Underinsured Motorist Coverage After a Serious Utah Crash
When the at-fault driver's policy isn't enough, underinsured motorist coverage may matter. Here's how UIM works in Utah and what to gather first.
Underinsured Motorist Coverage: What It Can Mean After a Serious Utah Crash
Worried the other driver’s insurance won’t cover what this crash has cost you? You may have another layer of protection on your own policy. In Utah, underinsured motorist coverage, usually called UIM, can apply when the at-fault driver had insurance but not enough of it. If you live in Kaysville, Clearfield, or anywhere in Davis County, the rules are set by Utah Code, not by the adjuster on the phone.
Utah law treats your UIM as secondary. It steps in after the at-fault driver’s liability coverage, and it gets added on top of that coverage rather than reduced by it. Whether it applies to you, and how much, depends on your policy and your facts.
If you’re still recovering, you don’t have to sort all of this out this week. Read what you need now and come back to the rest.
Four things to hold onto
- “Underinsured” means they had insurance, just not enough.Utah defines an underinsured vehicle as one covered by a liability policy that is too small to fully compensate the injured person.
- Your PIP usually pays first.The Utah Insurance Department says injured people in your vehicle first claim the first $3,000 in medical expenses under the Personal Injury Protection on your own policy.
- Check your declarations page before you assume anything.Your UIM limit may match your liability limit, or you may have signed a form choosing less.
- Slow down before you sign a release.The Insurance Department warns that a release means the amount offered is the only amount you’ll get from that driver and their insurer.
Which policy pays first after a serious Utah crash?
After a crash, it can feel like three insurance companies are calling and none of them is clear about whose job is what. Here’s the usual order in Utah, in plain terms.
Step 1: Your own Personal Injury Protection
Under Utah Code 31A-22-307, Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, includes coverage of at least $3,000 per person for reasonable, necessary medical expenses. The Utah Insurance Department explains that anyone hurt in your vehicle first submits their claim to the insurer covering your vehicle, and the first $3,000 in medical expenses for each person comes through PIP before a claim against the responsible driver’s insurer.
Step 2: The at-fault driver’s liability coverage
Utah also limits when you can sue the at-fault driver for general damages, like pain and suffering. Under Utah Code 31A-22-309, you generally need one of these: death, dismemberment, a permanent disability or impairment based on objective findings, permanent disfigurement, a bone fracture, or medical expenses over $3,000. That list is often called the tort threshold. Whether you meet it is a fact question for your case, not something an article can decide.
Once you’re past that point, the at-fault driver’s bodily injury liability coverage is the next layer. Utah’s minimum is $30,000 per person and $65,000 for two or more people, plus $25,000 for property damage. The Insurance Department notes this is usually written on a policy as “30/65/25.” A serious injury can use up a minimum policy quickly.
Step 3: Your own underinsured motorist coverage
If their liability coverage isn’t enough, your UIM may be the next layer. Utah Code 31A-22-305.3 says UIM is secondary to the at-fault driver’s liability coverage. It also says UIM can’t be set off against that coverage. It’s added to, or stacked on, the at-fault driver’s limits to figure out how much coverage is available to you.
That last part matters more than it sounds. Your UIM isn’t reduced just because the other driver’s policy paid something. It sits on top.
| Coverage | Whose policy | What it’s for | Utah source |
|---|---|---|---|
| PIP | The policy on the vehicle you were in | At least $3,000 per person in reasonable, necessary medical expenses | Utah Code 31A-22-307; Utah Insurance Department |
| Bodily injury liability | The at-fault driver’s policy | Your injuries caused by their driving, up to their limits. Utah’s minimum is $30,000 per person and $65,000 per accident. | Utah Insurance Department, citing Utah Code 31A-22-304 |
| Underinsured motorist | Usually your own policy | Bodily injury damages beyond what the at-fault driver’s liability coverage pays. It’s secondary and stacks on top of their limits. | Utah Code 31A-22-305.3 |
| Health insurance | Your health plan | Your medical bills under your plan. Under the UIM statute, health insurer subrogation can reduce UIM only after you’ve been made whole. | Utah Code 31A-22-305.3(4)(c) |
For a broader look at how Utah car accident claims work, including what happens before UIM ever comes up, see our Car Accidents in Utah page.
What people commonly get wrong about UIM
Most mistakes here don’t come from carelessness. They come from assumptions that sound reasonable, especially when you’re tired, hurting, and getting calls from more than one insurer. These are the ones I see most often with clients from Kaysville, Clearfield, and the rest of Davis County.
“The other driver had insurance, so I’m covered.”
Having insurance and having enough insurance are different things. Utah’s minimum bodily injury limit is $30,000 per person. That number can be used up fast after a serious injury, and that’s exactly the gap UIM exists for.
“I have ‘full coverage,’ so I must have full UIM.”
“Full coverage” isn’t a term in Utah’s UIM statute. Your UIM limit depends on your liability limits, what your insurer offers, and whether a named insured signed a form choosing less. Under Utah Code 31A-22-305.3(3), that choice stays in place with the same insurer until someone asks for a change in writing, and adding another car to the policy doesn’t reset it. A form signed years ago, maybe by a spouse, can still control your limit today. Pull the declarations page.
“I can add up the UIM on every car in my driveway.”
Generally, no. Utah’s statute says UIM limits for two or more vehicles can’t be added together or stacked for one accident. There are narrow exceptions. They include a pedestrian hit by an underinsured driver, someone hurt while riding in a vehicle that isn’t owned by or furnished to them, their spouse, or a parent or sibling they live with, and a dependent child whose parents live in separate households. Even then, total recovery can’t exceed your full damages. If one of those situations sounds like yours, it’s worth a closer look.
“I was driving for work, so it’s only a workers’ comp case.”
Not necessarily. Plenty of Davis County crashes happen on the clock, on the way between job sites, deliveries, or a shift at the Freeport Center. The UIM statute says UIM doesn’t pay for the same benefits workers’ compensation already provides, so there’s no double recovery. But it also says the workers’ comp carrier can’t take its money back out of your UIM, can’t use its benefits to reduce your UIM, and doesn’t have to finish paying before a UIM claim moves forward. A work crash can involve both.
“My health insurance gets paid back out of my UIM first.”
Not under the statute’s general rule. Utah Code 31A-22-305.3(4)(c) says health insurance subrogation can reduce UIM only after you’ve been made whole. Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, and other statutory liens follow their own rules, which is why the statute makes you list them if a UIM claim goes formal. Don’t agree to a repayment amount just because a recovery company sends a letter.
“The deadline is four years from the crash, so I have time.”
There’s more than one clock, and they don’t start on the same day. The Utah Insurance Department says bodily injury claims must be settled or filed within four years of the accident, and property damage within three years. The UIM statute has its own rule: an action on a UIM policy must be started within four years after the inception of loss, which the statute ties to the date of the settlement check for the last liability policy payment.
Government vehicles are where people get caught. If a UDOT truck, a UTA bus, a city or Davis County vehicle, or a school bus was involved, Utah’s Governmental Immunity Act generally requires a written notice of claim within one year. If the driver was a federal employee on duty, which can happen on the roads around Hill Air Force Base, the Federal Tort Claims Act generally requires an administrative claim to the right federal agency within two years, usually on Standard Form 95. Don’t do the math on your own. Ask a lawyer which deadlines apply to you.
“The release only matters for the other driver’s company.”
Maybe, maybe not. The Insurance Department warns that signing a release means the amount offered is the only amount you’ll receive from that driver and their insurer, and it says to be sure you’re ready before you cash the check or sign. Utah’s UIM statute does address one piece of this: once the at-fault driver’s insurer tenders its policy limit and you accept it, your UIM carrier generally can’t turn around and seek reimbursement from that driver. How a specific release fits with your own UIM claim still depends on your policy and the document itself. That’s a question to ask before you sign, not after.
The thread through all seven: the answer usually lives in a document, not in an assumption. Your declarations page, any UIM form someone signed, the crash report, and who owned the other vehicle settle most of these questions.
What Utah law actually says about UIM
Utah’s underinsured motorist statute is long, and most of it deals with situations that won’t apply to you. These are the parts that most often matter to a driver who was seriously hurt.
What counts as “underinsured”
The statute defines an underinsured vehicle as one covered by a liability policy at the time of the crash whose coverage isn’t enough to fully compensate the injured person for their damages. It also lists vehicles that don’t count. Those include a vehicle insured under the same policy that holds your UIM, an uninsured vehicle (that’s a different coverage), and a vehicle owned or leased by the named insured, a spouse, or a dependent.
That exclusion list surprises people. If you were hurt as a passenger in a household car driven by a family member, read the policy carefully or have someone read it with you.
How much UIM you probably have
For new policies written on or after January 1, 2001, Utah sets the default UIM limit as the lower of two numbers: your own liability limits, or the most UIM the insurer offers. You can end up with less only if a named insured rejected UIM or chose lower limits by signing an acknowledgment form. Under the statute, that form must explain what UIM does and disclose the extra premium for higher limits.
So the honest answer to “how much do I have?” is on your declarations page, and possibly in a form someone in your household signed when the policy was set up.
Who UIM covers
UIM covers a covered person who is legally entitled to recover damages from an underinsured owner or driver for bodily injury, sickness, disease, or death. It’s about injuries. Vehicle damage is a different claim.
The sources behind this article: The coverage rules here are drawn from Utah Code 31A-22-305.3, Utah’s underinsured motorist statute, along with Utah Code 31A-22-307 and 31A-22-309 on PIP and the tort threshold. Claim-process guidance comes from the Utah Insurance Department’s consumer page, Filing an Auto Claim. The comparative fault rule comes from Utah Code 78B-5-818. Government-claim deadlines come from Utah Code 63G-7-402 and, for federal drivers, 28 U.S.C. § 2401(b). Nothing here predicts what an insurer will pay or how a claim will resolve.
What the insurance company will likely ask you for
The Utah Insurance Department is direct about this. No law sets out exactly what information you must give an insurer on a claim. But the company will need to figure out three things: whether its insured is legally responsible and to what extent, how much your damages are, and whether your injuries are related to the crash. The Department also notes that if you don’t cooperate fully, the company could deny your claim.
Cooperating doesn’t mean guessing. If you don’t know something yet, like how long treatment will last, it’s fine to say so.
Questions about fault
Utah uses comparative negligence. Under Utah Code 78B-5-818 and the Insurance Department’s summary, you can recover only if your fault is less than the combined fault of the people you’re seeking recovery from. In practice, that means less than 50%. Your recovery can also be reduced by your share of fault. That’s why adjusters ask detailed questions about speed, lanes, and what you saw. The Department also points out that only a judge or jury can ultimately decide who was at fault and how much is owed.
Questions about timing
The Department says insurers generally won’t settle a bodily injury claim until you’ve finished medical treatment. For serious injuries, that can mean a long stretch before any settlement. Utah insurance rules require a substantive response within 15 days of a request and a decision to accept or deny within 30 days, though an insurer can take more time if its investigation isn’t finished. Those are rules for the insurer, not a prediction of how long your claim will take.
What a formal UIM claim requires
If a UIM claim moves into arbitration or a lawsuit, Utah’s statute spells out what you owe your own UIM carrier within 30 days. It’s useful to know now, because it’s basically a list of records to start keeping:
- A written demand with a specific dollar amount, including your past medical expenses, past lost wages, and other past economic losses.
- The facts, legal basis, and supporting documents for the demand.
- A sworn statement listing your health care providers and health insurers for the five years before the crash, through the date you chose arbitration or litigation.
- Your employers for the same five-year period, if you’re claiming lost wages or reduced earning ability.
- Any state or federal lienholders, including whether you receive Medicare, Medicaid, or Utah CHIP benefits.
- Signed authorizations so the carrier can get records and billing from the providers and employers you listed.
After it receives those items, the statute gives the UIM carrier a reasonable time, not more than 60 days, to respond in writing and pay whatever amount it believes it owes.
Before anything else, I want to see your declarations page and any UIM form someone in your house signed. Half the questions people bring me about UIM get answered, or at least get much clearer, once those two pieces of paper are on the table.
Records to start keeping now
You don’t need a perfect file. You need a folder, paper or digital, that you add to as things come in. Start with what’s easiest to lose.
The crash report
Get the report from the agency that responded. If the crash happened in Kaysville and Kaysville Police handled it, the department takes report requests under GRAMA, Utah’s public records law, using its records request form. You’ll need a valid government-issued photo ID to pick it up. If Clearfield Police responded, the Clearfield Police Department’s Records Division handles requests by form, turned in at the city building. If a different agency came out, ask that agency. Check the report for mistakes once you have it.
Your insurance paperwork
- The declarations page for every auto policy in your household.
- Any UIM selection, rejection, or lower-limit form.
- Letters and emails from each insurer, with the claim numbers.
- The other driver’s insurance information from the report or the exchange at the scene.
Medical and work records
- Bills and explanation-of-benefits statements as they arrive.
- A list of every provider you’ve seen since the crash, with dates.
- Names of providers who treated you in the five years before the crash. The UIM statute asks for them if your claim goes formal.
- Pay stubs and any notes from your employer about missed work.
Photos and your own notes
Keep the vehicle damage photos, photos of your injuries over time, and a short dated log of symptoms and appointments. Write it the same day. Memory gets fuzzy faster than people expect, especially on pain medication.
Where UIM claims usually run into trouble
When a UIM claim gets hard, it’s usually over one of a handful of questions.
Coverage. Is the at-fault vehicle one that counts as “underinsured” under your policy? Are you a covered person? Was a lower UIM limit selected? These are policy questions, and the UIM statute says an arbitrator can’t decide them.
Fault. Your UIM carrier can raise comparative fault the same way the other driver’s insurer can.
Damages and causation. How much is the claim worth, and are all of your injuries connected to this crash? This is where your medical history, and the five-year provider list, come in.
How the dispute gets decided. Under Utah’s statute, you as the claimant can choose to resolve a UIM claim through binding arbitration or through a lawsuit. If you start a lawsuit first, you can’t switch to arbitration without the carrier’s written consent. Some policies let either side elect arbitration. Unless the parties agree otherwise, arbitration is in front of a single arbitrator they both pick. Either side can ask for a new trial in court within 20 days after an arbitration award, but there are cost rules that make that a serious decision.
None of these is a reason to panic. They’re reasons not to go it alone if the numbers are large or the injuries are serious.
Questions to ask before you give a statement or sign anything
An adjuster may ask for a recorded statement early, sometimes while you’re still in treatment. It’s reasonable to slow down. Before you talk on the record or sign a release, I’d want you to have clear answers to these:
- Which insurance company is this person working for: the other driver’s, or mine?
- What are the other driver’s bodily injury limits?
- What UIM limit is on my declarations page, and did anyone in my household sign a form choosing less?
- Am I done with treatment, or do my doctors expect more care?
- Does this release cover only the other driver, or could it affect my own claims?
- Which deadlines apply to me, including the UIM clock and the general bodily injury deadline?
- Was a government vehicle or road involved, state, local, or federal? Different deadlines may apply.
- Was I working at the time of the crash, and has a workers’ comp claim been opened?
- Do I have a crash report, and is it accurate?
If you aren’t sure about more than one of these, that’s a good time for a free call.
Questions injured drivers ask about UIM
Is UIM the same as uninsured motorist coverage?
No. Uninsured motorist coverage is for a driver with no applicable insurance. UIM is for a driver who had insurance that wasn’t enough. Utah’s UIM statute specifically says an uninsured vehicle doesn’t count as underinsured.
Does it matter if I was partly at fault?
Yes. Utah’s comparative negligence rule lets you recover only if your fault is less than the fault of the people you’re claiming against. In practice, that means under 50%. Your recovery can also be reduced by your percentage of fault. The insurer’s view of fault isn’t final. Only a judge or jury can decide it.
Is there a deadline for a UIM claim in Utah?
Yes. Under Utah Code 31A-22-305.3, an action on a UIM policy must be started within four years after the inception of loss. The statute sets that date as the date of the settlement check for the last liability policy payment. Other deadlines may apply too, so confirm yours with a lawyer.
What if a government or federal vehicle hit me?
Different rules apply. For a Utah state or local government vehicle, the Governmental Immunity Act generally requires a notice of claim within one year. For a federal employee driving on duty, the Federal Tort Claims Act generally requires an administrative claim to the right agency within two years. Both have strict form requirements, so get advice early.
I was a passenger in a friend’s car. Whose UIM applies?
Under the statute, UIM on the vehicle you were in at the time of the crash is primary. If that vehicle wasn’t owned by or furnished to you, your spouse, or a parent or sibling you live with, you may also be able to recover under one other policy where you’re a covered person. The details depend on the policies involved.
Do I pay a deductible on a claim against the other driver’s insurer?
No. The Utah Insurance Department says you don’t pay a deductible when you file a claim with another driver’s insurance company.
Where can I take a complaint about how an insurer handled my claim?
The Utah Insurance Department publishes consumer guidance on auto claims and lists its Property and Casualty Division as the contact for more information. Its office is in Taylorsville, and its main line is (801) 957-9200.
