Practice Area
Hit by a driver while riding a bike or e-scooter? Colorado gives riders specific protections, and drivers and insurers often get them wrong. You pay nothing unless we recover.
When you hire Smith & Weidinger, you work with the lawyer handling your case, not a call center. Founding partner Matthew A. Weidinger focuses on serious-injury cases with complex liability and damages. Before co-founding the firm, he worked at large and small personal injury firms in Denver and Colorado Springs and served as a Deputy District Attorney in Mesa County.
We handle bicycle and e-scooter claims from our offices in Denver (1040 S. Gaylord St.) and Colorado Springs (415 N. Tejon St.), whether the crash happened in a city bike lane or on a Front Range road. Under Colorado law, a cyclist on the road has the same rights and duties as any other driver, apart from a few bike-specific rules. Many drivers don’t know those rules, and that confusion often ends up in a denial letter.
These rules come up again and again after a crash.
Colorado defines an electric scooter as a device under 100 pounds with a top motor speed of 20 mph or less. Scooters can ride on streets and in bike lanes, and state law lets cities ban sidewalk riding. Denver does, so in Denver e-scooters belong in the street or bike lane. The safety stop applies to scooter riders too.
If you were hurt on a rental scooter, more than one claim may be possible. If a driver hit you, you can pursue the driver’s insurance, and your own UM/UIM coverage may apply. If a brake or throttle failed, the rental company or manufacturer may share responsibility, though the app’s user agreement can affect that claim. If a pothole or broken pavement caused the fall, a claim against the government agency responsible for the road requires written notice within 182 days.
Colorado personal injury
Using the safety stop isn’t running a light. Get a free consultation with a Colorado injury attorney. Not a screener.
You pay nothing upfront.
Not a call center.
Serious-injury crashes and the insurance claims that follow.
Commercial trucking crashes with complex liability.
Injuries caused by dangerous property conditions.
Drivers often say the cyclist “came out of nowhere,” and some adjusters take that at face value. We answer it with the law riders actually follow and the evidence of what happened, gathered before it disappears.
We also look for coverage you may not know you have. Your own auto policy often protects you on a bike.
Every bike and scooter claim is built from the same pieces:
The safety stop, three-foot, dooring, and right-of-way rules that put the duty on the driver.
Strava, a bike computer, or a scooter app can confirm your route, speed, and timing. Save it and don't edit it.
Your bike, helmet, and clothing are evidence. Keep them as they are until they're documented.
The driver's liability coverage, your UM/UIM, and MedPay if your policy extends it to riders.
Head injuries, fractures, road rash, and back injuries, and what they mean for your work and your riding.
We look at all of it. Then we decide, with you, whether to settle or file suit.
You talk with a lawyer, not a screener. We explain your options, the deadlines that apply, and how our contingency fee works.
Get the care you need. We deal with the insurance companies and help coordinate MedPay, health insurance, and providers so your treatment doesn't stall.
We collect the reports, photos, video, witness statements, and records, and we send preservation letters before evidence is lost.
Once your doctors have a clear picture of your recovery, we document your losses (medical bills, lost income, future care, and how the injury changed your life) and present the claim.
We negotiate with every insurer involved, and with the health plans and providers that want to be repaid, so more of the settlement stays with you.
If the insurer won't be fair, we file suit before the deadline and prepare the case for trial. Most cases settle, and that preparation is what gets them to a fair number.
Recent outcomes from our motor vehicle injury cases. None of these involved a bicycle or scooter.
Settlement for a client rear-ended at high speed by a distracted driver.
Settlement for aggravation of neck and back injuries.
Settlement for a client struck by a red-light runner who tried to blame our client.
Results depend on the specific facts and legal circumstances of each case. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome.
Unedited, from our Google profile.
Reviews are published on Google by the people who wrote them. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
These are the questions riders ask most after a crash. The answers below are general. The crash, your injuries, and your coverage decide how they apply to you.
Yes, within limits. Riders 15 and older may slow to 10 mph or less at a stop sign (or a posted limit up to 20 mph), yield to traffic and pedestrians, and continue if it’s clear. At a red light, riders must stop fully and yield before going straight or turning right.
Often, yes, depending on the policy language. UM/UIM coverage may pay when the driver who hit you had no insurance or not enough, and some policies extend medical payments coverage to cyclists. We review every policy in your household that might apply.
Usually the person who opened the door. Colorado law bars anyone, driver or passenger, from opening a door on the traffic side unless it’s safe. The vehicle’s auto insurance may cover the claim.
Possibly. If a scooter’s brakes or another part failed, the rental company or manufacturer may share responsibility. The app’s user agreement can affect these claims, so save your ride records and talk to a lawyer before you contact the company.
No. State law lets cities ban e-scooters from sidewalks, and Denver does. If you were hurt riding somewhere you weren’t allowed to, an insurer may argue you share the blame, but that doesn’t automatically end your claim.
Most claims against a driver must be filed within three years of the crash. Claims against a government agency need written notice within 182 days. Ride data, video, and witness memories fade much faster, so start early.
