Effective January 1, 2020, insurers will be required to disclose insurance policies to insureds and liability coverage available to third-party claimants.
Failure to comply with the statutory disclosure requirements will result in a fine of $100 per day as well as attorney fees and costs incurred by a claimant in enforcing the penalty.
The new statute was enacted as C.R.S. § 10-3-1117, with the stated purpose of assisting “Colorado residents evaluate whether their uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage will be triggered,” and allowing insurers providing uninsured and underinsured coverage “more time to evaluate and place reserves on claims.”
An auto insurer to provide a copy of the commercial or personal auto policy to an insured within 30 days after receiving a written request for the policy from the insured.
If a request is received from a third-party claimant or his attorney, subsection (2)(a) requires the insurer to provide within 30 days a statement that includes:
1) The name of the insurer;
2) The name of each insured party, as it appears on the declarations page;
3) The limits of the liability coverage; and
4) A complete copy of the insurance policy, including endorsements.
The request must be presented to the carrier’s registered agent; requests to an insurer’s employees or sales agents will not trigger the duty to disclose liability coverage under the statute.
The Colorado Division of Insurance is expected to issue guidance before the statute goes into effect.