Colorado law requires all motorists to remain at the scene of an accident and exchange information with others involved in the accident. If police have been called, then the law also states that motorists have to stay at the accident scene until police give them the OK to leave – otherwise, they can face criminal charges that can be filed felonies if anyone was hurt or killed in the collision.
Despite these laws, some drivers still choose not stop after getting into accidents, fleeing the scene in what may be an effort to avoid taking responsibility for the collision. While any number of factors may motivate drivers to fail to stop after an accident, some common reasons that drivers flee the accident scene can include that they:
- Are drunk or are under the influence of drugs
- Do not have a valid drivers’ license and/or auto insurance
- Are inexperienced drivers, are scared and panic.
Regardless of the reasons that drivers have for not stopping, the fact is that hit-and-runs are illegal and that:
- Victims of these accidents can sue negligent drivers if the responsible drivers are eventually tracked down.
- Even if the driver that caused the hit-and-run is not found, accident victims may still be able to receive compensation for their injuries and losses if they have uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage (as part of their auto insurance policies).
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If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident call us for a free case evaluation.
How the Lawyers at Bahr, Kreidle & Flicker Can Help Accident Victims
After hit-and-run accidents, the attorneys at the Law Office of Bahr, Kreidle & Flicker can play a crucial role in helping victims get the compensation they need and deserve. Specifically, our hit-and-run accident lawyers can:
- Thoroughly investigate the accident and make painstaking efforts to identify and locate the at-fault motorist (by, for instance, reviewing police reports, questioning witnesses, reviewing surveillance footage, etc.)
- Represent families who have lost loved ones in fatal hit-and-run accident cases (as many of these types of car accidents involve pedestrians and result in fatal injuries)
- Go up against insurance companies to ensure that accident victims get the full amount of compensation to which they are entitled.
It’s important that victims of hit-and-runs know that, just because they have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, their insurance companies won’t necessarily pay them. This is because insurers may try to:
- Marginalize victims’ injuries in an effort to try to undervalue victims’ compensation
- Deny that victims have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to try to avoid paying them entirely
- Act in bad faith in other ways to preserve their own profits at victims’ expense and detriment.
Consequently, even if hit-and-run victims have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, they shouldn’t trust insurance companies to honor their policies.
Bahr, Kreidle & Flicker: Experience and Dedication You Can Trust
Since 1983, the car accident attorneys at Bahr, Kreidle & Flicker have been aggressively standing up against injustice, inequality and intolerance. Our lawyers know how devastating the impacts of hit-and-run accidents can be, and we know that many injured people depend on settlements to get the medical treatments they need. That’s why we are dedicated to championing injured people’s rights, helping them hold negligent parties responsible and ultimately helping the get them the highest possible settlements for their claims.
Contact Us for a Free Consult
If you or a loved one has been injured in a hit-and-run accident, our Littleton car accident lawyers urge you to get more information about your potential case and rights by meeting with us for a free, no obligations initial consultation. To set up a meeting, call us at (303) 794-7422 or email us using the form on this page.
From our law offices in Littleton, we represent clients throughout Colorado, including in the Denver Metro Area, Arapahoe County, Adams County, Jefferson County and in the cities of Lakewood, Highlands Ranch, Lonetree, Castlerock, Westminster, Centennial and Aurora.
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