Colorado Springs Underride Collision Lawyer
Key Takeaways
- Deadline: 3 years if a motor vehicle was involved (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)); 2 years for most other injury claims (C.R.S. 13-80-102).
- Who is liable: Frequently more than the driver in front of you.
- If you were partly at fault: damages are reduced by your share and barred entirely at 50% (C.R.S. 13-21-111).
- Where it is filed: El Paso County Combined Courts, 270 S Tejon St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903.
What is an underride accident?
A collision in which a car travels underneath a trailer rather than striking its bumper — so the impact reaches the windscreen and the occupant compartment directly, bypassing every crumple zone the car has.
They are catastrophic out of proportion to the speed, and that is precisely why rear impact guards are regulated equipment rather than an optional fitting.
Who is liable in an underride crash?
Frequently more than the driver in front of you.
If the rear impact guard was missing, corroded, damaged or non-compliant, the trailer's owner and its maintenance contractor come into the case, and the guard's manufacturer can too. Side underride adds a further question, because side guards are not federally mandated. That is why the trailer itself must be inspected and photographed before it is repaired or returned to service.
Did You or Someone You Love Suffer in a Colorado Springs Underride Accident?
Underride collisions are among the deadliest types of truck accidents. They occur when a passenger vehicle collides with a large truck or tractor-trailer and runs under the truck. This can shear off the roof of a passenger vehicle, killing the occupants. Victims of underride accidents are usually better off if the impact occurs near a truck axel, which can help prevent the vehicle from going completely under the truck.
Contact a Colorado Springs underride accident lawyer at The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. today at (719) 475-2555 if you have been injured.
Types of Underride Collisions
Even at lower speeds, underrides can be deadly for passenger vehicle occupants. These catastrophic truck accidents occur in one of two ways:
Rear Underride Collisions
A rear underride collision happens when a passenger vehicle runs under the rear of a tractor-trailer or a straight truck. This can result from a poorly-marked truck or trailer either parked on the side of the road or moving slowly. Dirty, dim, or inoperative taillights and failure to use reflective triangles or emergency flashers can contribute to rear underride collisions.
Commercial trucks or semis may take a long time to slow down or accelerate when exiting or entering roadways. Drivers of passenger vehicles traveling at highway speeds of 55 mph to 75 mph are not expecting to encounter a truck moving at 10 mph. At night, drivers have difficulty accurately determining distance and closing speed. Trailers are required to be marked with retroreflective tape capable of reflecting light at great distances. The tape must be two inches tall with a red and white alternating pattern and placed on the sides and rear of the trailer. However, if the tape is dirty or badly worn, or the truck is at a steep angle to traffic, oncoming drivers may not be alerted that the trailer is there.
Side Underride Collisions
This type of wreck usually occurs at night or when the sun is at a low angle. It typically happens when a truck driver is attempting to:
- Cross or turn onto a highway or street;
- Execute a U-turn; or
- Back across traffic.
Oncoming drivers may not see a large truck crossing their path until an accident is unavoidable. A major factor in drivers' inability to see a crossing truck is how well it stands out from its background. Objects that are moving slowly or sitting still will be less obvious.
The size of a trailer in itself will not make it conspicuous at night. Approaching drivers must rely on side marker lights as their only clue to the presence of the trailer. Marker lights are small and can be placed as far apart as 26 feet. Trailers may not be identified by drivers until they are illuminated by the headlights of the oncoming vehicle, which will not occur until the vehicle is approximately 100 to 200 feet away - too close to stop at highway speeds.
Why You Need a Colorado Underride Accident Lawyer
Underride truck accidents can cause catastrophic or fatal injuries to passenger vehicle occupants. Commercial truck accidents can be complicated to resolve, particularly when there is more than one liable party. Your best course of action, to help ensure you recover the compensation you deserve, is to get an experienced lawyer on your side.
At The Bussey Law Firm, P.C., our Colorado Springs truck accident attorneys are dedicated to helping you recover full and fair compensation after a serious big rig accident. Founding lawyer Timothy R. Bussey has been named one of the American Institute of Personal Injury's Top Ten Attorneys in Colorado. Contact us today at (719) 475-2555 if you or your loved one has been seriously injured in a Colorado Springs underride collision.
What does federal law require of a trailer's rear impact guard?
Under 49 CFR 393.86, a trailer or semitrailer with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or more, manufactured on or after January 26, 1998, must carry a rear impact guard meeting Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 223, installed to set width, height and setback limits.
Those limits are what an inspection of the trailer measures after an underride truck accident: how far the guard's bottom edge sat above the ground, how far it stood forward of the trailer's rear, and whether it reached close enough to each side. A guard that was bent, cut back, rusted through or missing is measured against the same numbers.
The rule has exceptions written into it — pole trailers, pulpwood trailers, low chassis vehicles, special purpose vehicles, wheels back vehicles, road construction controlled horizontal discharge trailers, and trailers towed in driveaway-towaway operations — so the first question in any case is which category the trailer that was struck falls into. Older trailers built before January 26, 1998 are held to a separate 30-inch standard in the same section.
| Measurement | Federal limit |
|---|---|
| Which trailers | Trailers and semitrailers with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or more, manufactured on or after January 26, 1998 |
| Guard width | Outermost surfaces within 4 inches (100 mm) of the vehicle's side extremities, and not beyond them |
| Guard height | Bottom edge no more than 22 inches (560 mm) above the ground at any point across its full width |
| Guard setback | At any height of 22 inches or more above the ground, the rearmost surface within 12 inches (305 mm) of the rear extremity |
| Trailers built before January 26, 1998 | Where the rear of the body is more than 30 inches (76.2 cm) above the ground empty, a guard whose bottom is no more than 30 inches above the ground |
How do the federal guard rules apply to trucks on Colorado highways?
Colorado makes the federal equipment rules enforceable on its own roads. C.R.S. 42-4-235 bars anyone from operating a commercial vehicle on a Colorado public highway unless it complies with rules the chief of the Colorado State Patrol adopts, using U.S. Department of Transportation parts-and-accessories and maintenance standards as guidelines.
A commercial vehicle under that section includes a self-propelled or towed vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of at least 16,001 pounds used in commerce on public highways. That is why a trailer accident or underride case in Colorado Springs turns on the carrier's own inspection, repair and maintenance records as well as the driver's conduct.
The same section makes clear who carries the penalty for equipment: a person that uses an independent contractor is not liable for penalties imposed on that contractor for equipment within the contractor's control. Penalty liability and civil liability to an injured person are different questions, which is why ownership and control of the trailer are traced early.
Which parties can answer for an underride injury under Colorado law?
Colorado divides fault among everyone who caused the harm. Under C.R.S. 13-21-111.5(1) each defendant pays only its own percentage, so the driver, the motor carrier, whoever maintained the trailer and the guard's manufacturer are each assessed separately — and a carrier that admits responsibility for its driver can still face direct negligence claims.
That last point is written into the statute: subsection (1.5) says a plaintiff's direct negligence claims against an employer who acknowledges vicarious liability are not barred, reversing the Colorado Supreme Court's holding in Ferrer v. Okbamicael. In an underride case those direct claims are typically about the carrier's inspection and maintenance of the guard, not only the driver's parking or braking.
The guard maker is reached through Colorado's product liability statute, which defines a manufacturer to include whoever designs, assembles or produces a product or a component part of it. Because the injuries are so often fatal or permanent, these cases usually overlap with a Colorado wrongful death claim or a catastrophic injury lawyer's work on lifetime care — and every defendant's share matters when the losses are that large.
| Party | Why they may be named | Statutory basis |
|---|---|---|
| Truck driver | Parking, stopping, lighting or braking that set up the collision | Fault apportioned under 13-21-111.5(1) |
| Motor carrier / employer | Vicarious liability for the driver, plus its own inspection and maintenance of the guard | Direct claims preserved by 13-21-111.5(1.5)(a) |
| Trailer owner or maintenance contractor | A guard that was damaged, corroded, cut back or never repaired | Fault apportioned under 13-21-111.5(1) |
| Guard or trailer manufacturer | A guard or component that was defectively designed or built | "Manufacturer" includes a maker of a component part, 13-21-401(1) |
Is the filing deadline the same for every defendant in an underride case?
No. A claim against the driver or carrier for bodily injury arising from use of a motor vehicle has three years under C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n), but that paragraph expressly excludes strict liability and failure-to-warn claims — so a product claim against the guard's manufacturer generally falls under the two-year limits of 13-80-102(1)(b) or 13-80-106.
Waiting for the longer motor-vehicle deadline can therefore cost the claim against the company that built the guard. Wrongful death claims have their own two-year rule in 13-80-102(1)(d). Our Colorado Springs personal injury lawyer team works from the shortest deadline that could apply, and the page's own summary of fault and deadlines above still governs the claims against the driver.
| Claim | Deadline | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Negligence against the driver, carrier or trailer owner (bodily injury from use of a motor vehicle) | Three years | 13-80-101(1)(n)(I) |
| Strict liability or failure to warn against the guard or trailer manufacturer | Two years | 13-80-102(1)(b); 13-80-106(1) |
| Wrongful death | Two years, subject to the statute's exceptions | 13-80-102(1)(d) |
Sources
- 49 CFR 393.86 — Rear impact guards and rear end protection (eCFR, current as of September 24, 2026)
- C.R.S. 42-4-235 — Minimum standards for commercial vehicles — Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 42 (official publication)
- C.R.S. 13-21-111.5, 13-21-401, 13-80-101, 13-80-102 and 13-80-106 — Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 13 (official publication)
Truck accident videos from The Bussey Law Firm
Hidden Violations Trucking Companies Don't Want You to Know About
Trucking accidents are not like ordinary car crashes. The injuries are often catastrophic, and the cases are far more complex. Trucking companies and their insurers have teams of lawyers working to protect their bottom line from the moment a crash happens. You need an attorney who knows how to fight back and hold them accountable.
· 0:36 · Watch on YouTube
Who Can Be Held Liable in a Truck Accident?
In a truck accident case, liability rarely stops with the driver. The company that owns the truck, the driver's employer, and the logistics companies behind the shipment can all share responsibility, and each one carries its own insurance.
· 2:33 · Watch on YouTube
Truck Accident Lawyer Reveals What Trucking Companies Do After a Crash
What should you do after being severely injured in a truck accident? In this video, Colorado Springs truck accident attorney Tim Bussey walks you through exactly what happens in a trucking case and what you need to know to protect yourself and your claim.
· 3:21 · Watch on YouTube
What Are the Colorado Deadlines and Rules on This Claim?
Which deadline applies depends on how the injury happened, not on what it is called. Colorado gives three years to a claim arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle and two years to most other injury claims. Missing the deadline normally ends the claim regardless of its merits.
| A claim arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle | 3 years — C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n) |
|---|---|
| Most other personal injury claims | 2 years — C.R.S. 13-80-102 |
| If you were partly at fault | Damages reduced by your share, barred at 50% — C.R.S. 13-21-111 |
| Where a Colorado Springs claim is filed | El Paso County Combined Courts, 270 S Tejon St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903 |
Sources and References
- Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13 (Colorado General Assembly)
- El Paso County Combined Courts — Colorado Judicial Branch
- The Bussey Law Firm, P.C. — Google Business Profile
Deadlines are cited by section to the Colorado General Assembly’s published 2024 revised statutes. This page is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Every case is decided on its own facts.
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