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Colorado Insurance Appraisal Law & Your Rights

Colorado property insurance appraisal is governed by your policy's appraisal clause — a contract term — read against a Colorado Supreme Court decision on what impartiality means, plus non-binding guidance from the Division of Insurance. There is no Colorado statute setting appraiser or umpire conduct. This guide explains what actually applies, what the absence of an appraiser license means for you, and how to protect yourself when you invoke appraisal. To browse professionals now, visit the Colorado insurance appraisers directory.

What Actually Governs Appraiser Conduct in Colorado

Two sources matter, and neither is an appraisal statute.

Your policy, as read by the Colorado Supreme Court. In Owners Insurance Co. v. Dakota Station II Condominium Association, 2019 CO 65, the court interpreted the standard requirement that an appraiser be “impartial”: appraisers must be unbiased, disinterested, and unswayed by personal interest, must not favor one side more than another, and may not advocate for either party. The court was careful to note it was interpreting the policy language, not imposing a free-standing legal duty.

Division of Insurance Bulletin B-5.26, “Requirements Related to Disputed Claims Subject to Appraisal” (re-issued October 26, 2015), sets out disclosure and conduct expectations for appraisers and umpires, including a continuing duty to disclose financial or personal interests and prior relationships, and a rule against ex parte communication with the umpire. Read it for what it is: the Division states in the bulletin itself that bulletins “establish neither binding norms nor finally determine issues or rights,” so B-5.26 is guidance, not a regulation with the force of law.

The practical effect is that neutrality is disclosed rather than certified. No state stamp guarantees an appraiser is independent, so the burden is on you to read the disclosure, ask follow-up questions, and walk away if the answers are evasive. A neutral umpire in particular should have no stake in whether the award lands high or low.

You may see other sites cite Colorado HB18-1153 as an appraiser disclosure law. It is not law. That bill was postponed indefinitely by the House Finance Committee on March 19, 2018, and two later attempts — HB17-1319 and HB26-1247 — also failed. Colorado has no enacted statute governing appraiser or umpire qualifications, disclosure, or conduct.

Colorado Does Not License the Appraiser or Umpire Role

Colorado does license public adjusters: under C.R.S. § 10-2-417 a person may not act as or hold themselves out to be a public insurance adjuster without a license, and licensees must maintain a surety bond of at least $20,000. But there is no separate Colorado license, certification, or public roster for the appraiser or umpire role itself — the two party-appointed appraisers and the umpire are appointed under the policy contract, not registered with a state agency.

So a public adjuster's licence can be checked; an appraiser's or umpire's standing generally cannot be, because no such credential exists to check. That changes how you should vet a professional:

Because there is no official record to lean on, choosing well matters even more here. Our Colorado guide to choosing an insurance appraiser walks through exactly what to evaluate.

How the Appraisal Clause Fits In

Everything above sits on top of the appraisal clause that already exists in most Colorado property policies — and the clause is doing most of the work, because there is no statute behind it. The clause is the contractual mechanism: when you and your insurer disagree on theamount of a covered loss, each side names an independent appraiser, and if the two cannot agree they select a neutral umpire whose decision on disputed items is binding. For a full walkthrough of that mechanism, see the Colorado appraisal clause guide, and for the step-by-step of the wider process see the Colorado insurance appraisal process.

Appraisal resolves valuation disputes — not coverage denials. If your insurer says a loss is not covered at all, that is a different (often legal) question. The line between an appraiser and an advocate matters too; our appraiser vs. public adjuster guide explains who does what.

IAUA Certification: The Trust Signal

With no state license to point to, IAUA certification (Insurance Appraisal & Umpire Association) is the closest stable trust signal in Colorado. It is not a government credential, but it reflects training and adherence to a code of conduct, and it is the signal PropertyUmpire notes on Colorado profiles where available. Treat it as one input among several — alongside a written conflict disclosure, references, and fee transparency.

Related Colorado Guides

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