Motorcycle riders start every claim with a problem car drivers do not have. Somebody has already decided they were going too fast.
Nobody says it that plainly. But it shows up in the adjuster's first questions, in the police narrative, and in how a jury is picked. So in a motorcycle case you do not get to assume anything about fault. You have to prove it, step by step.
Fault in Utah works like a pizza
Utah is a comparative fault state under Utah Code § 78B-5-818. Think of fault as a pizza. The driver who turned left in front of you might have all of it, none of it, or anything in between. If the insurer can say you had 20% of the pizza, it will only offer 80% of your claim. If it can get you to half, you recover nothing.
That is why the insurer's first move in a motorcycle case is almost always about you: your speed, your lane position, your visibility, your gear.
Lane filtering is legal in Utah. Barely.
Utah allows a motorcycle to pass stopped traffic in the same lane only when every condition in § 41-6a-704 is met:
- the road has two or more lanes in the same direction, or it is an off-ramp with two or more lanes
- the speed limit is 45 mph or less, or it is an off-ramp
- it is not an on-ramp
- the vehicle being passed is stopped
- the motorcycle is going 15 mph or less
- the move can be made safely
Miss one and it is an infraction, and the insurer will call it the cause of the crash. Meet all of them and filtering is lawful, and you should not let an adjuster describe it as reckless. Know exactly which road, what speed limit, and whether traffic was stopped.
Helmets
Utah requires riders and passengers under 21 to wear a helmet under § 41-6a-1505. Adults are not required to. Expect the insurer to ask anyway. Answer honestly, and do not volunteer opinions about what a helmet would or would not have changed. That is a medical and legal question, not a roadside one.
The three-foot rule
Under § 41-6a-706.5, a motorcyclist is a "vulnerable user of a highway." A driver may not knowingly, intentionally or recklessly operate within three feet of one, or try to force one off the road. A violation that causes bodily injury is a class C misdemeanor. If a car crowded you, that statute belongs in the claim.
What wins a motorcycle case
Pictures. Take as many as you can, or have someone go back to the scene. The bike's final position, the car, the skid marks, the gouges in the pavement, the signals and signs, the sight lines. You will never regret taking too many.
Video. Helmet cams, dash cams, gas stations, businesses, doorbells. Ask for it in writing now. Most of it overwrites itself within days or weeks.
Witnesses. Get their names and numbers yourself. Crash scenes are chaotic, and witnesses leave things out of their statements.
The bike. Do not let it get scrapped or repaired before it is inspected. The damage pattern shows the angle and speed of the impact. Once it is gone, so is that proof.
Your gear. Keep the helmet, jacket and boots. Damaged gear shows where the impact landed, and it is part of your property damage.
Your injuries
Motorcycle injuries are rarely minor, and shock hides a lot. It is not the time to be brave. Get checked, tell the provider everything that hurts, and follow the treatment.
Unlike a car policy, a Utah motorcycle policy is not required to include personal injury protection under § 31A-22-302(2). Many riders assume they have PIP and do not. Find out exactly what your policy includes, and whether you have PIP through a car policy in your household, along with uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. When the driver who hit you has minimum limits, your own UIM coverage may be the real recovery.
The deadlines
- Personal injury — four years. Utah Code § 78B-2-307.
- Wrongful death — two years. § 78B-2-304.
- Vehicle property damage — three years. § 78B-2-305, covering the bike and your gear.
LawyerUp handles the motorcycle damage claim alongside the injury claim, so the bike, the gear and your treatment are in one file.
Call (801) 685-1000. Stay with it. You can do this.