Here is the single most important thing I can tell you about the insurance company after a crash: they are not your friend.
The adjuster may be polite. They may be genuinely nice. But they are in business to pay out as little money as possible. That is true of the other driver's insurance company, and to a lesser extent it is true of your own.
Adjusters have specialised training. You have one crash. So here are the moves we see most, and what to do about each.
1. The friendly early call
It comes in the first few days, sounds routine, and ends with: "Can I record this so I have your statement accurate?"
The questions sound administrative. They are not. "How are you feeling?" gets you to say "okay" or "sore" four days after a crash, before the injury has fully shown itself. "How fast were you going?" invites a guess, and a recorded guess becomes a position.
The answer: say no to the recording. You do not have to give one to the other driver's insurance company. Give the simple facts in writing: date, place, vehicles, the police case number. Utah Code § 78B-5-813 also limits the use of a statement taken from an injured person in the first fifteen days unless you were given a verbatim copy at the time.
2. The quick offer
A check, fast, before you have finished treatment. It looks like good service.
It is the cheapest this claim will ever be. Utah law does not allow a claim for pain and suffering after a car accident unless you meet the injury threshold in § 31A-22-309, such as a fracture or more than $3,000 in medical expenses. An early offer on a soft tissue injury is timed to close the file before you find out whether you cross that line.
The answer: do not settle an injury claim until you know what the injury is.
3. The release in the envelope
The offer arrives with a release. Sign it, cash the check, and the claim is over, including the injuries you do not know about yet.
The answer: read every word, and do not sign anything in the first weeks without talking to a lawyer. Utah § 78B-5-812 makes certain releases signed in the first fifteen days voidable, but the steps to undo one are strict and short.
4. Shifting fault
Utah is a comparative fault state under § 78B-5-818. You recover only if the other side's fault is greater than yours, and every percentage point they put on you comes straight off the claim. So the questions drift: were you looking at your phone, were you speeding, did you see them coming.
The answer: answer only what you know. "I don't know" is a complete answer. Get the police report, the photos, any video from nearby businesses and doorbells, and the witnesses' contact information before they are gone.
5. Blaming something else
For the car, the estimator looks for old damage and prior claims. For you, they look for a prior injury, a gap in treatment, a hobby, anything other than this crash.
The answer: be honest about anything that was really there before. Be insistent about what was not. Photos from before the crash, and a doctor's notes that describe how this injury is different, are worth more than any argument.
6. Steering the repair
"You'll want to use our preferred shop, it's faster." Insurance companies use preferred shops to control their repair costs.
The answer: you choose who fixes your car. Get an estimate from a shop you trust and send it to the adjuster. When the car comes back, walk around it. Compare the panels and the paint. Do not accept shoddy work.
7. Delay
Calls not returned. A new adjuster who has not read the file. A request for a document you already sent.
Utah's unfair claims practice rules, R590-190, set timelines insurers are expected to follow, and complaints can go to the Utah Insurance Department.
The answer: write it down. Every call, every date, every name, in a crash diary. Send your requests by email so there is a timestamp. A documented delay is evidence; an undocumented one is just frustration.
When the moves stop being small
If fault is disputed, if you are hurt, or if the adjuster is pressing for a statement or a signature, that is the moment to bring in a lawyer. We deal with the adjuster so you do not have to. LawyerUp handles the vehicle claim alongside the injury claim, so the car, the rental and your treatment are all in one file, and nothing gets traded away to close another part.
- Personal injury — four years. Utah Code § 78B-2-307.
- Vehicle property damage — three years. § 78B-2-305.
Free consultation. (801) 685-1000.