HB26-1017 • 2026

Criminal Restitution Prohibited for Insurers

For the purpose of criminal restitution, the act excludes from the definition of 'restitution' losses for which a victim may be compensated through a private insurance policy, except for worker's comp

Crime Healthcare Labor

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Rep. C. Espenoza, Rep. Y. Zokaie, Sen. M. Weissman, Rep. J. Bacon, Rep. A. Boesenecker, Rep. M. Lindsay, Rep. J. Mabrey, Rep. M. Martinez, Rep. J. McCluskie, Rep. K. Nguyen, Rep. A. Paschal, Rep. E. Sirota, Rep. S. Woodrow, Sen. J. Coleman, Sen. J. Gonzales, Sen. I. Jodeh, Sen. C. Kipp, Sen. K. Wallace
Last action: 2026-04-02
Official status: Governor Signed
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Limits on Criminal Restitution for Insurance Losses

This law stops courts from ordering criminals to pay back insurance companies for losses covered by private policies, except in cases of worker's compensation or when the insurer is directly defrauded.

What This Bill Does

Excludes losses paid by private insurance from the definition of criminal restitution.
Keeps worker's compensation claims eligible for criminal restitution orders.
Removes people who have only a contract relationship from being called 'victims' in these cases, unless they are defrauded or their property is stolen.
Allows courts to order criminals to pay the deductible amount under an insurance policy directly to the victim.

Who It Names or Affects

Courts deciding criminal restitution amounts
Insurance companies seeking payment for losses covered by private policies
Victims who have private insurance policies

Terms To Know

Criminal Restitution: Money a court orders a person to pay back to someone they harmed through a crime.
Deductible: The amount of money the victim must pay before their insurance policy covers the rest of the loss, which courts can now order criminals to repay.

Limits and Unknowns

This law does not stop insurance companies from suing in civil court or using other legal actions to recover losses.
The specific effective date for this law is not listed in the provided text.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

L.005

Second Reading

Passed [**]

Plain English: This amendment changes Colorado law so that criminal restitution orders generally cannot be used to pay insurance companies for losses they have already covered, except when the insurance company itself is a direct victim of fraud or property crime.

Criminal courts are told not to order defendants to pay back money if an insurance policy has already paid the victim for that loss.
Courts can still order restitution payments specifically for any deductible amount the victim had to pay under their insurance policy.
Insurance companies must be made whole through criminal restitution only when they are directly defrauded or have property stolen, not just because they paid a claim.
Worker's compensation insurers and government health programs like Medicaid can still receive restitution payments for medical costs related to the crime.

The provided text is incomplete at the end of Section 3, so any changes regarding specific legal immunities or rights in that final section cannot be fully explained.
This summary only covers the written amendment and does not predict how courts will apply these rules to complex real-world cases.

Bill History

2026-04-02 Governor
Governor Signed
2026-03-26 Governor
Sent to the Governor
2026-03-26 Senate
Signed by the President of the Senate
2026-03-25 House
Signed by the Speaker of the House
2026-03-17 Senate
Senate Third Reading Passed - No Amendments
2026-03-16 Senate
Senate Second Reading Passed - No Amendments
2026-03-13 Senate
Senate Second Reading Laid Over to 03/16/2026 - No Amendments
2026-03-12 Senate
Senate Second Reading Laid Over to 03/13/2026 - No Amendments
2026-03-09 Senate
Senate Committee on Judiciary Refer Unamended to Senate Committee of the Whole
2026-03-02 Senate
Introduced In Senate - Assigned to Judiciary
2026-02-25 House
House Third Reading Passed - No Amendments
2026-02-24 House
House Second Reading Special Order - Passed with Amendments - Floor
2026-02-06 House
House Second Reading Laid Over Daily - No Amendments
2026-02-03 House
House Committee on Judiciary Refer Unamended to House Committee of the Whole
2026-01-14 House
Introduced In House - Assigned to Judiciary

Official Summary Text

For the purpose of criminal restitution, the act excludes from the definition of 'restitution' losses for which a victim may be compensated through a private insurance policy, except for worker's compensation insurance. Current law defines a 'victim' as any person who has suffered losses because of a contractual relationship, including an insurance company. The act excludes a person from the definition of 'victim' because of a contractual relationship but clarifies that an insurance company is a 'victim' if the insurance company is a victim of a scheme to defraud the insurance company or when the insurance company's property is damaged or stolen through a criminal act. The act authorizes the court to award a victim restitution for a deductible amount under the victim's insurance policy. The act does not prohibit an insurance company from filing a civil action or pursuing any other civil action against a defendant to recover losses the insurance company has suffered.
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)