Hurt in a Car Crash While Working in Utah

Short answer: You may have two claims, not one. Workers’ compensation covers an injury on the job no matter who caused the crash, and if another driver was at fault, you can usually bring a separate claim against that driver as well. The workers’ comp carrier is generally repaid part of what it paid out of that second recovery, so the two claims need to be handled with each other in mind.

Delivery drivers, contractors driving between job sites, sales reps, home health aides and anyone running an errand for the boss can end up here. Here is how Utah law sorts it out.

Workers’ Comp Is Usually Your Only Claim Against Your Employer

Utah’s workers’ compensation system is a trade. Benefits are paid without anyone having to prove fault, but for an injury that arises out of your employment, workers’ comp is the “exclusive remedy” against your employer and against its officers, agents and employees (Utah Code 34A-2-105(1)). In practice, that means you generally cannot sue your employer, or a co-worker who was driving the company truck, over the crash.

That does not make the case small. It means any value beyond workers’ comp has to come from someone else.

A Claim Against the Other Driver Is Separate

When a work injury is caused by the wrongful act or neglect of someone other than your employer or a co-worker, Utah law lets you claim workers’ comp and also bring an action for damages against that third person (Utah Code 34A-2-106(1)). A driver of another vehicle who ran a light, followed too closely or drifted out of a lane is the most common example.

The two claims pay for different things. Workers’ comp pays benefits set by statute, mainly medical care and part of your lost wages. It does not pay for pain, for the ways the injury limits your life, or for the full measure of lost income. A claim against the at-fault driver can include those losses, subject to Utah’s normal fault rules. If you were partly at fault, your recovery against the other driver shrinks by your share, and you recover nothing from a defendant unless the fault on that side exceeds yours (Utah Code 78B-5-818). We walk through that rule in can I still recover if I was partly at fault.

Tell Your Employer Right Away

Report the injury to your employer promptly. The Workers’ Compensation Act requires prompt notice, and a claim for benefits is barred if the employer or the state’s Division of Industrial Accidents is not notified within 180 days after the injury (Utah Code 34A-2-407(2) and (3)). A doctor’s injury report or the payment of benefits can count as notice under the same section, but do not count on that. Tell your supervisor in writing, keep a copy, and say plainly that you were hurt in a crash while working.

The Comp Carrier Has a Stake in Your Injury Claim

Once the workers’ comp carrier is obligated to pay benefits, the statute makes it a trustee of the claim against the other driver, and it can bring that action itself, in its own name or yours (Utah Code 34A-2-106(2)). Before you file against the other driver, you must give written notice of your intent to the carrier and to anyone else paying compensation (34A-2-106(3)).

When the claim against the other driver pays, the statute sets the order of distribution (34A-2-106(5)):

• The reasonable expenses of the action, including attorney fees, are shared proportionately by everyone with an interest in the recovery.
• The carrier is reimbursed for the benefits it paid, less its share of those costs and fees.
• The balance goes to you, and it is applied against workers’ comp benefits that would otherwise come due later.

That last point catches people off guard. Money from the at-fault driver can reduce the comp benefits you receive afterward, so the timing and structure of a settlement with the other driver matter. Get the carrier’s reimbursement figure in writing before you agree to anything.

How PIP Fits In

Utah drivers carry personal injury protection (PIP), which pays medical expenses and some lost income no matter who caused the crash. When you are hurt on the job, your PIP benefits are reduced by the workers’ comp benefits you receive or are entitled to receive (Utah Code 31A-22-309(3)(a)). In many work crashes, workers’ comp ends up covering much of what PIP would otherwise pay. For the general rules, see is Utah a no-fault state.

Your Underinsured Motorist Coverage Still Matters

If the at-fault driver carries only a small policy, underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage may add to the recovery. Utah’s UIM statute speaks to workers’ comp directly. UIM does not pay again for a benefit workers’ comp already provided, which prevents double recovery, but the comp benefits do not have to be paid before the UIM claim is pursued and resolved, and a workers’ comp carrier cannot be subrogated to, or reduce, your UIM coverage (Utah Code 31A-22-305.3(4)(c)).

If you were in a company vehicle, look at that vehicle’s policy as well as your own. Under the same statute, UIM coverage on the vehicle you occupied is primary, and coverage you elected on your own policy can apply as secondary coverage (31A-22-305.3(4)(b)(v)).

Deadlines to Keep in Mind

• Notice to your employer: promptly, and in no case later than 180 days after the injury.
• Claim against the at-fault driver: most Utah injury lawsuits must be filed within four years (Utah Code 78B-2-307(4)). Our Utah statute of limitations guide covers the exceptions.
• A government vehicle or road: a written notice of claim is due within one year (Utah Code 63G-7-402).

What to Do Now

1. Report the injury to your employer in writing and keep a copy.
2. Get medical care, and tell each provider the injury happened at work and in a crash.
3. Get the other driver’s name and insurance information and request the police report.
4. Hold off on a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer until you understand how the claims fit together. Our post on recorded statements explains why.
5. Keep records of missed work, comp payments and every letter from the comp carrier.

Talk to a Utah Injury Attorney

A work crash involves at least two insurers with different rules, and a misstep with one can cost you with the other. We can review how a claim against the at-fault driver fits with the workers’ comp benefits you are receiving. Our fee is a one-third contingency fee, and the firm advances case costs, which are repaid from the recovery.

Hurt in Utah? Call (801) 921-5134 or send us your case for a free consultation. No attorney fees unless we win. Hablamos Español.