# temporary partial disability Colorado: Light-Duty Pay Guide
Temporary Partial Disability in Colorado: What You’re Owed on Light Duty
The Short Answer
Temporary partial disability (TPD) in Colorado pays an injured worker two-thirds of the difference between their pre-injury average weekly wage and what they earn on light duty, under C.R.S. § 8-42-106 and the Colorado workers’ compensation Act. It applies once a doctor releases you to modified work and you return at reduced hours or lower pay. TPD continues until you reach your pre-injury wage, get a full release, or hit maximum medical improvement. This applies statewide, including Colorado Springs and El Paso County.
What Temporary Partial Disability Means in Colorado
Temporary partial disability in Colorado is a wage-loss benefit that fills the gap when you can work but can’t yet earn what you did before your injury. Under C.R.S. § 8-42-106, TPD pays roughly two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury average weekly wage and your current light-duty earnings. Most injured workers we talk to have no idea this benefit exists.
Here’s the confusion we see constantly. A worker in Fountain hurts their back, gets cleared for light duty at fewer hours, and assumes the smaller paycheck is just how it works now. Or they think the employer is doing them a favor by bringing them back at all. Neither is true. When your doctor releases you to modified work and your earnings drop, the workers’ comp insurer generally owes you TPD to bridge that gap. It’s not charity. It’s a benefit you paid into the system to receive. C.R.S. § 8-42-106 confirms the two-thirds-of-the-difference formula subject to the statewide average weekly wage cap.
How TPD Differs From TTD and PPD
TPD applies when you’re working but earning less; TTD applies when you can’t work at all; PPD applies after you’ve healed but have permanent restrictions. The distinction controls how much you’re paid and for how long.
Temporary total disability (TTD) pays two-thirds of your full average weekly wage when your injury keeps you completely off work during the healing period. If you’re still fully sidelined, that’s a different calculation entirely — our guide to lost wages after a work injury walks through it. The moment you return to modified work at reduced pay, TTD typically ends and TPD begins. It is worth noting that lost-time benefits — whether TTD or TPD — generally do not begin until you have missed more than three scheduled shifts, and if your disability extends beyond 14 days, those first three days are then paid retroactively under the waiting period rules in Colorado’s Workers’ Compensation Act.
Permanent partial disability (PPD) is what TPD converts into at maximum medical improvement (MMI). Once your treating physician says you’ve healed as much as you’re going to and assigns permanent restrictions, your temporary benefits stop and a permanent impairment rating drives your compensation. TPD and PPD don’t overlap — one replaces the other at MMI. For a fuller picture of every benefit category, see our workers’ compensation overview. The combined statutory caps on temporary and permanent disability benefits vary based on impairment rating level and are adjusted annually — consult with an attorney to determine the applicable limits for your injury date.
The TPD Calculation Formula Explained
TPD equals two-thirds (66.67%) of the difference between your pre-injury average weekly wage and your current light-duty weekly earnings, capped at Colorado’s statutory maximum tied to the statewide average weekly wage. The math is simpler than most insurers make it sound.
Say a Monument warehouse worker earned $1,200 a week before the injury. On light duty, they now bring home $750. The difference is $450. TPD pays two-thirds of that — about $300 per week — on top of the $750 they’re earning. That’s the formula that catches so many people off guard, because they assume the benefit is based on their current wage, not the wage difference. As another example: if pre-injury wages were $900 per week and light-duty earnings are $600 per week, the wage loss is $300, and TPD would be $200 per week — two-thirds of $300 — subject to the applicable maximum.
Under Colorado’s current standards, TPD is subject to the same maximum weekly benefit cap as TTD, which is 91% of the statewide average weekly wage recalculated each July. When lead attorney Alex Kerr reviews a file, this is the first number he checks — because insurers sometimes apply the wrong maximum or, worse, calculate the benefit off current earnings instead of the difference. That single error can shortchange a worker by hundreds of dollars a week. The maximum weekly temporary disability benefit changes annually and should be verified against current DOWC rate tables for your specific date of injury.
When TPD Starts and Stops for Colorado Springs Workers
TPD in Colorado Springs starts when a doctor releases you to modified work and you return at reduced pay; it ends at full release, refusal of suitable work, MMI, or when your earnings return to pre-injury levels. Timing matters because insurers have obligations to update your benefit status promptly.
Two things generally have to happen for TPD to begin. First, your authorized treating physician releases you to modified duty with restrictions. Second, your employer offers a suitable light-duty position — or you find comparable work elsewhere — at pay below your pre-injury wage. A worker in Security-Widefield who comes back at four hours a day instead of eight qualifies. So does a Woodland Park mechanic bumped to a lower hourly rate because of lifting limits, or a Falcon employee shifted into a different, lower-paying role entirely. Your treating physician’s written release to modified employment and your employer’s documented offer of modified work are both critical elements in establishing your right to TPD benefits.
TPD stops for a few clear reasons. Your doctor fully releases you to regular duty. You refuse a suitable offer of modified work — Colorado law can cut off benefits when a worker turns down appropriate light duty, though whether an offer is truly suitable depends on the specific circumstances. You reach MMI with permanent restrictions, converting your claim to PPD. Or your earnings climb back to your pre-injury level. Because settlement dynamics shift significantly once you approach MMI, TPD cases resolve differently than pure TTD claims. Timing your case around that transition is something Bradford Pelton PC handles case by case. Maintaining your treatment schedule and complying with medical directives is important, as failure to attend scheduled medical appointments can affect your benefits.
Common TPD Traps That Cost Workers Money
The most common TPD trap is an employer offering light duty without ever mentioning TPD rights, leaving workers to absorb a wage gap the insurer legally owes. In our experience handling workers’ comp cases across El Paso County, misclassification and math errors are the two biggest culprits.
Watch for these patterns. An employer brings you back part-time and says nothing about wage-loss benefits — you’re expected to simply live on less. An insurer calculates TPD off your current light-duty wage instead of the difference between old and new earnings, quietly cutting your benefit in half. Or a modified return gets logged as a full-duty return, ending your temporary benefits before they should. Each mistake is common, and each one is fixable when caught early. When an insurer miscalculates TTD or TPD — for example by using the wrong average weekly wage or ignoring a worker’s light-duty wage loss entirely — that error is treated as a violation subject to correction and potential penalties under C.R.S. § 8-43-304, which authorizes penalties of up to $1,000 per day per violation, enforced through the Office of Administrative Courts.
To prove entitlement, keep three things: your written medical restrictions, your work schedule showing reduced hours, and your pay stubs documenting the wage drop. Those documents let Alex Kerr reconstruct exactly what you should be receiving and compare it against what the insurer actually paid.
How Long TPD Lasts and Whether It Counts Against Caps
TPD lasts as long as your temporary partial wage loss continues — there is no fixed durational limit in Colorado — but it ends automatically at MMI and counts toward your overall temporary disability benefit picture. Most workers receive TPD for the weeks or months between their light-duty return and full recovery.
Colorado ties TPD to the same aggregate framework as other temporary benefits, and Division of Workers’ Compensation rules require additional reporting and oversight when treatment runs past certain thresholds, which keeps longer wage-loss claims monitored. Remember the underlying deadlines too: you generally have two years from the date of injury to file your formal claim, and timely injury reporting is required under Colorado law. The Division’s reporting requirements for longer claims are administrative obligations on insurers and do not automatically cut off your right to continued benefits — your TPD payments continue as long as your temporary partial wage loss continues and you have not reached MMI.
When to Question Your TPD Amount
Honestly, many TPD situations are straightforward. If your employer and insurer are calculating the two-thirds-of-the-difference formula correctly and applying the right maximum, you may not need a lawyer at all — and we’ll tell you that plainly. But if your light-duty paycheck feels too low, if nobody mentioned TPD when you returned part-time, or if the benefit seems tied to your current wage rather than your wage loss, those are red flags. Alex Kerr personally reviews every workers’ comp file and regularly catches insurer errors worth hundreds per week. You can read what our clients say about that hands-on approach or request a free consultation to have your numbers checked.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every case is different. Contact Bradford Pelton PC for a free consultation to discuss your specific situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does temporarily partially disabled mean?
Temporarily partially disabled means you’ve been medically cleared to work with restrictions but can’t yet earn your full pre-injury wage. In Colorado, this status entitles you to temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits under C.R.S. § 8-42-106, which pay two-thirds of the difference between your old average weekly wage and your reduced light-duty earnings. The status is temporary because it ends when you recover, return to full pay, or reach maximum medical improvement.
How do you qualify for partial disability in Colorado Springs?
You qualify for partial disability in Colorado Springs when an authorized treating physician releases you to modified work and you return — for your employer or another — at earnings below your pre-injury average weekly wage. Both conditions must be met: a medical release to light duty and an actual wage loss. Your medical restrictions, work schedule, and pay stubs are the documentation that proves eligibility.
How is PPD calculated in Colorado?
Permanent partial disability (PPD) in Colorado is calculated after maximum medical improvement using the permanent impairment rating your treating physician assigns, combined with your average weekly wage and statutory factors. Unlike TPD, which is based on ongoing wage loss during recovery, PPD compensates lasting impairment once healing is complete. PPD replaces temporary benefits at MMI rather than overlapping with them.
Does refusing light duty stop my TPD benefits in Colorado?
Yes, refusing a suitable offer of modified work can stop your temporary disability benefits in Colorado, including TPD. If your doctor clears you for light duty and your employer offers a position within your restrictions, turning it down without good cause may end your wage-loss payments. Whether an offer is genuinely “suitable” depends on the circumstances, so document any concerns and consider having an attorney review the offer before you decline.