Colorado Demand Letter

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   Colorado does not require a pre-suit demand letter before you sue under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, and if your claim involves a dishonored check, Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-21-109 requires a written demand giving the check writer 15 days to pay before a court may award three times the check's face amount.

2. 2

   State your demand in specific numbers. Name the exact amount owed, the contract, invoice, or dishonored check it comes from, and a firm deadline to pay or act.

3. 3

   If you send a dishonored-check demand under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-21-109(3)-(4), the recipient has 15 days from the date the notice is given to pay in full. Only if that 15 days passes unpaid may a court award three times the check's face amount, not less than $100, subject to six statutory defenses in Section 13-21-109(2)(b).

4. 4

   Colorado's Small Claims Division of the County Court hears claims up to $7,500, exclusive of interest and costs, the same limit for an individual or a business, under Section 13-6-403(1). Attorneys generally may not appear in Colorado small claims court under Section 13-6-407(2)(a)(II).

5. 5

   Mind Colorado's statute of limitations: most contract claims get three years under Section 13-80-101(1)(a), but a liquidated, sum-certain debt, such as an unpaid invoice, note, or open account, gets six years under Section 13-80-103.5(1)(a).

6. 6

   Interest on money owed accrues under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 5-12-102(1)(b) at 8% per year, compounded annually, from the date the money became due, not from the date of your demand letter. A 3% cap applies specifically to medical debt under Section 5-12-102(5)(a).

7. 7

   Keep the tone firm and factual, not threatening. Do not threaten arrest, jail, or criminal prosecution to collect a civil debt. Colorado's Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Section 5-16-101 et seq., covers a third-party collection agency or debt collector, not a creditor collecting its own debt in its own name.

Colorado Requirements for Demand Letter

• Bad-Check 15-Day Demand Unlocks Triple Damages

  Under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-21-109(2), a written demand under Section 13-21-109(3)-(4) that goes unpaid within 15 days of the date it is given lets a court award three times the check's face amount, not less than $100, subject to six statutory defenses in Section 13-21-109(2)(b). Without that demand, Section 13-21-109(1) allows only the face amount plus actual damages, or the face amount plus a charge of up to $20, plus 20% of the face amount, minimum $20, if assigned to a collection agency.

• Required Delivery and Content for a Bad-Check Demand

  Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-21-109(3)-(4) requires the written demand to be given in person and receipted, by personal service, by certified mail return receipt requested, or by regular mail supported by an affidavit of mailing, and to state the check's date, the bank, the payee, the face amount, an itemized total due, the 15-day deadline, and that nonpayment may result in liability for three times the face amount.

• Treble Amount Not Owed Until Judgment

  Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-21-109(5) bars a holder from asserting that the three-times-face-amount liability under Section 13-21-109(2) is already owed until a court enters a final judgment for that amount. A demand letter may describe it only as a possible consequence, not a current debt.

• No CCPA Pre-Suit Notice Requirement

  The Colorado Consumer Protection Act lets a consumer bring a civil action under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 6-1-113 without a pre-suit written-notice or waiting-period step.

• CCPA Damages Formula and Fee-Shifting

  A prevailing plaintiff under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 6-1-113(2)(a) recovers the greatest of actual damages plus statutory interest, $500, or three times actual damages if bad-faith conduct is proven by clear and convincing evidence, plus reasonable attorney fees under Section 6-1-113(2)(b). A prevailing defendant recovers fees only if the action was frivolous, groundless, and in bad faith, or for harassment, under Section 6-1-113(3).

• Colorado FDCPA Excludes First-Party Creditors

  Colorado's Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Colorado Revised Statutes Section 5-16-101 et seq., defines a covered collection agency or debt collector as one collecting a debt owed to another, under Section 5-16-103(3)(a)(II)(A) and (9). A creditor collecting its own debt in its own name is not covered by this Act.

• Dual-Track Statute of Limitations

  Colorado's general contract statute, Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-80-101(1)(a), gives three years, but a liquidated or sum-certain debt, such as an unpaid invoice, note, or open account, gets six years under Section 13-80-103.5(1)(a), regardless of whether the underlying agreement was written or oral.

• Small Claims Limit and Attorney Restriction

  Colorado's Small Claims Division of the County Court hears claims up to $7,500, exclusive of interest and costs, under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-6-403(1). Attorneys generally may not appear in small claims court under Section 13-6-407(2)(a)(II), though if one side is permitted an exception, the other side may then also retain counsel under Section 13-6-407(4).

• Fixed Statutory Interest Rate

  Colorado Revised Statutes Section 5-12-102(1)(b) sets interest at 8% per year, compounded annually, on money wrongfully withheld or overdue, running from the date the money became due rather than from the date of a demand letter. A separate 3% cap applies specifically to medical debt under Section 5-12-102(5)(a).