insurance
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Colorado Supreme Court narrows consumer protection law for insurance claims
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The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the legislature’s consumer protections requiring insurance companies to take certain steps before they allege a policyholder failed to cooperate do not apply to any obligation specifically laid out in the policy. In 2020, the legislature changed state law to limit insurance companies’ ability to assert a failure-to-cooperate defense when…
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Car rental companies are not ‘insurers,’ Colorado Supreme Court rules
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The Colorado Supreme Court decided on Monday that car rental companies offering insurance policies are not also “insurers” under state law, who may be sued for their failure to pay out benefits on claims. By 4-3, the justices further concluded that Hertz Corp. was not a “de facto” insurer simply because it was heavily involved…
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Gov. Polis unveils plan aimed at cutting Colorado home insurance costs by up to $800 a year
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Gov. Jared Polis and Division of Insurance Commissioner Mike Conway unveiled a “roadmap” on Thursday that they say will save the average Coloradan $800 a year on homeowner’s insurance. Colorado has some of the highest homeowners’ insurance rates in the country, according to the National Association of Realtors. While premiums nationwide increased by about 58%…
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10th Circuit rules State Farm not required to pay benefits in I‑25 swerving crash
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The Denver-based federal appeals court concluded last week that two vehicle occupants who were injured while swerving to avoid a man in the middle of Interstate 25 are not entitled to insurance benefits. Plaintiffs Stephanie Mazur and Julia Wunder were in a vehicle insured by State Farm at the time of their wreck. The insurance…
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Colorado justices agree to review insurance question that has divided federal judges
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The Colorado Supreme Court granted a federal judge’s request on Friday to address an issue that has produced conflicting answers in policyholders’ lawsuits against insurance companies over unpaid benefits. “Parties (and judges) regularly spend undue time and money fighting in the pretrial context about a legal question that should be resolved once and for all…
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Appeals court recognizes longer window to sue insurers for withholding policy details
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Colorado’s second-highest court split with its own prior decision earlier this month and concluded injured motorists have two years, not one, to sue insurance companies for withholding relevant information about an at-fault driver’s policy. In 2019, Colorado lawmakers enacted a measure to help motorists determine which insurance coverage is available in the event of an injury. To…
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Colorado Supreme Court accepts cases about reliability of gun-to-bullet matching
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will hear two cases questioning the reliability of expert testimony that purports to identify whether a specific bullet was fired from a specific gun. At least three of the court’s seven members must agree to take up a case on appeal. There is currently one vacancy,…
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Colorado lawmakers target ‘ghost networks’ to expand access to mental health care
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A few years ago, the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance conducted a “secret shopper” survey on health insurance plans across six states, including Colorado. Of the 120 providers called, one-third were either inaccurately listed in the carrier database, out of service, or did not return the call. Only half of all calls to providers in…
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‘I am shocked — shocked — about the cost of insurance!’ | OPINION
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By Brandi Bradley In a famous scene from the classic movie “Casablanca”, the police captain defends the closure of Rick’s Café by remarking to Humphrey Bogart‘s character, “I’m shocked, shocked to find there’s gambling going on here.” Thereupon the Bogart character hands the chief his gambling winnings, revealing both the hypocrisy of the captain and…
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Divided appeals court orders insurance company to pay $35,600 for delayed disclosure of policy
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Colorado’s second-highest court concluded on Thursday that an insurance company violated state law when it refused to disclose an automobile policy to an injured motorist for nearly one year after she requested it. By 2-1, a three-judge Court of Appeals panel held that Esurance Property & Casualty Insurance Company had an obligation to hand over…