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VictimsGuide • Crash & Claim Roadmap
Start Here
You do not need to understand the insurance system before using this site. Start with what happened, preserve the record, identify the insurance, develop the loss, and then move into the state law that controls your claim.
The first five questions
A serious crash creates several systems at once. Do not let the insurance claim become the only record of what happened.
What happened?
Preserve the scene, vehicles, electronic data, witnesses, medical history and law-enforcement record.
Who is responsible?
Driver, owner, employer, business, contractor, government entity, rideshare company or another responsible person may matter.
What insurance exists?
Look beyond the insurance card for owner, driver, commercial, umbrella, excess, UM/UIM, MedPay and other coverage.
What has it cost?
Medical treatment, income loss, future care, property loss, reimbursement claims and human consequences require evidence.
Is it ready to end?
Before settlement or release, understand coverage, future losses, reimbursement, UM/UIM and every party being released.
Choose the problem you are facing
Enter through the problem in front of you. You can move from practical guidance into the applicable state law as the issue becomes clearer.
I was just in a crash
Begin with safety, evidence preservation, medical care, vehicles, witnesses, law enforcement and records.
Open Crash Victim Workflow →I need to find all available insurance
Identify the driver, owner, employer, commercial, umbrella, excess and first-party coverage before assuming the first policy is the whole answer.
Map who can pay →The insurer denied or limited coverage
Read the actual policy, coverage grant, definitions, exclusions and reservation or denial before treating the insurer’s position as the final answer.
Open Coverage Disputes →Medical bills, liens or repayment claims are accumulating
Separate provider bills, health insurance, MedPay, Medicare/Medicaid, reimbursement claims and true legal liens before calculating net recovery.
Open Liens & Reimbursement →The insurer wants a settlement or release
Before signing away claims, check every policy, future loss, reimbursement interest, UM/UIM issue, released party and unresolved condition.
Understand settlement & releases →Someone died in the crash
Final arrangements, estate authority, survival claims, wrongful death, insurance and family rights are separate systems that must be coordinated.
Open the death & claims roadmap →I need to preserve evidence before it disappears
Video, phones, vehicle data, public records and witnesses can vanish long before a lawsuit begins.
Open the Evidence Library →I am the driver being blamed or sued
Understand your insurer, defense lawyer, policy limits, reservation of rights, settlement decisions and possible personal exposure.
Open the Defense Handbook →A lawsuit has already been filed
Start with deadlines, complaint and answer, discovery, depositions, experts, motions and the road to settlement or trial.
Open Litigation & Resolution →Research the law in the applicable state.
Insurance rules, crash liability, damages, disclosure rights, UM/UIM, insurer duties and deadlines can differ materially from one state to another.
Colorado resources
Practical guides and primary-law research for Colorado.
Crash Victim Workflow
Practical process after a serious collision.
Open →Policy Disclosure Guide
Colorado policy-information and disclosure research.
Open →Colorado MedPay
First-party medical-payments coverage.
Open →Colorado UM/UIM
Uninsured and underinsured motorist protection.
Open →Hospital Bills & Liens
Medical billing, liens and reimbursement.
Open →Stories & Reform
Systemic patterns, public-interest analysis and reform work.
Open →Choose how deeply you need to research
Move from practical explanation toward primary authority as the question requires.
Citizen Guide
Plain-language explanation of the rule, why it matters and what evidence or workflow should follow.
Primary Authority
Current statutes, regulations and controlling appellate decisions behind the citizen guide.
Case Authority Library
Searchable doctrinal index to principal decisions supporting the completed state-law libraries.
Public education and reform
VictimsGuide also studies recurring system problems, public understanding and opportunities for greater transparency and accountability.
Stories & Reform
Study recurring insurance and crash-system problems and proposals for greater transparency and accountability.
Explore →About VictimsGuide
Learn why VictimsGuide exists and how the public-interest legal information library is being built.
Read the mission →The order matters.
Preserve first. Investigate next. Identify all insurance. Understand the controlling state law. Develop damages. Resolve reimbursement. Then decide whether the claim is ready for settlement and release.