CO Code § 4-3-503 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 4 - Uniform Commercial Code|Article 3 - Negotiable Instruments|Part 5 - Dishonor|§ 4-3-503. Notice of Dishonor

  The obligation of an indorser stated in section 4-3-415 (a) and the obligation of a drawer stated in section 4-3-414 (d) may not be enforced unless (i) the indorser or drawer is given notice of dishonor of the instrument complying with this section or (ii) notice of dishonor is excused under section 4-3-504 (b).    Notice of dishonor may be given by any person; may be given by any commercially reasonable means, including an oral, written, or electronic communication; and is sufficient if it reasonably identifies the instrument and indicates that the instrument has been dishonored or has not been paid or accepted. Return of an instrument given to a bank for collection is sufficient notice of dishonor.    Subject to section 4-3-504 (c), with respect to an instrument taken for collection by a collecting bank, notice of dishonor must be given (i) by the bank before midnight of the next banking day following the banking day on which the bank receives notice of dishonor of the instrument, or (ii) by any other person within thirty days following the day on which the person receives notice of dishonor. With respect to any other instrument, notice of dishonor must be given within thirty days following the day on which dishonor occurs.     History. Source: L. 94: Entire article R&RE, p. 875, § 1, effective January 1, 1995.    Editor's note:   This section is similar to former §§ 4-3-501 , 4-3-508 , and 4-3-510 as they existed prior to 1994.   OFFICIAL COMMENT   1. Subsection (a) is consistent with former Section 3-501(2)(a), but notice of dishonor is no longer relevant to the liability of a drawer except for the case of a draft accepted by an acceptor other than a bank. Comments 2 and 4 to Section 3-414. There is no reason why drawers should be discharged on instruments they draw until payment or acceptance. They are entitled to have the instrument presented to the drawee and dishonored (Section 3-414(b)) before they are liable to pay, but no notice of dishonor need be made to them as a condition of liability. Subsection (b), which states how notice of dishonor is given, is based on former Section 3-508(3).   2. Subsection (c) replaces former Section 3-508(2). It differs from that section in that it provides a 30-day period for a person other than a collecting bank to give notice of dishonor rather than the three-day period allowed in former Article 3. Delay in giving notice of dishonor may be excused under Section 3-504(c).   ANNOTATION   Annotator's note. The following annotations include cases decided under former provisions similar to this section.   Oral notice is sufficient. De La Vergne v. Globe Printing Co., 27 Colo. App. 308, 148 P. 923.   Such notice within two days held in due time where parties resided in different places. De La Vergne v. Globe Printing Co., 27 Colo. App. 308, 148 P. 923 (1915).   Notice of dishonor made on the day of dishonor and addressed to the indorser at a place which the indorser named as his residence at the time of the execution of the note is sufficient, since the payee is entitled to rely on such statement. Archuleta v. Johnston, 53 Colo. 393 , 127 P. 134 (1912).   Delay in giving notice of dishonor to an antecedent party while investigating an apparent erasure of the party's name on the paper is not excused. Emerson Buckingham Bank Trust Co. v. German-American Trust Co., 65 Colo. 398 , 176 P. 472 (1918).