Homeowners and renters insurance in Colorado does not cover flood losses. The Division of Insurance says that directly. Flood is a separate National Flood Insurance Program policy. There is typically a 30-day wait before a new policy takes effect. The Division does not regulate federal flood insurance.

If your agent does not sell it, the referral number on the Division's flood page is 1-888-724-6924. Buying the policy the week a creek is already over the road does not cover that rise if the wait has not run.

What water is usually outside the homeowners form?

A companion page from the Division says flooding from rain, or from broken outdoor sprinklers or irrigation, is typically excluded. A broken pipe inside the house, or a leak from a neighbor above you, may be covered. Landslides, mudslides, and sinkholes are on the list of perils that are not usually covered. Ask the company, in writing, which sentence applies before you describe street water as a plumbing leak. The words you use on the first call become the claim file.

The Division says national flood insurance costs about $1 a day on average, and that about 25 percent of all flood insurance claims come from outside high-risk areas. Those are the Division's figures, not a quote for your house. Ask for the building limit, the contents limit, and the deductible on the declarations page.

How does this sit next to the FAIR Plan and a nonrenewal?

The Colorado FAIR Plan's general exclusions include water damage. A FAIR Plan policy for fire, lightning, and smoke is not a flood policy. See the FAIR Plan. A 60-day homeowners nonrenewal does not add flood for the days you have left. See the notice rule. If you are shopping both a new homeowners policy and a flood policy, calendar the flood effective date separately.

A complaint about a homeowners claim the company mishandled can go to the Division. A complaint that the NFIP should have paid is not a file the Division says it regulates. See how a Division complaint works.

What else should a buyer read the same week?

The property-tax bill and the senior exemption do not map the flood risk. See when Colorado property tax is due and the senior exemption. A seller's new adverse disclosure can mention water. The Commission contract gives five days, or until closing if sooner, to terminate after you receive that new disclosure. See that five-day right. The disclosure is not an NFIP policy.

What to put on the quote

Ask for the building limit, the contents limit, the deductible, and the effective date. The Division's average of about $1 a day is not your premium. The statement that about 25 percent of flood claims come from outside high-risk areas is a reason to ask even if you are not in a mapped zone. It is not a determination for your lot. If a lender wants flood insurance at closing, ask whether that purchase changes the 30-day wait, and do not assume it does unless the declarations page shows a start date of the closing.

Keep the homeowners water exclusion in the same folder. Rain and outdoor irrigation are typically excluded. An interior pipe may be covered. When you call after a storm, describe where the water came from. The Division does not regulate the federal program, so a dispute on an NFIP claim is not the same filing as a dispute about a covered pipe.

Write the date you read this rule on the paper you are using, whether that paper is a declarations page, a notice, a contract, or a permit. Colorado offices do not share one file. The Division of Insurance, the Division of Property Taxation, the county assessor, and the Public Utilities Commission each keep their own. A number you saw on a neighbor's bill, or on a mover's ad from another state, is not your deadline. If two official pages disagree, the document in your hand and a phone call to the office that issued it settle the question for your account. Keep the postmark, the email header, or the receipt. Those are the dates a later complaint can use. Do not wait for a second notice to start the count that already began when the first one was mailed or delivered.

Call 1-888-724-6924 if your agent does not sell flood insurance. Ask for the effective date in writing. A homeowners binder is not that date. Rain and outdoor sprinklers are typically excluded. An interior pipe may be a different claim. Describe the source of the water when you call.

FAQ

Does a Colorado homeowners policy cover flood? No. The Division says homeowners and renters insurance does not cover flood losses.

How long is the wait? Typically 30 days for a new NFIP policy. Read the effective date on the declarations page.

Is rain in the basement a flood claim or a homeowners claim? The Division says flooding from rain is typically excluded. A broken interior pipe may be covered. Ask the company which exclusion it is using.

Who sells the policy if my agent does not? The Division's flood page lists 1-888-724-6924 as the NFIP referral number.

Can the Division order the NFIP to pay? No. The Division says it does not regulate federal flood insurance.

Next step

Read the water exclusion on the homeowners or renters policy this week. If flood is excluded, ask for an NFIP quote with the building limit, the contents limit, and the start date. Keep that page with the policy.

Sources: Colorado Division of Insurance: flood insurance, Division of Insurance: what homeowners insurance does not cover.

The Colorado FAIR Plan is for property that licensed standard insurers will not write. You apply through a licensed agent who is registered with the plan, and you show three declinations. Basic residential coverage, for the property and contents, is up to $750,000. Commercial property and business personal property can go to $5,000,000.

The policy pays actual cash value, not replacement cost. Basic covered perils are fire, lightning, and smoke. House Bill 23-1288, signed May 12, 2023, required the plan of operation to provide limits not to exceed those two ceilings. Customer care is (833) 554-5425, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mountain time.

What do you have to bring?

The eligibility page says you must own property that the standard market will not insure, use a licensed agent registered with the plan, and show three declinations. Save each declination as a letter or an email that names the company and the address. A verbal "we do not write that zip code" is harder to use. The agent, not a website form you fill alone, is the path the plan describes.

If your current insurer is nonrenewing, the 60-day notice is the time to collect those three letters. See the 60-day notice. Do not wait until the old policy has already ended and then discover the FAIR Plan application is still in the agent's queue.

What the basic policy pays, and what it leaves out

Fire, lightning, and smoke are the basic perils on the plan's coverage page. Optional extended coverages may be bought for windstorm or hail, explosion, riot or civil commotion, vehicles, volcanic eruption, and vandalism. General exclusions include ordinance or law, earth movement, and water damage. Actual cash value means depreciation comes off a loss. A new roof at today's price is a replacement-cost conversation, and this policy is not that conversation unless an endorsement you bought says otherwise. Read the form.

Water damage on that exclusion list is a reason to ask about flood separately. The Division of Insurance says homeowners and renters policies do not cover flood losses, and a new NFIP policy typically waits 30 days. See flood insurance. A FAIR Plan binder is not a flood policy.

Who answers questions about the policy you already have?

Customer care at (833) 554-5425 can explain the plan's coverage. A dispute about a claim, a cancellation, or a bill on a policy the plan issued still starts with the company. The Division of Insurance complaint portal is the next step if that fails. See how to file. The Division does not set the loss amount. An auto policy at 25/50/15 is a different contract. See the auto minimums.

The senior property-tax exemption does not make a house insurable. See that exemption.

What to ask before you bind

Ask the agent to name the three companies that declined the address and to attach those letters. Ask whether the agent is registered with the plan. Ask the limit, and confirm it is not above $750,000 for a residence and contents, or $5,000,000 for commercial property and business personal property. Ask whether the quote is actual cash value. Ask which perils are in the basic form and which ones, especially wind and hail, are optional. Ask whether water damage is excluded. Customer care at (833) 554-5425 can walk through the plan's own description on a weekday between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Mountain time.

House Bill 23-1288 set the ceilings. It did not turn the policy into replacement cost. A claim for a ten-year-old roof will reflect depreciation unless an endorsement you bought says otherwise. Get that answer before you let the prior policy lapse. Three declinations plus a registered agent are the eligibility facts on the plan's own page. A single phone call to one insurer is not three declinations.

Write the date you read this rule on the paper you are using, whether that paper is a declarations page, a notice, a contract, or a permit. Colorado offices do not share one file. The Division of Insurance, the Division of Property Taxation, the county assessor, and the Public Utilities Commission each keep their own. A number you saw on a neighbor's bill, or on a mover's ad from another state, is not your deadline. If two official pages disagree, the document in your hand and a phone call to the office that issued it settle the question for your account. Keep the postmark, the email header, or the receipt. Those are the dates a later complaint can use. Do not wait for a second notice to start the count that already began when the first one was mailed or delivered.

FAQ

Who can apply? An owner whose property standard licensed insurers will not write, using a licensed agent registered with the plan, with three declinations.

What is the residential limit? Up to $750,000 for residential property and contents. Commercial property and business personal property can go to $5,000,000.

Is the payment replacement cost? No. The plan says policies pay actual cash value.

Does the basic policy cover hail? Hail is listed with the optional extended coverages, not with fire, lightning, and smoke. Ask before you assume it is included.

Does it cover flood? Water damage is on the plan's general exclusion list. Flood insurance is a separate NFIP policy.

Next step

Collect three written declinations and call a licensed agent who is registered with the plan. Ask whether the quote is actual cash value, which perils are basic, and which extended coverages you would have to add. Get the effective date in writing before the old policy ends.

Sources: Colorado FAIR Plan: eligibility, Colorado FAIR Plan: coverage, Division of Insurance: FAIR Plan, House Bill 23-1288.

A Colorado insurer cannot cancel or refuse to renew a homeowners policy unless it mails notice by first-class mail at least 60 days in advance, stating the reasons. Nonpayment is shorter: at least 10 days, with the reasons. The notice goes to the named insured at the last address in the insurer's records.

That rule is C.R.S. 10-4-110.7(3), amended by House Bill 23-1174, signed May 12, 2023. Legislative Council's November 2024 brief treats the 60-day and 10-day notices as current law. The notice change took effect August 7, 2023. Keep the envelope. The date that matters is the mailing, and the address that matters is the one the company has on file.

What should the letter say?

The statute requires the reasons. A line that says only "underwriting" is the letter to quote if you complain. A nonpayment notice should say nonpayment and give at least 10 days. A cancellation or nonrenewal for another reason should give at least 60 days. Count from the mailing date, not from the day you opened the letter. If you moved and did not update the address, the notice can still be valid at the old one. Update the address before a renewal month, not after the letter comes back undelivered.

The same 2023 act also changed offers of law-and-ordinance coverage and extended replacement cost. The January 1, 2025 effective date on the bill is specifically section 10-4-110.8(8). Do not treat every subsection of that act as having started on New Year's Day 2025. The 60-day and 10-day notices are the August 7, 2023 piece. Ask the company which form of replacement-cost offer is on your renewal, and read the declarations page rather than assuming the new percentages are already on your contract.

What the notice does not cover

Flood is often excluded even on a policy that renews. A 60-day nonrenewal letter and a flood exclusion are different problems. See flood coverage. If the nonrenewal means you cannot find a standard insurer, the Colorado FAIR Plan is the last-resort market, after three declinations, at actual cash value. See how to apply.

An auto policy uses a different page of the Division's site. Liability is 25/50/15, and medical payments of $5,000 is not PIP. See the auto minimums. A complaint about a late notice goes to the Division after you have the letter in hand. See how to file. The Division does not set a number of days for the company to answer your complaint emails. The 60 days in this article are the notice before cancellation, not a complaint clock.

What to do in the 60 days

Shop before the effective date. Ask each new insurer whether it will write the same address, and whether hail or wildfire is the reason the old company left. Get the declinations in writing if you may need the FAIR Plan. Pay a nonpayment notice if the bill is real and you want the policy. Ten days is a short window. A payment posted on day 11 is a question for the company, not a fact the statute guarantees.

The senior property-tax exemption and the tax bill are not this notice. See the senior exemption and when the tax is due.

How to count the notice

Look at the postmark, not the day you happened to open the letter. Sixty days of first-class mail, with reasons, is the rule for a cancellation or a refusal to renew, other than nonpayment. Ten days, with reasons, is nonpayment. The address is the last one in the insurer's file. If you have moved, the letter can go to the old address and still be the notice. Update the address as soon as you have keys to the new house.

Use the 60 days to shop and, if you need the FAIR Plan, to collect declinations. The August 7, 2023 effective date is the notice change. Do not tell a neighbor that every replacement-cost offer in the same bill started that day. Section 10-4-110.8(8) is the piece tied to January 1, 2025. Read your own renewal for law-and-ordinance coverage and extended replacement cost instead of guessing from the bill title.

Write the date you read this rule on the paper you are using, whether that paper is a declarations page, a notice, a contract, or a permit. Colorado offices do not share one file. The Division of Insurance, the Division of Property Taxation, the county assessor, and the Public Utilities Commission each keep their own. A number you saw on a neighbor's bill, or on a mover's ad from another state, is not your deadline. If two official pages disagree, the document in your hand and a phone call to the office that issued it settle the question for your account. Keep the postmark, the email header, or the receipt. Those are the dates a later complaint can use. Do not wait for a second notice to start the count that already began when the first one was mailed or delivered.

FAQ

How much notice is required to nonrenew a homeowners policy? At least 60 days, by first-class mail, with the reasons, under C.R.S. 10-4-110.7(3).

What if I did not pay? Nonpayment needs at least 10 days' notice, with the reasons.

When did this notice rule start? The notice change in House Bill 23-1174 took effect August 7, 2023. A November 2024 legislative brief still states the 60-day and 10-day rules.

Does the letter have to explain why? Yes. The statute says the notice states the reasons.

Does a 60-day letter add flood coverage? No. Flood is a separate policy. The notice only tells you the homeowners contract is ending or being cancelled.

Next step

Date the envelope and count 60 days, or 10 if the reason is nonpayment. If the notice has no reason, write the company and the Division with a copy of the letter. If the reason is that no standard insurer will stay, collect three written declinations and ask a licensed agent about the FAIR Plan before the old policy ends.

Sources: House Bill 23-1174 (signed), HB23-1174 bill page, Legislative Council issue brief, November 2024.

Start with the insurance company, then file with the Colorado Division of Insurance if the answer is still wrong. Consumer Services, for questions, is 303-894-7490, or 800-930-3745 outside the Denver metro area, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The complaint itself goes through the Consumer Portal, or by mail to 1560 Broadway, Suite 1300, Denver, CO 80202.

The Division says Colorado law sets no timeframe for how long a company has to answer your own calls and letters. It can still look at an unreasonable delay. It does not decide fault or the amount owed. An online form that you leave unfinished is lost after two hours of inactivity. Finish it in one sitting, or use the mailed form.

Which phone is which?

The complaint page prints two office numbers. Consumer Services, the line for questions, is 303-894-7490. The main line printed at the bottom of that same page is 303-894-7499. The toll-free number, 800-930-3745, is the same on both. Email for the consumer line is DORA_Insurance@state.co.us. The footer also shows dora_insurance@state.co.us. Use the address and the portal on the complaint page you are actually filing, so the packet is not split. Include your name, a phone or email, the company, the policy number, and a short account of what you asked for.

Keep copies. The Division does not set the premium and does not pick a repair number. Attach your own estimate if the fight is the dollar amount. Attach the denial if the fight is whether the policy covers the loss.

What the Division will look at

On an auto claim, the Division says there is no legal clock for the company's reply to you. A long silence can still be an unreasonable delay. You may choose the repair shop under C.R.S. 10-4-120. The liability floor is 25/50/15, and uninsured-motorist coverage and $5,000 of medical payments stay on the policy unless you rejected them in writing. See those auto rules.

A homeowners cancellation or nonrenewal has its own notice: 60 days, or 10 days for nonpayment. See that notice. Flood on an NFIP policy is federal. The Division says it does not regulate federal flood insurance. See why flood is a separate policy.

What belongs in a different office

A household mover who will not refund a charge is a Public Utilities Commission matter, and a refund has to go through binding arbitration. See the PUC complaint. The insurance portal will not look up an HHG permit number. A property-tax protest is the county assessor, not this division. See the protest deadline on your notice.

Write down names and dates before you file. The Division can ask the company questions. It cannot invent a coverage the policy does not have, and it cannot tell you which company to buy from.

What to gather before you open the portal

Have the policy number, the claim number, the denial, and a one-paragraph timeline. The portal drops unfinished work after two hours, so do not start it on a phone with a dying battery. The mailed form is the backup. Consumer questions are 303-894-7490. The footer phone 303-894-7499 is the main line on the same page. The toll-free number 800-930-3745 works for both. Send the complaint once, to the complaints path, rather than to every email address you can find on the site.

Say what you want: a coverage decision that matches the form, or a review of a delay. Do not ask the Division to declare fault or to name a dollar figure for a repair. It says it does not do those things. Attach your estimate if the amount is the fight, and let the Division see that you already asked the company.

Write the date you read this rule on the paper you are using, whether that paper is a declarations page, a notice, a contract, or a permit. Colorado offices do not share one file. The Division of Insurance, the Division of Property Taxation, the county assessor, and the Public Utilities Commission each keep their own. A number you saw on a neighbor's bill, or on a mover's ad from another state, is not your deadline. If two official pages disagree, the document in your hand and a phone call to the office that issued it settle the question for your account. Keep the postmark, the email header, or the receipt. Those are the dates a later complaint can use. Do not wait for a second notice to start the count that already began when the first one was mailed or delivered.

FAQ

Where do I file? The Consumer Portal, or by mail to the Colorado Division of Insurance, 1560 Broadway, Suite 1300, Denver, CO 80202.

Who answers questions? Consumer Services at 303-894-7490, or 800-930-3745 outside the Denver metro area, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

How long can I leave the online form open? Unsubmitted entries are lost after two hours of inactivity. Submit it, or use the paper form.

How many days does the company have to answer me? The Division says Colorado law sets no timeframe for the company's reply to the consumer. A delay can still be reviewed. The Division will not decide fault or the dollar amount.

Can this office force a flood claim to be paid? The Division says it does not regulate federal flood insurance. A homeowners claim that ignored a covered peril is a different file from an NFIP claim.

Next step

Write the company, keep the reply, and file through the portal in one sitting if you are still stuck. Put the policy number in the first lines. Call 303-894-7490 if you are not sure the dispute is one the Division can open.

Sources: Colorado Division of Insurance: file a complaint, Division of Insurance: auto insurance.

Colorado requires auto liability coverage of $25,000 per person for bodily injury, $50,000 per accident, and $15,000 for property damage. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage stays on the policy unless you reject it in writing. Medical payments of $5,000 stays on unless you reject that line in writing too.

The rejection can also be made in the same way you applied. The Division of Insurance does not call that $5,000 coverage PIP. Liability pays people you hurt and property you damage. It does not pay for your own car, and it does not cover an intentional act. A car you or a resident relative owns, if it is not insured for liability on the policy, is not covered either.

What do you have to reject in writing?

Read the declarations page for two lines that arrive unless you opt out. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage pays when the other driver has no insurance or too little. Medical payments of $5,000 pays medical bills for people the policy covers, without a fight about who caused the crash. If you want either one off the policy, the rejection has to be in writing, or done the same way you applied for the policy. A conversation in the agent's office is not that record.

Medical payments does not have to be offered on a motorcycle, a low-powered scooter, an off-road vehicle, or other miscellaneous vehicles. If that is what you are insuring, ask whether the $5,000 line exists at all. Do not assume the auto rule for a sedan applies to a dirt bike.

What about collision?

The insurer must offer collision with a deductible of $100 or $250. You may pick a higher deductible. Collision is how your own car gets repaired. The Division says you may choose the repair shop. That right is C.R.S. 10-4-120. A shop the insurer prefers is a suggestion. It is not the only place the car can go.

There is no timeframe in Colorado law, the Division says, for how long a company has to answer your claim calls, letters, or emails. The Division can still look at an unreasonable delay. It does not set auto rates, and it does not decide who was at fault or how many dollars are owed. See how to file a complaint if the delay is the problem.

How does this sit next to a house policy?

A homeowners nonrenewal is a different statute, with 60 days' notice, or 10 days for nonpayment. See that notice rule. Flood is outside the homeowners policy and usually waits 30 days on a new NFIP policy. See flood coverage. If standard insurers will not write the house, the Colorado FAIR Plan is a last resort at actual cash value, up to $750,000, after three declinations. See the FAIR Plan.

A move that stays in Colorado uses a PUC permit, not this auto policy, to price damaged furniture. See the HHG permit.

What to circle on the declarations page

Circle the bodily-injury limit per person, the bodily-injury limit per accident, and the property-damage limit. They should read at least $25,000, $50,000, and $15,000. Circle uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, or the written rejection. Circle medical payments, or the written rejection of the $5,000 amount. If the vehicle is a motorcycle or an off-road machine, ask whether medical payments was even offered. The Division says it does not have to be offered on those vehicles.

Ask the agent to show the collision deductible. The offer has to include $100 or $250. You may choose a higher one. Write the repair-shop choice in the same note. C.R.S. 10-4-120 is the statute the Division cites. A preferred shop is not a requirement. Keep the declarations page in the car with the insurance card. A renewal that drops a line you did not reject in writing is the page to dispute before you pay the next premium.

Write the date you read this rule on the paper you are using, whether that paper is a declarations page, a notice, a contract, or a permit. Colorado offices do not share one file. The Division of Insurance, the Division of Property Taxation, the county assessor, and the Public Utilities Commission each keep their own. A number you saw on a neighbor's bill, or on a mover's ad from another state, is not your deadline. If two official pages disagree, the document in your hand and a phone call to the office that issued it settle the question for your account. Keep the postmark, the email header, or the receipt. Those are the dates a later complaint can use. Do not wait for a second notice to start the count that already began when the first one was mailed or delivered.

FAQ

What is the liability minimum? $25,000 per person for bodily injury, $50,000 per accident, and $15,000 for property damage.

Is uninsured-motorist coverage automatic? It is on the policy unless you reject it in writing. Check the declarations page for a rejection.

Is the $5,000 medical-payments line PIP? The Division of Insurance does not call it PIP. It is medical payments of $5,000 unless you reject it in writing.

Can I pick the body shop? Yes. C.R.S. 10-4-120 is the statute the Division cites for that choice.

How fast must the company answer a claim email? The Division says Colorado law sets no timeframe for replies to the consumer. It can still review an unreasonable delay. It will not decide fault or the amount owed.

Next step

Read the declarations page for 25/50/15, for uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, and for the $5,000 medical-payments line. If any of those is missing, find the written rejection or ask the agent to put the coverage back on before you drive.

Sources: Colorado Division of Insurance: auto insurance.

If a governor-declared wildfire destroys your owner-occupied Colorado home, your insurer must offer at least 65% of your contents coverage without making you list every item. You also get at least 24 months of additional living expense coverage, with the option to extend it twice by six months. Colorado added these rules after the 2021 Marshall Fire.

Which wildfire protections apply to me?

The Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI) laid out the protections in a July 6, 2026, consumer advisory. Some apply to every homeowners policyholder. Others kick in only for a total loss in a fire the governor declares a wildfire disaster.

For 2026, the advisory listed the Snyder, Gold Mountain, Aspen Acres, Willow and Sheep Head fires as declared disasters as of that date. Check DOI's 2026 Wildfire Information page for any later additions.

Can I get a copy of my policy fast?

Yes. Homeowners insurers must give you a copy of your policy within 3 business days of your request. That helps if you were evacuated and your paperwork burned, or you can't get online. Ask for the full policy with all endorsements, not just the declarations page.

How does the 65% contents rule work?

Contents coverage, sometimes called personal property coverage, pays for your belongings. Making a room-by-room list of everything you owned after a fire is exhausting and slow. Colorado's rule cuts through that for a total loss in a declared wildfire disaster:

• The insurer must offer to pay at least 65% of your total contents coverage limit without an inventory.
• If you want the remaining 35%, you'll need to complete an inventory.

So if your policy has $200,000 in contents coverage, the insurer has to offer at least $130,000 without a list. You can take that and still work on an inventory for the rest.

What happens after I submit an inventory?

The law puts insurers on a clock. After a homeowner or renter submits an inventory of contents damaged or destroyed in a wildfire:

• The insurer must request any additional information within 30 days.
• It must pay for undisputed, insured items within 30 days of receiving the inventory.

Keep a copy of everything you send and note the date you sent it. That's how you'll know if a deadline has passed.

How long do additional living expenses last?

Additional living expense (ALE) coverage pays for temporary housing and the extra costs of living away from home, like hotel bills, meals and laundry. For a total loss in a designated wildfire disaster, DOI says insurers must provide at least 24 months of ALE, with the option to extend it twice by six months each.

Rebuilding after a wildfire often takes longer than two years, because of permits, contractor shortages and supply delays. Know your extension rights early, and save every receipt.

DOI also notes that most policies reimburse the difference between your additional living expenses and your normal costs. If you normally pay a mortgage and now also pay rent, ALE covers the extra, not the mortgage itself.

Who pays for debris removal?

Insurers must reimburse you for privately contracted debris removal within 60 days of receiving a receipt. Before you sign with a debris company, ask your insurer how much debris removal coverage your policy has. Some communities also run government cleanup programs with their own rules.

What coverages should I ask about before the next fire?

Colorado requires insurers to offer two coverages before issuing or renewing certain replacement cost homeowners policies:

• Law and ordinance coverage: at least 20% of your dwelling limit. It helps pay to rebuild to current building codes, which can cost more than rebuilding what you had.
• Extended replacement cost: at least 50% of your dwelling limit. It pays above your dwelling limit if rebuilding costs more than expected, which often happens when a whole neighborhood rebuilds at once.

These aren't automatic. They may be in your policy or offered as an endorsement for extra premium. If you live anywhere near the wildland-urban interface, it's worth asking what they'd cost.

What should I do first after a wildfire?

DOI's advice starts with safety. Don't go back until authorities say it's safe. Then:

• Tell your agent or insurer where you're staying.
• Start your claim as soon as you can for your home, outbuildings and vehicles.
• Photograph the damage when it's safe.
• Keep every receipt for living expenses.
• Ask questions. If something isn't clear, ask the adjuster to explain it in writing.

How can the Division of Insurance help?

Claims are filed with your insurance company, but DOI's Consumer Services Team can answer questions, help you find your insurer's claim number and take complaints. Call 303-894-7490, or 800-930-3745 outside the Denver metro area, or email DORA_Insurance@state.co.us.

FAQ

Do I have to make an inventory after a Colorado wildfire? Not for the first 65% of your contents coverage, if your owner-occupied home was a total loss in a governor-declared wildfire disaster. You'll need an inventory to claim the remaining 35%.

How long will my insurer pay living expenses? At least 24 months for a total loss in a designated wildfire disaster, with the option to extend twice by six months.

How fast must my insurer pay after I submit my inventory? It must pay undisputed, insured items within 30 days of receiving the inventory.

How quickly must my insurer send a copy of my policy? Within 3 business days of your request.

Next step

Request a full copy of your policy now, before you need it, and check your dwelling, contents and ALE limits. Then talk with a licensed local agent about extended replacement cost and law and ordinance coverage for your home.

Sources: Colorado DOI: Consumer Protections for Coloradans Affected by Wildfires (July 6, 2026); Colorado DOI: 2026 Wildfire Information; C.R.S. 10-4-110.8.