Posted on May 05, 2025 in Car Accident

If you suffered injuries or property damage because of a drunk driving accident caused by someone else in Colorado, you are entitled to recover the costs related to all the damages you incurred. You typically have multiple legal avenues, including filing a lawsuit against the drunk driver and possibly the establishment that served them. Working with an experienced Fort Collins, CO drunk driving accident attorney ensures you understand the laws that apply to your case and the damages you can claim.

What Is Colorado’s Dram Shop Law?

Colorado, like many other states, has a Dram Shop Law that affords victims of drunk drivers the right to take legal action against the drunk driver and sometimes even the business that provided alcohol to the driver. Restaurants, liquor stores, bars, and any store that sells alcohol could qualify as a dram shop, and under the Colorado Revised Statutes, you could sue if the circumstances call for it. For example, the law applies if any of the following is true of the drunk driver in your case:

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 Posted on April 29, 2025 in Truck Accident

Truck accidents can cause severe injuries and result in significant damages, including tragic loss of life. An unfortunate common cause of big rig crashes with smaller vehicles is tire blowouts, which are most often the result of negligence. In Colorado, if you were injured or lost a loved one in a truck accident caused by a tire blowout, you may be able to recover damages. An experienced Fort Collins, CO truck accident attorney can help you file a claim and identify the recoverable damages available to you.

Types of Accidents Caused by Truck Tire Blowouts

Some types of accidents are unique to commercial trucks because of their weight and dimensions. When a tire blows out, the truck driver could lose control of the vehicle, and any of the following may happen:

• Jackknife accident: The truck trailer swings around, landing at an angle with the cab. This could cause the truck to skid off the road and hit other vehicles.

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 Posted on April 23, 2025 in Car Accident

Auto accidents can result in devastating consequences, especially for the victims of reckless drivers. Colorado has a fault-based system for auto accident cases, allowing you to hold the party responsible for your accident accountable for the damages.

The case becomes slightly more complex when the party at fault was driving uninsured. If you suffered losses in a car accident with an uninsured driver, a Fort Collins, CO auto accident attorney will listen to the details of your case and explain what you can do to recover damages.

How Does Fault-Based Insurance Work?

Anyone who owns and operates a vehicle in Colorado must carry liability insurance. According to the state’s mandatory automobile insurance laws, the minimum requirements cover maximum amounts for bodily injury or death to anyone involved in the accident and property damage. For example, if you caused an accident that resulted in someone else’s injury, the other party would file a claim for damages with your insurance. However, what happens when the driver who is responsible for the accident does not have insurance coverage?

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 Posted on April 11, 2025 in Workers' Compensation

Physician selection is an important part of care in the aftermath of a work-related accident. When your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance chooses the doctor for you, the care you receive may not always be the best because the treating doctor plays a role in resolving a workers’ comp claim. 

Sometimes, that translates into neglecting your best interests for the sake of the insurance provider. A compassionate and knowledgeable Colorado workers’ compensation attorney will ensure that someone is looking out for you so you can access the home assistance and essential services you need to live as comfortably as possible after your injury.

How Do I Get Long-Term Care After a Workplace Accident?

In the wake of a serious workplace injury that requires long-term care, the rehabilitation doctors who work with insurance companies on workers’ compensation claims should be referring skilled healthcare workers, like occupational therapists and registered nurses, to your home to evaluate your ability to live independently. 

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 Posted on April 04, 2025 in Personal Injury

In March 2025, Georgia’s House of Representatives passed a governor-backed tort reform bill, Senate Bill 68, with a single-vote margin. This bill claims to improve litigation balance in the state court system and protect businesses and customers from excessive lawsuits that increase costs for both.

If bills like this pass in other states across the country, it could impede your ability to access the courts for tort claims, including in personal injury cases like motor vehicle accidents or wrongful death. If you have concerns about tort reform and what it could mean for the citizens of Colorado, you can speak with a Larimer County, CO personal injury attorney today.

What Are the Implications of Senate Bill 68?

To understand the possible implications for Colorado or any state, consider the changes the bill made to Georgia’s tort laws:

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 Posted on March 31, 2025 in Car Accident

The Colorado Department of Transportation’s data dashboard tracks various statistics for car accidents in Colorado. Examining the facts about crashes in Larimer County can help keep our roads safer. However, if you are injured in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, our skilled Fort Collins, CO personal injury lawyer can help you get the compensation you deserve. Se Habla Español.

What Can We Learn From Larimer County’s 2024 Accident Facts?

Although these figures are considered preliminary, they paint a clear picture of collisions in Larimer County:

• There were 5,958 crashes reported.

• The most frequent harmful events involved front-to-rear crashes (1876), front-to-side crashes (1320), side-to-side crashes in the same direction (605), collisions with parked cars (364), and collisions with curbs (211).

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 Posted on March 24, 2025 in Workers' Compensation

Traffic accidents can be fatal, whether a victim dies immediately or later succumbs to his or her injuries. Workplace accidents can also result in deaths. Along with the emotional turmoil, surviving family members are left without the income, benefits, and services the deceased had provided.

If your loved one’s fatal injury happened at work, eligible survivors can pursue death benefits through a workers’ compensation claim. When negligent or willful behavior caused the death, you may qualify to seek damages through wrongful death and survival actions. In some cases, a worker’s death could yield both workers’ comp and wrongful death compensation. For the best chance of success, you need a skilled Fort Collins, CO wrongful death attorney who also handles workers’ comp cases. Se Habla Español.

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 Posted on March 12, 2025 in Car Accident

On March 8th, a deadly accident occurred on I-25 in Loveland. A Toyota Rav4 reportedly went under a tractor-trailer, killing the SUV’s driver. The semi driver was uninjured. An analysis of U.S. Department of Transportation data from 2022 revealed that of the 2,523 occupant deaths in large truck vs. car crashes that year, 2,418 (96 percent) were passenger vehicle occupants, with only 105 (4 percent) being occupants of the large trucks.

The unfortunate truth is that passenger vehicle occupants are at a significant disadvantage in truck accidents. Injured victims may qualify to receive compensation for their damages through a personal injury claim, and a wrongful death claim could provide compensation for the families of fatal truck crash victims. However, getting as much as you are entitled to is challenging unless you have a skilled Fort Collins, CO personal injury lawyer advocating for your best interests.

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 Posted on March 05, 2025 in Car Accident

As an agency of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s purpose is to reduce the number of injuries, deaths, and economic losses from motor vehicle crashes. To that end, the NHTSA urges drivers to check whether their vehicles have any open safety recalls twice a year. The Safe Cars Save Lives campaign educates drivers about how to check for recalls and what to do if your vehicle has been recalled.

We at Hoggatt Law Office, P.C. care about your safety and join the NHTSA in reminding you to check for recalls on your vehicles. If you are injured in an accident caused by a recalled vehicle, even if it is yours, contact our knowledgeable Fort Collins, CO personal injury attorney to explore your options for compensation.

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 Posted on February 28, 2025 in Personal Injury

If you sustain injuries through someone else’s intentional act or negligence, you may be entitled to compensation. You have probably heard that before, but when it happens to you, several questions usually arise. Most people want to know how much their case is worth and when they would be paid. The answer is that it depends on many factors. All injured victim’s damages are unique and calculated using case-specific details. There are also different ways to structure your payment.

When you work with our knowledgeable Fort Collins, CO personal injury lawyer, we will work to help you secure the maximum amount of compensation available for your damages. We will also explain the different payout options and help you determine which works best for you.

How Do Personal Injury Settlements Work?

The payment portion of the personal injury claim process has several steps, and all are important. First, your lawyer will calculate your accident-related losses, which are called damages. Those could include your medical bills, property damage, the costs of ongoing care, lost wages, and several forms of pain and suffering. The amounts vary widely, and they could include future qualifying expenses in addition to your current financial losses.

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