Silverthorne Car Accident Lawyer
Silverthorne sits at the bottom of a long, steep descent out of the Eisenhower Tunnel. Wade Zobel represents people injured in crashes in Silverthorne, Dillon, and across Summit County.
No fee unless we recover money for you. Se habla español.
Free consultation. No obligation.
Colorado deadline to file a crash injury claim
Up front. Contingency fee, in writing before you sign
English and Spanish, with the attorney himself
Colorado minimum insurance. Often not enough for one surgery
Injured in a Crash in Silverthorne?
You have three years from the date of the crash to file, not two. Claims arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle get three years under C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n).
Silverthorne is the first town you reach coming west out of the Eisenhower Tunnel, at the bottom of a long, steep descent. Most of what goes wrong on that grade ends up here.
Wade Zobel represents people injured in crashes in Silverthorne, Dillon, and across Summit County. You talk to the attorney handling your case, not an intake center. The first conversation costs nothing, and you pay no fee unless we recover money for you.
Call (720) 434-6674 for a free consultation, in English or Spanish.
Three Years, Not Two
Injury claims arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle generally must be filed within three years of the crash. Most other injury claims get two years under C.R.S. 13-80-102.
If a government vehicle or property was involved, the notice deadline is much shorter.
Where Crashes Happen in Silverthorne
The descent, the closures behind it, and the junction at Exit 205 account for most of what we see here.
The Descent from the Eisenhower Tunnel
From the west portal, I-70 drops toward Silverthorne alongside Straight Creek. There are runaway truck ramps built into that descent, which tells you what the road does to brakes. Vehicles that handled the climb often cannot handle the way down.
Stopped Traffic and Chain Reactions
Crashes near the tunnel routinely close the interstate, and traffic stacks for miles behind the closure. A second crash into the back of that stopped line is its own category of case here, and it is one where fault gets divided among several drivers.
Exit 205, the Outlets, and Dillon
Exit 205 is the junction of I-70, Highway 9, and US-6, and it is also the entrance to the outlets and the route into Dillon. Shoppers, skiers, buses, and local traffic use the same few intersections, so low speed collisions and pedestrian strikes are common.
US-6 Toward Keystone and Loveland Pass
Overheight trucks and vehicles carrying hazardous materials are prohibited from the tunnel and routed over Loveland Pass instead. That puts heavy commercial traffic on a two lane mountain road with switchbacks, shared with skiers and commuters.
Winter Crashes and Colorado's Traction Law
This is where insurers do most of their work in Summit County claims.
What the Law Requires
From September 1 through May 31, Colorado’s Traction Law is in effect on I-70 between Dotsero and Morrison, and CDOT can activate it on any state highway when conditions require. It requires tires with at least 3/16 inch tread that are winter, all weather, or mud and snow rated, or chains or an approved traction device.
Why It Decides Money
If the other driver was not in compliance, that is evidence of negligence. If you were not, expect their insurer to raise it. Neither fact decides the case by itself, and an insurer will present it as though it does.
Colorado uses modified comparative negligence with a 50 percent bar. If you are assigned part of the fault, your recovery drops by that share, and at 50 percent or more you recover nothing. Every point they can move is money they keep.
What to Photograph
Your tires. Sidewall and tread, both sides of the vehicle, the day of the crash. If you were compliant, that photograph ends the argument before it starts. If you wait until the tires are replaced, you cannot prove it either way.
If the Crash Happened During a Closure
Closures and detours over Loveland Pass are routine here, and they leave a paper trail most people never think to use.
CDOT records when the interstate closed, why, and for how long. Combined with the Colorado crash report, that record establishes the conditions at the time in a way that a driver’s recollection cannot. If you were injured during one of those events, say so early, because the record is easier to request while it is recent.
Report the Crash, Even the Small One
Under C.R.S. 42-4-1606(1), a driver in a crash resulting in injury, serious bodily injury, death, or any property damage must give immediate notice to the nearest police authority. There is no dollar threshold on the driver’s duty, and failing it is a class 2 misdemeanor traffic offense.
The $1,000 figure belongs to a different rule: it is the point below which an officer is not required to investigate and file a report when nobody is hurt. Even then, the officer must do it if one of the people involved asks for it, or if one of them cannot show proof of insurance.
In a parking lot at the outlets, with everyone in a hurry and the damage looking cosmetic, this is the moment people skip. Ask for the report.
How Much Insurance Actually Exists
Colorado requires liability coverage of $25,000 for injury to one person, $50,000 for all persons in one accident, and $15,000 for property damage (C.R.S. 10-4-620).
In a chain reaction crash, one policy can end up shared among several injured people, which is exactly the situation where your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage matters most. MedPay helps with medical bills regardless of fault.
Bring your own policy to the first conversation. It is a five minute read that regularly changes the size of a case.
Getting Treated After a Crash in Silverthorne
There is no hospital in Silverthorne. The nearest is St. Anthony Summit Hospital in Frisco, about ten minutes west.
Get evaluated even if you feel like you can walk it off. Adrenaline and cold both mask injuries, and a gap between the crash and your first medical visit is the most common argument insurers use to reduce a claim.
Where Your Case Would Be Filed
Summit County cases are filed at the Summit County Justice Center, 501 N. Park Avenue, Breckenridge, CO 80424, part of Colorado’s Fifth Judicial District, which also covers Eagle, Lake, and Clear Creek counties.
What Is a Car Accident Case Worth?
The “average settlement” figures published online average cases with nothing in common. They tell you nothing about yours.
What Actually Sets the Number
The full cost of your treatment including what you still need. The income you lost and the income you will lose. Whether the injury is permanent. How much coverage exists on both sides. And your share of fault under the 50 percent bar.
Can You Recover for Pain and Suffering in Colorado?
Yes. Colorado allows recovery for noneconomic losses, which covers pain, suffering, inconvenience, and the loss of the things you used to be able to do.
Colorado law also places a limit on noneconomic damages, and that limit is adjusted periodically rather than fixed. Which figure applies depends on when the claim arose, so it is worth confirming for your specific case rather than trusting a number you read on a website that may not have been updated in years.
In a Chain Reaction, Coverage Gets Divided
When one driver causes a pileup, a single policy can be shared among everyone injured. That is the situation where your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage does the most work, and it is why we ask for your policy at the first meeting.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Why Clients in Silverthorne Call Wade Zobel
Wade Zobel handles his own cases. You are not routed through a screening department and handed to a case manager you never chose.
- He represents clients in Spanish himself. Silverthorne has one of the largest year round working populations in Summit County, and a substantial share of it speaks Spanish at home
- Free consultation and a contingency fee, in writing before you sign
- Virtual meetings, so you do not have to drive to Denver
What Clients Say
Frequently Asked Questions
I was rear ended in stopped traffic behind a closure. Is that automatically the other driver's fault?
Usually the following driver carries most of it, but not always, and in a chain reaction several drivers can share it. What decides it is the sequence of impacts, which is why the damage pattern on each vehicle matters so much.
My tires were not compliant with the Traction Law. Does that end my claim?
No. It is one fact among many, and the other driver’s conduct still counts. Expect their insurer to lead with it, and tell your own attorney before they do.
What percentage does an accident lawyer take?
Zobel Legal Group works on contingency. There is no fee for the consultation and no fee unless we recover money for you. The percentage is set out in writing before you sign anything.
How long after an accident can you file a claim in Colorado?
Three years for claims arising from the use or operation of a motor vehicle (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)), and two years for most other injury claims (C.R.S. 13-80-102). If a government vehicle or property was involved, the notice deadline is much shorter.
Do I have to drive to Denver?
Usually not. Most of the process is handled by phone, email, and video.
Talk to a Silverthorne Car Accident Lawyer Today
If you were injured in a crash in Silverthorne, Dillon, or anywhere in Summit County, the consultation is free and there is no obligation. Call (720) 434-6674 or send us your information through our contact form. Se habla español.