Longmont, Colorado

Longmont Uninsured Motorist Lawyers Who Make Your Own Insurer Pay What It Owes

Longmont keeps its own crash ledger, and the intersections at the top of it are the ones people drive every day. When the driver who hit you on State Highway 119, Main Street, or State Highway 66 carried no insurance or left before anyone got a plate, the money has to come out of your own auto policy. We represent Longmont crash victims in UM and UIM claims against their own carriers.

No fee unless we win

Call (303) 209-9395 Get my free UM/UIM case review

It's More Than Money.

Serving Longmont from our Denver Office CGH Injury Lawyers 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201 Denver, CO 80205 (303) 209-9395 Se habla espanol

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Colorado requires every auto insurer in the state to offer UM/UIM coverage equal to your bodily injury liability limits, and a rejection counts only if it was made in writing by the named insured (C.R.S. 10-4-609). Drivers who believe they turned the coverage down often find it sitting on the declarations page.
UM coverage answers when the at-fault driver carried nothing, fled, or never made contact. UIM answers when that driver had a policy whose limit ran out before your losses did. Under C.R.S. 10-4-609(4), buying UM gives you UIM by operation of law.
Filing under your own policy does not change the handling. The slow response, the low first number, and the recorded statement requested before your treatment is finished arrive the same way they would from a stranger's carrier.
At CGH Injury Lawyers, we represent Longmont crash victims in UM and UIM claims against their own insurers, serving Boulder County from our Denver office at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201. We pull every declarations page, confirm your coverage and any stacking, build the medical record, and prepare every case for trial or arbitration in the 20th Judicial District.

Free first consultation. No fee unless we win. Call (303) 209-9395.

C.R.S. 10-4-609: what the statute requires

Every Colorado auto insurer must offer UM/UIM coverage equal to the bodily injury liability limits you buy. You can reject it, but only in writing by the named insured (C.R.S. 10-4-609).
Under C.R.S. 10-4-609(4), purchasing UM coverage automatically includes UIM coverage. They come bundled together by operation of law.
A 2007 amendment to C.R.S. 10-4-609, effective January 1, 2008, removed the provision that had let insurers reduce UIM by whatever the at-fault driver's carrier paid. Under C.R.S. 10-4-609(1)(c), the coverage sits in addition to the liability recovery and cannot be reduced by a setoff from other coverage. Whether limits from more than one vehicle or policy can be combined is a separate, fact-specific question that depends on the declarations pages, how premiums were charged, and the policy language.
A rejection that does not meet the statute's requirements is potentially invalid, which means coverage you thought you did not have may still exist. We review the rejection language before assuming there is no policy to draw from.

The four triggers: when UM/UIM applies

The at-fault driver had no liability insurance. Your UM coverage becomes the only practical recovery path when the other driver cannot pay.
Hit-and-run. The driver fled before you got a plate, or before you could identify them. Colorado treats an unidentified fleeing driver as uninsured for UM purposes.
Phantom vehicle. A driver cut you off or ran you off the road without contact. Colorado allows UM recovery in some phantom-vehicle cases, but corroborating evidence such as a witness or video is typically needed.
Underinsured driver. The other driver had coverage, but their policy limit was lower than your documented losses. Their insurer pays its available limit, and your UIM claim covers the remaining gap up to your own UIM limit.

The filing deadline and comparative fault

Colorado UM/UIM claims are governed by C.R.S. 13-80-107.5, the statute the Colorado Supreme Court applied in Pham v. State Farm, 2013 CO 17. The deadline turns on the procedural history of the underlying claim. Your policy may also impose a shorter contractual notice deadline. Missing that notice can give the insurer a defense, so it must be identified early.

Colorado follows a modified comparative negligence rule with a 50 percent bar (C.R.S. 13-21-111). If you are found less than 50 percent at fault, you recover damages reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are 50 percent or more at fault, you recover nothing. Adjusters can push your fault share higher on a UM/UIM claim, which reduces the payout, so challenging that assessment is central to protecting your recovery.

High-Risk Corridors

State Highway 119, Main Street, State Highway 66, and Hover Street

The City of Longmont's 2020 to 2024 Annual Roadway Crash Report ranks the intersection of State Highway 119 and Main Street first in the city, with 221 crash incidents over those five years. State Highway 119 and Hover Street follow with 116, and State Highway 66 and Main Street with 96. By segment, State Highway 119 between South Pratt Parkway and Main Street tops the list at 168 crash incidents.

Severity does not track volume. The report shows State Highway 66 and Main Street carrying seven crashes involving a fatality or a suspected serious injury, more than any other intersection in the city, while several Main Street blocks with high crash totals produced fewer.

The same report counts 354 people killed or seriously injured on Longmont roadways across those five years, including 219 motor vehicle occupants and 52 motorcyclists. On April 25, 2023, the city council committed to a Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic deaths and severe injuries.

Maintenance is split, which matters once you start requesting records. The city maintains State Highway 119 from Fordham Street to Fairview Street and United States Highway 287 from Pike Road to Park Ridge Avenue, and the Colorado Department of Transportation is responsible for state and United States highways outside those limits, including State Highway 66.

Trauma Care

Two Level III centers in the city, and the transfer that can follow

Longmont United Hospital, at 1950 Mountain View Avenue, holds a Level III trauma designation on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's published list of designated trauma facilities, which shows two designated facilities in Longmont.

Longs Peak Hospital, at 1750 East Ken Pratt Boulevard, holds a Level III designation as well. The department designates Colorado trauma centers and the American College of Surgeons verifies them, which are two separate processes.

CommonSpirit describes Longmont United Hospital as offering emergency care around the clock and names it a Level III trauma center. Neither Longmont facility is designated above that level, so the most severe crash injuries may be transferred to a Denver-area Level I center. When that happens the records from both facilities matter, because together they document the full scope of the injury a damages claim is built on.

Courthouse

Boulder County District Court, 20th Judicial District, and the Longmont court location

Personal injury cases arising in Boulder County may be filed in the Boulder County District Court, the 20th Judicial District, and Longmont sits in Boulder County. The Colorado Judicial Branch lists the Boulder County Combined Court at 1777 6th St., Boulder, CO 80302, and a second Boulder County Combined Court location in Longmont at 1035 Kimbark St.

A courthouse address in town does not settle where a civil case belongs. The defendant in a UM/UIM suit is your own insurer rather than the driver who hit you, and Colorado's venue rule allows more than one proper county, so the filing county is a strategic decision. We handle cases filed in the 20th Judicial District, serving our Longmont clients from our Denver office.

The Crash Report

Why an uninsured driver makes the paperwork more likely

The city's fatal crash tables name the Longmont Police Department as the reporting agency for most crashes in the city, and the Colorado State Patrol for several of the ones on State Highway 119 and State Highway 66. The city's crash report also sets out when a written report gets completed in Colorado at all, and one of the listed grounds is whether any driver involved did not have insurance.

That is worth knowing before you decide a minor-looking collision is not worth reporting. The fact that creates your UM claim also helps put the crash on paper, and the report is often the central document showing the driver fled or carried no coverage. We request it early rather than waiting on the adjuster.

The Statute

C.R.S. 10-4-609

Colorado requires your insurer to offer UM/UIM coverage equal to your liability limits. We know the statute, the stacking rules, and how to read a rejection form for flaws an adjuster is not going to point out.

Bad Faith on the Table

When your insurer stalls, we have a remedy.

When an insurer unreasonably delays or denies a valid UM/UIM claim, Colorado gives you a separate statutory bad-faith cause of action under C.R.S. 10-3-1115 and 10-3-1116. We document insurer conduct from day one so that a lowball offer or unexplained delay shifts the negotiation dynamic.

Honest Case Review

We decline cases we cannot stand behind.

Not every crash produces a UM/UIM claim worth pursuing. If your fact pattern does not support one, we will tell you that in the free review rather than sign you up and let the case stall. When the law supports your claim, we fight hard.

Stacking Review

Multiple vehicles may mean multiple limits.

Whether limits from more than one vehicle or policy can be combined depends on the declarations pages, how premiums were charged, and the policy language. We pull every declarations page and every endorsement to find available limits before any demand goes out.

Trial-Ready

ABOTA member. Boulder County is not a problem.

Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) and has served as Treasurer of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association. Timothy G. Tarr has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America for Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs since 2023. Carriers pay attention to which firms are prepared to try a case in the Boulder County District Court.

Bilingual

Hablamos espanol.

Spanish-speaking staff and attorneys serve Longmont's Spanish-speaking community. Language is never a barrier to a free case review.

No Win, No Fee

Contingency only.

You pay nothing out of pocket for legal fees. We advance costs and collect only from a settlement, verdict, or arbitration award.

Get medical care immediately

If your injuries are serious, emergency transport may take you to Longmont United Hospital or Longs Peak Hospital, the two designated trauma centers in the city, or on to a Denver-area Level I center. Seek care even if you feel okay at the scene. Adrenaline masks injury, and a gap in medical treatment gives the insurer a pre-existing-condition argument.
Call law enforcement

A police report confirming the other driver fled the scene, had no insurance, or could not be identified is essential to a hit-and-run or uninsured UM claim. Within Longmont city limits the Longmont Police Department takes most reports, but the city's own fatal crash tables list the Colorado State Patrol on some State Highway 119 and State Highway 66 crashes, so call 911 and let dispatch send the right agency.
Document everything at the scene

Photograph the damage, your injuries, and the crash location. Note nearby businesses with exterior cameras, private security systems, dashcams in other vehicles, and the names of any witnesses. Retention periods vary widely from one business to the next, so identify anything that can corroborate what happened before you leave the scene.
Notify your own insurer promptly

Your UM/UIM policy may contain a contractual notice requirement shorter than the statutory deadline. Report the crash to your own carrier promptly, but do not give a recorded statement or accept any offer before speaking with us. The insurer may frame the recorded statement as routine, but it can lock you into answers before your medical picture is complete.
Pull your declarations page

Find your auto insurance declarations page. It shows your UM/UIM limits, whether you have more than one vehicle on the policy, and any endorsements. If you live in a household with other insured vehicles, stacking may be available. Bring that document to the free case review and we will map every dollar of available coverage.
Call us before the adjuster calls again

Once we are on the case, we handle all insurer communication. We confirm the at-fault driver's uninsured or underinsured status, secure the police report and any available footage, develop the full medical record before any demand goes out, and document every instance of insurer delay or lowballing for the bad-faith record. Call (303) 209-9395.

Economic damages (not limited by Colorado's non-economic cap)

Emergency care at Longmont United Hospital or Longs Peak Hospital, surgery, and follow-up treatment
Future medical costs and rehabilitation
Lost wages and lost earning capacity
Out-of-pocket expenses tied to the crash and recovery

Non-economic damages

Pain and suffering
Emotional distress
Loss of enjoyment of life
Physical impairment and disfigurement, which Colorado treats as a separate category that the non-economic damages cap does not limit (C.R.S. 13-21-102.5(5))

For civil actions filed on or after January 1, 2025, Colorado caps non-economic damages such as pain and suffering at $1.5 million under C.R.S. 13-21-102.5, with inflation adjustments beginning January 1, 2028. Lower caps apply to actions filed before that date, so which cap governs is fact-specific. Economic damages such as medical bills, future care, and lost wages are not limited by that cap, though any UM/UIM recovery is still bounded by the limits on the policy you are claiming under.

Compensation for physical impairment or disfigurement is also not limited by that cap (C.R.S. 13-21-102.5(5)), which matters in serious-injury UM/UIM cases. We structure the demand to reach every available category, including bad-faith penalties when insurer conduct warrants it.

"The injuries are pre-existing"

Blanket medical authorizations reaching back many years are a common insurer request, and they can be used to argue your injuries predate the crash. We manage the scope of medical releases and work with your treating providers to document what was caused by the crash versus what existed before it.
"You were partly at fault"

Colorado's modified comparative negligence rule bars recovery if you are 50 percent or more at fault (C.R.S. 13-21-111). Adjusters can push your fault share toward the 50 percent bar, which would reduce a UM/UIM payment and eliminate it entirely at 50 percent or more. We build the liability record from the crash report, physical evidence, and witness accounts to challenge any inflated fault allocation.
"You validly rejected UM/UIM coverage"

A rejection must be in writing by the named insured to be valid under C.R.S. 10-4-609. Rejections that fail the statute's requirements can be found invalid. We review every rejection document before accepting that no UM/UIM coverage exists.
"The other driver actually had insurance"

Drivers sometimes carry expired cards, have coverage lapses, or drive vehicles insured by someone else. We independently verify the at-fault driver's insurance status through law enforcement records and direct insurer inquiry, not just the other driver's word at the scene.
Delay as a strategy

Slow document requests, file reassignments, and silence after a demand are common. When delay becomes unreasonable, Colorado's statutory bad-faith remedy under C.R.S. 10-3-1115 and 10-3-1116 becomes available. We document the timeline of insurer conduct from first notice forward so that pattern is on record.

In a UM/UIM claim, you are negotiating with your own auto carrier. Every dollar it pays comes off its books. The conflict is structural, not personal.
You may have cooperation duties under your policy, including reporting the crash promptly and providing documentation. What cooperation actually requires depends on the policy language, and reading that language carefully matters before you agree to a recorded statement or accept a fault label in the first call.
When an insurer unreasonably delays or denies a valid claim, Colorado gives you a separate cause of action under C.R.S. 10-3-1115 and 10-3-1116. A documented bad-faith record is one of the few things that reliably moves a carrier off a low number.
Most UM/UIM disputes resolve through negotiation or arbitration, which some policies require before a lawsuit can be filed. We know both tracks and use the one that fits your case best.

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What is the difference between UM and UIM coverage in Colorado?

Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage pays when the at-fault driver had no insurance, fled the scene, or was a phantom vehicle. Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage pays the gap when the at-fault driver had insurance but their policy limit was lower than your documented losses. Both come from your own auto policy. Under C.R.S. 10-4-609(4), buying UM automatically includes UIM. A crash at State Highway 119 and Main Street with an uninsured driver in Longmont triggers your UM coverage, not the other driver's.

Does Colorado law require me to have UM/UIM coverage?

Colorado law does not require you to buy UM/UIM coverage. Every auto insurer in the state must offer it equal to your bodily injury liability limits under C.R.S. 10-4-609. A rejection must be in writing by the named insured to be valid. Rejections that fail the statute's requirements can be found invalid. Drivers who assume they turned this coverage down when they bought the policy often find it still applies to a Longmont crash.

The driver who hit me on State Highway 119 fled the scene. Do I still have a claim?

Yes. A hit-and-run driver is treated as uninsured under Colorado UM coverage. Report the crash to law enforcement and to your own insurer right away, remembering that the Colorado State Patrol rather than the Longmont Police Department may respond on the state highways. Physical evidence, witnesses, and dashcam footage all strengthen the claim, and footage held by businesses and private security systems along Main Street or Hover Street can be overwritten on a short retention cycle. Your policy may also contain a notice deadline shorter than the statutory filing deadline.

How long do I have to file a UM/UIM claim after a Longmont crash?

Colorado UM/UIM claims are governed by C.R.S. 13-80-107.5, the statute the Colorado Supreme Court applied in Pham v. State Farm, 2013 CO 17. The deadline turns on the procedural history of the underlying claim. Your individual policy may impose a shorter contractual notice deadline, and missing that contractual notice can give the insurer a defense. Because the timing is fact-specific, speak with a lawyer early after a crash on any Longmont street.

Can I stack UM/UIM coverage across multiple vehicles in Colorado?

Combining UM/UIM limits across multiple vehicles or policies is fact-specific, not automatic. A 2007 amendment to C.R.S. 10-4-609, effective January 1, 2008, removed the provision that had let insurers reduce UIM by what the at-fault carrier paid, and C.R.S. 10-4-609(1)(c) bars a setoff from other coverage. The same subsection also allows a single policy issued for a single premium covering multiple vehicles to be limited to applying once per accident. Whether combining applies to your Longmont case depends on the declarations pages, how premiums were charged, and the policy language.

I was on foot when an uninsured driver hit me. Does UM coverage apply?

It can. UM/UIM coverage generally follows the insured person rather than the vehicle, so a policyholder or covered household member struck while walking or cycling may be able to claim under their own auto policy, depending on its terms. The city's crash report counted 52 pedestrians and 31 bicyclists among the people killed or seriously injured on Longmont roadways between 2020 and 2024. It costs nothing to have the policy reviewed.

Where would my Longmont UM/UIM lawsuit be filed?

Personal injury cases arising in Boulder County may be filed in the Boulder County District Court, the 20th Judicial District. The Colorado Judicial Branch lists the Boulder County Combined Court at 1777 6th St., Boulder, CO 80302, and a second Boulder County Combined Court location in Longmont at 1035 Kimbark St. Colorado's venue rule allows more than one proper county, and in a UM/UIM claim the defendant is your own insurer rather than the driver. Some policies require arbitration first, and we handle both tracks.

How does Colorado's comparative fault rule affect my UM/UIM recovery?

Colorado follows a modified comparative negligence rule with a 50 percent bar (C.R.S. 13-21-111). If you are found less than 50 percent at fault, you can recover damages, but your award is reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are 50 percent or more at fault, you recover nothing. Adjusters can push your fault share higher, which reduces a UM/UIM payout. We build the liability record from the crash report, physical evidence, and witnesses to challenge any inflated fault allocation made by your own insurer.

Longmont

Practice Area

Denver Money Pages

Firm

It's More Than Money.

An uninsured driver hurt you in Longmont. We make your own carrier pay what the policy owes.

Free consultation for Longmont crash victims. No fee unless we win. Serving Boulder County from Denver. Call (303) 209-9395.

Call (303) 209-9395 Get my free UM/UIM case review

Prefer to read first? See how Colorado UM/UIM law works statewide.

CGH Injury Lawyers · 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205

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Longmont Uninsured Motorist Lawyers Who Make Your Own Insurer Pay What It Owes

Colorado UM/UIM law decoded for Longmont crash victims

C.R.S. 10-4-609: what the statute requires

The four triggers: when UM/UIM applies

The filing deadline and comparative fault

Where Longmont UM/UIM crashes happen, and where your case goes

State Highway 119, Main Street, State Highway 66, and Hover Street

Two Level III centers in the city, and the transfer that can follow

Boulder County District Court, 20th Judicial District, and the Longmont court location

Why an uninsured driver makes the paperwork more likely

Why Longmont victims choose CGH Injury Lawyers for UM/UIM claims

C.R.S. 10-4-609

When your insurer stalls, we have a remedy.

We decline cases we cannot stand behind.

Multiple vehicles may mean multiple limits.

ABOTA member. Boulder County is not a problem.

Hablamos espanol.

Contingency only.

What to do after an uninsured or hit-and-run crash in Longmont

Get medical care immediately

Call law enforcement

Document everything at the scene

Notify your own insurer promptly

Pull your declarations page

Call us before the adjuster calls again

What compensation can Longmont UM/UIM victims recover?

Economic damages (not limited by Colorado's non-economic cap)

Non-economic damages

Defenses Longmont UM/UIM insurers use, and how we answer them

"The injuries are pre-existing"

"You were partly at fault"

"You validly rejected UM/UIM coverage"

"The other driver actually had insurance"

Delay as a strategy

Why filing against your own insurer is different

Longmont UM/UIM claims: frequently asked questions

Related pages

An uninsured driver hurt you in Longmont. We make your own carrier pay what the policy owes.