at that kind of claim with you.
A third group involves health plans and disability insurers. A treatment is refused, or monthly benefits stop with little explanation, and the appeal letters start to feel like a form you can’t win.
If the insurer can’t point to a reasonable basis for its delay or denial, Colorado’s statute may give you a claim.
Common law vs. statute
Colorado’s Two Bad Faith Claims
A policyholder in Colorado may have a common-law claim, a statutory claim, or both from the same set of facts. The jury instructions call the statutory claim “in addition to and separate from” the common-law claim. Our Colorado bad faith insurance lawyer page covers both claims in more depth.
| Feature | Common law | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Basis | Travelers Insurance Co. v. Savio, Colorado Supreme Court (1985) | C.R.S. 10-3-1115 and 10-3-1116 |
| Elements | Unreasonable conduct, and the insurer knew it or acted in reckless disregard of it | A delay or denial of a covered benefit without a reasonable basis |
| Money at stake | Damages resulting from the insurer’s conduct | The right to seek two times the covered benefit, plus reasonable attorney fees and court costs |
Proving the common-law claim
Under Savio, you prove two things. First, the insurer acted unreasonably, and second, it knew its conduct was unreasonable or showed reckless disregard for that fact.
Proving the statutory claim
C.R.S. 10-3-1115(1)(a) forbids an insurer from unreasonably delaying or denying payment of a claim for benefits owed to a first-party claimant. The jury instructions, citing Kisselman, explain that this claim needs only unreasonable conduct.
“First-party claimant” covers people and entities asserting benefits owed under a policy. Someone making a claim against an insured under a liability policy doesn’t qualify, which generally keeps a claim against the other driver’s insurer outside the statute.
Health and disability policies issued in Colorado carry one more protection. Under C.R.S. 10-3-1116(2), those policies can’t include a clause reserving discretion to the insurer to interpret the policy terms or decide who is eligible for benefits, and a clause like that is void.
Local Knowledge
Lafayette’s Court, Hospital and Fire Department
Lafayette is one of the cities on Boulder County’s list of incorporated municipalities. The right place to file against an insurer depends on the facts, including where it does business and where you live.
Hospital records
Good Samaritan Hospital, part of Intermountain Health, is at 200 Exempla Circle in Lafayette. The state’s designated trauma facility list shows it as Level II. If an insurer questions whether treatment was needed, those records can help.
Fire department records
The Lafayette Fire Department describes itself as a full-service, all-hazards response agency working from two fire stations. After a house or kitchen fire, the department’s response records may help show what happened and when.
Records worth saving after a Lafayette loss:
- The insurer’s letters, emails, and any recorded statement you gave
- Your contractor’s estimate next to the adjuster’s estimate
- Photos and video taken before any cleanup or repair
- Receipts for hotel stays, rentals, or emergency repairs
Why CGH
Why Lafayette Clients Choose CGH Injury Lawyers
Trial-ready files
We prepare each case as if it will be tried.
ABOTA
Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates.
A Denver firm since 2016
CGH Injury Lawyers, formerly Cheney Galluzzi & Howard, was founded in Denver in 2016.
Two languages
Call (303) 835-9177 if you’d like to speak in Spanish.
How we handle your case
How a Lafayette Bad Faith Case Moves Forward
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Policy and file review
We look at your coverage, the correspondence, and the timeline of the claim.
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Legal fit
We match your facts to the common-law claim, the statutory claim, or both.
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Demand
We send the insurer a formal demand.
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Evidence
We collect claim-file materials and documentation and bring in outside expert input where it helps.
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Filing
We file where the case belongs, which for a Lafayette policyholder may be the district court for Boulder County, at the Boulder County Combined Court, after confirming it fits your facts.
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Recovery
We pursue the underlying benefit, statutory damages, and attorney fees where they apply.
Compensation
What the Law Lets You Recover
The value of a bad faith case depends on the policy, the losses, and the way the claim was handled. We look at the file and the losses you can document before discussing money.
Statutory recovery
Under C.R.S. 10-3-1116(1), you may seek twice the covered benefit, along with reasonable attorney fees and court costs. Per the jury instructions, paying an unreasonably delayed benefit before judgment doesn’t shrink the two-times amount.
Common-law recovery
The common-law jury instruction lists these categories:
- Out-of-pocket and other economic losses, both past and those likely to come
- Noneconomic losses or injuries the jury finds you’ve had or will probably have
- Any physical impairment or disfigurement the evidence shows
Filing under the statute doesn’t close off your other options. C.R.S. 10-3-1116(4) says the statutory action is in addition to other actions available by statute or common law.
Punitive damages. They may be possible in some cases. The instruction notes say that proving bad faith, by itself, doesn’t establish a claim for them.
Insurer defenses
Defenses Insurers Raise in Bad Faith Cases
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“The claim was fairly debatable”
Insurers may challenge fairly debatable claims “even if the decision to deny coverage ultimately turns out to be mistaken,” according to the jury instructions. Debatability weighs against bad faith but, without more, isn’t outcome-determinative or necessarily sufficient to defeat a bad faith claim as a matter of law. Where the denial had no reasonable basis, the claim wasn’t fairly debatable to begin with.
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“We still need your records”
Your insurer can ask for records it needs. When a request repeats after you’ve complied, your own dated records can help show what the insurer had and when.
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“The damage was wear and tear”
Your insurer may rely on an exclusion the facts support. Under the statute, what matters is whether it had a reasonable basis for applying it, and your contractor’s findings, the photos and the timeline can help show whether it did.
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“Look at what we know now”
The jury instructions cite Schultz v. GEICO Casualty Co. for the rule that a denial is judged on the information the insurer had when it denied the claim.
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Deadlines and next steps
Time Limits on Bad Faith Claims
The jury instructions treat common-law bad faith as a tort barred under C.R.S. 13-80-102 unless it is filed within two years after both the injury and its cause were known or should have been known with reasonable diligence.
The statutory claim is not subject to the one-year limit in C.R.S. 13-80-103(1)(d). The Colorado Supreme Court decided that question for actions under C.R.S. 10-3-1116(1) in Rooftop Restoration, Inc. v. American Family Mutual Insurance Co.. Have a lawyer confirm the deadline for your claim, and keep the date of every denial letter so the timeline can be rebuilt accurately.
Underinsured motorist claims have their own timing rules. According to the jury instructions, a bad faith claim for nonpayment of those benefits can’t accrue until you’ve obtained a judgment against the underinsured driver or settled with that driver. A Lafayette car accident lawyer can handle that claim against the driver.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my underinsured motorist claim count as a bad faith insurance claim in Colorado?
It can. A claim on your own underinsured motorist coverage seeks benefits under your policy, so a bad faith insurance claim in Colorado may apply if your insurer unreasonably delays or denies them. By statute, that coverage reaches “the difference, if any, between the amount of the limits of any legal liability coverage and the amount of the damages sustained, excluding exemplary damages,” up to your coverage limit (C.R.S. 10-4-609(1)(c)).
What does “reasonable basis” mean in practice?
The statute asks whether the insurer acted with a reasonable basis, and courts judge that based on the information the insurer had when it acted. Without one, the delay or denial is unreasonable under C.R.S. 10-3-1115(2).
My health insurer denied my appeal. Can I still go to court?
You may be able to. If the health plan was issued in Colorado and you’ve used up its administrative remedies, C.R.S. 10-3-1116(3) entitles you to have the claim reviewed de novo in court and to a jury trial.
Can the statute help with a life insurance claim?
Generally not. C.R.S. 10-3-1115(6) says the statute doesn’t apply to life insurance issued under article 7 of Title 10, and it also excludes title insurance and workers’ compensation.
Where would a Lafayette bad faith lawsuit be filed?
That depends on your facts, including where the insurer does business and where you live. It could be the district court for Boulder County, at the Boulder County Combined Court in Boulder.
How long do I have to file?
For common-law bad faith, generally two years from when you knew or should have known of the injury and its cause. The statutory claim is different, so have a lawyer confirm your deadline.
Should I keep talking to my adjuster?
You can, and it helps to confirm important conversations in a short email afterward. That gives you a written record of what you said and when, which matters if someone later questions how the claim was handled.
Is CGH Injury Lawyers based in Lafayette?
No. We’re based in Denver, at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, and represent Lafayette clients from there. Reach us at (303) 209-9395.
Keep Reading
Related pages
It's More Than Money.
Speak With a Lafayette Bad Faith Insurance Attorney
Bring your policy and the insurer’s letters, and a bad faith insurance attorney can go through them with you. Call (303) 209-9395 or use the contact page to tell us what happened. For other injuries, see what our Lafayette personal injury lawyers handle.
Written by CGH Injury Lawyers.
Last reviewed: September 21, 2026.
Prefer to read first? See how Colorado bad faith law works.
CGH Injury Lawyers · 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205
Cheney Galluzzi & Howard, LLC, d/b/a CGH Injury Lawyers. Attorney advertising. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case turns on its own facts, injuries, and available insurance coverage. This site is for general information and is not legal advice. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.