Bill to Strengthen Victim Protections Passes Committee

DENVER, CO – The House Judiciary Committee today passed legislation to strengthen victim protections by preventing insurance companies from receiving victim restitution payments. HB26-1017, sponsored by Representatives Cecelia Espenoza and Yara Zokaie, passed by a vote of 7-4.

“We’re prioritizing victims in Colorado law by removing insurance companies from the definition of victim in criminal restitution payments,” said Rep. Cecelia Espenoza, D-Denver. “This bill would clarify that unless an insurer is a direct victim, the method of seeking financial recovery is in civil courts.”

“Restitution often becomes an unpayable debt that traps families in cycles of poverty and makes successful reentry harder,” said Rep. Yara Zokaie, D-Fort Collins. “Insurance companies aren’t crime victims, and our bill makes them ineligible to receive restitution in criminal contexts. Insurance companies are sophisticated financial institutions that are structurally designed to absorb risk and loss, and granting them restitution serves no rehabilitative purpose.”

Currently, Colorado statute allows insurers of a victim of a crime to receive restitution payments in criminal cases. HB26-1017 would prohibit insurance companies from receiving these restitution payments. Insurers would be able to recover losses through the civil court system.

Last year, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled that a defendant in a drunk driving car accident incident was not liable for paying a car insurance company for damages to the victim’s car, however multiple judges have questioned whether lawmakers intended to allow insurance companies to seek restitution payments when they passed a 2003 law to clarify when it is appropriate for an insurance company to pursue crime victim restitution or a civil lawsuit. HB26-1017 would clarify in Colorado statute that insurers could not receive criminal restitution payments.