Getting hit by a car when you were simply walking is a shock nobody prepares for, and you shouldn’t have to battle an insurance company while your body heals. A Denver pedestrian accident lawyer at Born & McCaffrey Injury Law takes that fight off your plate.
We represent people hit by cars, trucks, buses, and delivery vans across Denver, Glendale, Aurora, Brighton, and Weld County.
In Colorado, drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and must use due care to avoid hitting anyone on the road, even someone who crossed mid-block. If a driver broke those duties and you were hurt, you can pursue a claim for your medical bills, lost income, and the pain the crash caused.
Your consultation is free, we answer the phone 24 hours a day, and you pay nothing up front. Call (303) 800-6996 to speak to an attorney today. Hablamos español.
Who Is at Fault When a Pedestrian Is Hit by a Car in Denver?
The driver is at fault when a pedestrian is hit, because Colorado law puts most of the duty to avoid a collision on the person behind the wheel. Drivers must yield to people in crosswalks, honor walk signals, and watch for pedestrians everywhere on the road.
Fault shifts only when the evidence shows the pedestrian also broke a safety rule.
Colorado’s crosswalk statute requires a driver to slow down or stop for a pedestrian crossing in a crosswalk when no working traffic signal controls the spot. An unmarked crosswalk counts too.
At most intersections, the crosswalk is the stretch of road that connects one sidewalk to the next, whether anyone painted lines on it.
Under that statute, a Colorado driver must:
- Yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk who is on the driver’s half of the road, or close enough on the other half to be in danger
- Give the right-of-way to anyone crossing on a steady Walk signal
- Yield to a pedestrian who started on Walk and is still finishing when the signal flashes Don’t Walk
- Never pass a car that has stopped at a crosswalk to let someone cross
That list covers crosswalks, but a driver’s duty doesn’t end at the painted lines. A separate law says every driver must exercise due care to avoid hitting a pedestrian on any roadway, no matter who technically had the right-of-way.
Do You Need a Lawyer After Being Hit by a Car in Denver?
If you were seriously hurt, if the driver’s insurer is blaming you, or if the money on the table won’t cover your bills, a lawyer can change the outcome of your claim. Minor scrapes that heal in a week rarely need an attorney. Pedestrian crashes, though, seldomly stay minor.
When More Than One Party Is Involved
A crash involving a delivery driver, a city vehicle, a hit-and-run, or several insurance policies gets complicated fast. Different deadlines, different insurers, and different rules can apply to each party.
Pedestrian Crashes Our Denver Team Handles
We handle every type of crash where a driver’s carelessness injured someone on foot, from crosswalk collisions to backing accidents in driveways. The details of how it happened decide which Colorado traffic rules apply and who pays.
Right Turns on Red
Colorado lets drivers turn right on a red light only after stopping and yielding to pedestrians in the crosswalk. Many drivers roll through while looking left for a gap in traffic and never glance to the right, where someone is stepping off the curb. That split-second habit causes many serious injuries.
Backing Up and Pulling Out of Driveways
Drivers leaving an alley, driveway, parking garage, or building must stop before crossing the sidewalk and yield to anyone walking there. Small children and people using wheelchairs can be especially difficult to see from a driver’s seat, which makes these crashes common in lots and driveways.
Can a Pedestrian Be at Fault for an Accident in Colorado?
Yes, a pedestrian can share fault, but sharing fault doesn’t automatically end the claim. Colorado uses modified comparative negligence, so you can still recover as long as your share of fault is less than the driver’s. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault.
Insurers lean hard on two rules. A pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk must yield to vehicles, and between two intersections with traffic signals, a pedestrian may cross only in a marked crosswalk.
How Comparative Fault Changes the Numbers
Under Colorado’s comparative negligence statute, a jury assigns each person a percentage of fault. If you’re found 50% or more at fault, you recover nothing, so the percentage fight often decides the case. Here’s how it plays out on a claim with $200,000 in total damages:
| Your share of the fault | Driver’s share of fault | What you can recover |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 100% | $200,000 |
| 20% | 80% | $160,000 |
| 40% | 60% | $120,000 |
| 50% | 50% | $0 |
| 60% | 40% | $0 |
How Our Denver Pedestrian Accident Lawyers Prove What Happened
Fault disputes turn on evidence, and some of the most important evidence starts disappearing within days of a crash. Our job is to lock it down before it’s gone and use it to show what the driver did.
In a typical pedestrian case, we go after:
- The Denver Police Department crash report, officer notes, and any citations issued
- Video from traffic cameras, nearby businesses, doorbells, dash cameras, and passing buses, much of which is recorded over on a short cycle
- Data from the vehicle’s event data recorder, which can show speed and braking in the seconds before impact
- Statements from witnesses, bus riders, and other drivers while their memories are fresh
- Your medical records, imaging, and treatment plan
Each piece answers a question an insurer will ask.
Which Insurance Pays After a Pedestrian Is Hit in Colorado?
The at-fault driver’s liability insurance is the first source of payment in most Colorado pedestrian claims. When that coverage is too small or the driver has none, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage may step in, even though you were walking.
When the Driver Doesn’t Have Enough Coverage
Colorado insurers must offer UM/UIM coverage, and it stays on your policy unless you turned it down in writing. In many policies, this coverage follows you as a person rather than your car, so it can apply when you’re hit on foot.
When the Driver Drove Away
Every driver involved in a crash that injures someone must stop and help, so leaving the scene is a crime in Colorado. If police can’t identify the driver, your UM coverage may pay as if the driver had no insurance at all.
What Compensation Can a Denver Pedestrian Accident Attorney Help You Recover?
You can seek payment for your financial losses, your physical and emotional suffering, and any lasting impairment the crash caused. Colorado separates these into economic damages, noneconomic damages, and damages for physical impairment and disfigurement.
A pedestrian injury claim can include:
- Emergency care, surgery, hospital stays, and rehabilitation
- Future medical treatment, therapy, and medical equipment
- Wages you lost while recovering
- Reduced earning capacity if you can’t return to the same work
- Pain, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life
- Physical impairment, scarring, and disfigurement
We back up each category with records and, when needed, testimony from doctors and economists.
Colorado’s Cap on Pain and Suffering
Colorado limits noneconomic damages, the part of a claim that covers pain, distress, and inconvenience. Lawmakers raised that cap to $1.5 million for civil actions filed on or after January 1, 2025, with inflation adjustments every two years starting in 2028.
Pedestrian Claims Against RTD, the City, or Another Public Agency
If a city vehicle, a Regional Transportation District (RTD) bus, or another public agency played a part in your crash, you have a much shorter window to act. Colorado law requires a written notice of claim within 182 days of discovering the injury.
The rule comes from the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (CGIA). RTD’s own claims process points injured people to the 182-day requirement.
The Clock Starts Before You Know Who’s Responsible
In 2026, the Colorado Supreme Court held that the 182-day period runs from when you knew you were hurt, not from when you learned which agency was responsible. In that case, an injured woman notified one city on time but reached the responsible city too late, and she lost her claim against it.
How Long Do You Have to File a Pedestrian Accident Claim in Colorado?
Most Colorado pedestrian injury lawsuits must be filed within three years of the crash. That deadline applies to injuries caused by the use or operation of a motor vehicle. Exceptions exist, and claims against a public entity carry the much shorter 182-day notice requirement described above.
Why Waiting Hurts a Case Long Before the Deadline
The filing deadline is only part of the picture. Video gets deleted, witnesses move, and the car that hit you gets repaired, all long before three years pass.
Why Injured Pedestrians Choose Born & McCaffrey Injury Law
When you hire Born & McCaffrey Injury Law, you get two trial lawyers who handle your case themselves. We built this firm so injured people could reach their own attorney directly, not a rotating cast of case managers.
Here’s what that looks like for you:
- You work directly with attorneys Michael Born and Peter McCaffrey
- We prepare every case as if it’s going to trial, because insurers treat trial-ready cases differently
- Peter speaks fluent Spanish and hosts a weekly Spanish-language radio show, so Spanish-speaking clients get answers in their own language from their own lawyer
- Consultations are free, and we answer calls 24 hours a day
- You pay nothing up front, and we’re paid only if we recover compensation for you
Call (303) 800-6996 for your free consultation.
FAQs: Denver Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
Talk to a Denver Pedestrian Accident Lawyer Today
If you were hit by a car while you were walking and insurance companies won’t leave you alone, Born & McCaffrey Injury Law is here to help.
Call us at (303) 800-6996 or visit our office at 4100 E Mississippi Ave, Suite 802, in Denver for a free consultation. Se habla español.
ATTORNEY MICHAEL BORN
Michael has represented well over a thousand injury victims in his career. He has litigated 500 court cases. He has tried cases in counties all over Colorado. He has briefed and argued appeals in the appellate courts. This experience ultimately led to him leaving the big firm life to form Born & McCaffrey in order to provide a more client centered and personal representation than a large law firm is able to provide. [ ATTORNEY BIO ]
Born and Mccaffrey did a spectacular job handling my case. I was completely unequipped to handle anything of this sort on my own and Michael did an amazing job at communicating to me what exactly was happening during each step of the process while making sure I was well prepared. I feel so much better having this all behind me and can’t thank the firm enough for their countless hours of work and negotiation on my behalf. — A. Hernandez
I recently had the opportunity to work with my attorney on a car accident case, and I am incredibly impressed with the outcome. Overall, I would highly recommend my attorney Peter to anyone in need of legal assistance for a car accident. Their professionalism, dedication, and knowledge made a challenging situation much more manageable, and I am grateful for their hard work and commitment to my case. — V. Cano
Mr. Born has been great with my case from the first phone call! Very knowledgeable and prompt when returning calls with answers to my questions. I never felt like I was just another case; he provided individualized care and gave me the information I needed to know the next steps to assure the best result for my injuries! — J. Cruz
I had an accident about almost a year ago and the fault insurance didn’t want to pay the entire bill. It’s been amazing working with them I really didn’t have to worry about a thing. Got everything settled and didn’t have to pay anything out of my pocket. Thank you very much to these gentleman!! — A. Gomez
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