Colorado Auto Accident Settlement questions

Hello all! New to the forums and am happy I found it!

My husband and I live in Colorado.He was involved in a car accident last month and it was someone else's fault. A construction vehicle pulled out in front of him going across a highway and my husband hit him almost head on going about 55-60mph. He's doing okay and our car was totalled.

Their insurance company has made their payment to the loan company for the car (hopefully GAP will cover the balance). We've also send them copies of medical bills we've received and signed the power of attorney so the insurance company could get any medical bills we incur as a result of this accident. However, we were just informed by the insurance company that they are not paying any of the medical bills. They say we pay the medical bills and then they'll pay us.

My husband has been hit before and the other person's insurance company has always paid medical bills straight out. So here are my questions:

1) Is the other insurance company allowed to not pay our medical bills and make us wait until a final settlement is agreed upon? (We absolutely can't afford to pay the bills ourselves and don't want this to reflect on our credit report)

2) Is this something that is negotiable that we can send a letter to the insurance company demanding they pay these bills?

Another piece of this is additional settlements we think we should get such as being reimbursed for prescriptions, mileage (to and from towing company, highway patrol office, etc), time away from work and the down payment we suddenly have to come up with to get a replacement vehicle, etc.

1) Can we "bill them" for mileage and, if so, how do we calculate it?
2) Can we demand they provide us $$ for the down payment we don't have yet we need in order to get a replacement vehicle?

Sorry if these sound like silly questions. We've never dealt with this before and are hoping to find some guidance here.

Thanks and God Bless!

1. Yes. This is generally the rule, the previous time was an exemption to what is normal.

2. Most if not all insurance companies will not settle till your husband is able to sign a release, meaning his medical treatment is complete.

Another piece of this is additional settlements we think we should get such as being reimbursed for prescriptions, mileage (to and from towing company, highway patrol office, etc), time away from work and the down payment we suddenly have to come up with to get a replacement vehicle, etc.

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Bolded yes, others no.

1. Call and ask. Generally the only mileage that would be allowed would be for required medical visits.

2. No. It is not their fault you were upside down on your previous vehicle and do not have the money to buy another vehicle.

Wow! Thanks for the quick response! I do appreciate it!

We were a little surprised that the insurance company wasn't going to pay the medical bills. I guess in my husband's previous accidents (none his fault) we've gotten lucky, huh?

Time away from work is only compensable if it is due to injury, rather then due to lack of transportation or any other reason. If a doctor says you are unable to work for a time, then you can claim lost wages. Otherwise, you can't.