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Marshall Fire survivors sue insurance companies as important deadline approaches

Nearly two years later, Marshall Fire survivors who lost homes are turning to lawsuits to get insurance money.

BOULDER, Colo. — Families who lost homes in the Marshall Fire in December 2021 have complained about lowball offers or slow payments from insurance companies. Many have turned to lawsuits to try to get more money from the companies for the losses they suffered in the fire.

Attorneys said usually people can't sue their insurance company once it's been more than two years after a fire. That deadline is coming up at the end of December. More than 400 families still don't have a permit to rebuild a home or business. 

"If your insurance company didn't fully pay you, there is a day of reckoning coming up," said Chip Merlin, an attorney who represents Marshall Fire families. 

His law firm has also helped about 20 families sue their insurance companies after losses in the 2020 East Troublesome Fire. They complained about lowball reimbursements on rebuilding costs or delays in paying on their claims.

"What you have to go through and the memories that come back up. That is a second trauma," Merlin said. 

Merlin said a good number of their cases have resolved and they have a few remaining from the East Troublesome Fire. According to him, most lawsuits were resolved within a year.

As those cases wrap up, families in Boulder County are just starting their fight. 

"Today, when I left the law office the last thing I did was finish off a complaint against an insurance company for a family involving a home that wasn't fully paid for involving the Marshall Fire," said Merlin. 

Recovery takes years, and it looks different for everyone. From East Troublesome to Marshall Fire, families are finding healing in court. 

"I would say anybody that has a valid claim should have a good degree of having success," he said.

There's also one big lawsuit against Xcel Energy that points to investigators' conclusion that it was partly responsible for the Marshall Fire. 

Insurance companies are jumping in on that one, hoping to get back the money they paid in settlements to victims. Xcel maintains its equipment didn't start the fire.

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