Motorcycle Accident Claims in Colorado

Motorcycle helmets: in Colorado, drivers and passengers under 18 on a motorcycle, autocycle or low-power scooter must wear a properly secured motorcycle helmet meeting federal standard FMVSS 218; riders 18 and older are not required to. Certain low-speed autocycles with a windshield and seat belts are exempt. A violation is a class A traffic infraction. The section does not address reducing damages.

Lane splitting and filtering: Colorado generally bans riding a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between rows of vehicles. Since August 7, 2024, the driver of a two-wheeled motorcycle may pass a stopped vehicle in the same lane (lane filtering) if the vehicles in adjacent same-direction lanes are also stopped, the lanes are wide enough, the motorcycle goes 15 mph or less, and conditions are safe; filtering must stop when traffic starts moving and is not allowed on the right shoulder, to the right of the far-right lane on a non-limited-access highway, or in an opposing lane. This filtering permission is set to be repealed on September 1, 2027.

Modified comparative negligence (50% bar). An injured person can recover if his or her negligence was not as great as the negligence of the person being sued; damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of fault. If the injured person's share is equal to or greater than the defendant's, the court enters judgment for the defendant. Each defendant generally pays only its own percentage of fault.

Required liability coverage is at least $25,000 for injury or death of one person, $50,000 for all persons in one accident, and $15,000 for property damage (25/50/15).

Most tort lawsuits, including negligence claims for personal injury, must be filed within two years after the claim accrues. Injury and property-damage claims arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle have three years. Assault, battery, false imprisonment, libel and slander have one year.