Utah Law Talk

An older gentleman from Taylorsville who failed to yield to a pickup truck, died this afternoon, January 26, 2009, in South Salt Lake City, Utah. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the 76-year-old man, Sheldon Dudley, was killed when he turned south onto State Street from Miller Avenue (3015 South) without yielding the right of way to a northbound truck. His Honda sedan was then broad-sided by the pickup. Sadly, Mr. Dudley passed away at the scene of the car accident. The driver of the pickup is reported to have received minor injuries.

If there is a lesson to be learned, it is that it is crucial to yield the right away to vehicles that actually have the right of way. Unfortunately, far too many people fail to properly yield. Practicing personal injury law in Utah, I meet with people all the time who were injured when another driver failed to yield the right away when making left-hand turns. The truck accident that killed a UPS driver a couple months ago involved a dump truck driver who turned left right in front of the fast-approaching UPS truck. It might seem like a little thing, this waiting our turn, but the failure to do so while on the road can have tragic consequences.

Published by: Ron Kramer

A man, who was said to be “weaving in and out of traffic” as he drove down Highland Drive near 5000 South in Salt Lake City, Utah, is dead this evening when his Suzuki struck a Cadillac Escalade traveling in the opposition direction. The deceased, James Lowe, 66 years of age, may have had health problems, including diabetes, that contributed to the pre-accident weaving. Six others traveling in the Escalade, were taken to local hospitals.

Although the article in the Deseret News suggests that health problems may have led Mr. Lowe to drive erratically, it is also possible that there were product defect issues with Mr. Lowe’s vehicle. For example, if a vehicle’s tie rod end suddenly failed, it could cause one of the front wheels to turn in to the right or left, leading the driver to lose control of the vehicle. These are issues the family of Mr. Lowe should investigate.

Meanwhile, those injured in this crash may have legal claims from injuries brought on by this accident. In cases where there a large number of persons making claims, the claimants may run into issues with there not being enough insurance money to pay for the property damage to the cars as well as the personal injuries that come from the crash. I would recommend that those injured seek the free counsel of a Utah personal injury/accident attorney to find out what their remedies are.

Published by: Ron Kramer

A driver making an unsafe lane change on January 19, 2009, is said to be the blame for a four-car auto accident in the north end of Salt Lake County, Utah. According to KSL news, a motorist on the I-215 changed lanes near 2300 North and came into contact with another car. This contact caused the other car to spin out of control into the center lane. The car was then a sitting duck for two other cars that came along and hit it. It sounded like there was just one person in each of the cars, and they are reported to have received minor injuries. The UHP shut down this stretch of the I-215 for about an hour, as well as a portion of the Legacy Parkway, to clean up the mess.

From the news report, it is clear that the first driver making an unsafe lane change set the ball in motion. I would say that all of those who were affected by this crash have a claim against him and/or his or her insurance company. If the at-fault driver has a small policy, then there may not be enough to pay for everyone to get their vehicle fixed. And if the personal injuries develop into more serious ones, then there may not be enough money to cover for these other claims.

I would recommend those affected by this car accident to contact a Utah personal injury attorney to find out what options they might have in this case. Each should keep in mind that if they carried insurance, they may have “under-insured” benefits available to pay on this claim. They also should have a minimum of $3,000 to pay toward medical bills related to this crash.

Published by: Ron Kramer

Sunday is usually a pretty slow day on the road. Today, however, there was quite a bit of activity to report. According to KSL News, there were three rollover car accident collisions today, January 18, 2009.

The first car accident was in Murray when a motorists driving a Honda CRV and was braking for traffic, lost control and somehow broadsided a Chevy Tahoe. This caused the Tahoe to roll out of control. The driver of the Tahoe is said to have just minor injuries. All I can say is, wow. A Honda subcompact taking out a Chevy Tahoe? We certainly don’t hear about this every day! Hopefully the driver of the Tahoe will recover quickly from his or her injuries.

Another car rolled in Summit County when passengers in a KIA say that a motorist in front of them slammed on the brakes suddenly, causing the KIA to roll. A woman who was 8 months pregnant in the KIA was taken to the hospital. This crash also sounds a little strange. Motorists traveling down the road don’t usually slam on their brakes suddenly unless they’re reacting to slowed traffic in front of them. You don’t see much of that in Summit County – on a Sunday!

Then there was the rollover in North Salt Lake City. This rollover accident happened when a driver blew a red light and t-boned another car. The car accident happened at 1100 North and Highway 89. One person from the crash was taken to the hospital.

Some of the people involved in these crashes have legal claims that they can make, either against the driver of the other car or perhaps against the driver of the vehicle that they are in. They may wish to consult with a Utah car accident attorney for direction on the remedies that they have. Each person injured, however, has a minimum of $3,000.00 which can be applied toward medical bills related to their injuries.

Finally, I will leave you with a portion of comments left with regard to an article in KSL News by someone who calls themselves “Vettes4ever.”

“Utah driving: Heres a Typical Utah driver’s rules of the road.

#1 Never allow more than 2 inches between you and the car in front, because if you do, someone will try to merge into the spot. If someone turns on their turn signal to merge in to your lane and you have left a gap larger than 2 inches, speed up quickly, after all loosing that 1 car space could cost you 3 seconds of your life!

#2 If you approach a light and the lane next to you has fewer cars, make a quick lane change to gain 1 car space, after all someone obviously forgot to follow rule #1.

#3 If it rains, drive fast, if it snows, drive faster, always follow rules #1 and #2 in bad weather conditions.

#4 When driving on a freeway, get in the passing lane and driver slower than anyone else. If someone flashes you asking to pass, flip them off and call them dirty names. After all you were there 1st and the heck with being courteous.

#5 If someone fails to follow rule #1, turn on your blinker 1/2 way through your lane change and jam your car in. This works best if you know you need to make a turn and you wait until you are 15 feet from the intersection before you move to the proper lane. Make sure you are travelling at least 50 mph when you do this so you can get style points for the move.

#6 Texting and talking on the phone while driving is your god-given right. If the lane swerving and erratic driving bugs anyone else, they can just drive on another road.

#7 And finally the last and most important rule of a Utah driver, NEVER NEVER be courteous. Being nice is a violation of common sense. Remember how to flip people off and cuss at them and you are going to be very successful out there on the roads.”

The commentator ended with the following: “On a serious note, I hope everyone involved in these accidents are okay. People really do need to become better drivers.”

Published by: Ron Kramer

Having attended school at BYU, I know too well that driving around the Provo-Orem area can be quite dangerous. Since Provo is a college town, there is no shortage of young and inexperienced people behind the wheel. I used to be one of them. I remember when I was in school going around a corner on a snow-packed road a little too fast and sliding into a curb. I try not to do that anymore!

On the roads around Provo and Orem, you frequently see speed demons with out-of-state plates swerving through traffic so they can be the first one to line up at the next stop light. You see motorists young and old suddenly slowing to make an unsignalled turn. You see drivers (usually older) who swoop to the left to start their right-hand turn. Others will fail to yield and will pull out right in front of you. Unfortunately, a lot of this careless driving around the Provo/Orem area can lead to a car accident.

When an accident happens, some wonder whether they need to call the police. After all, the at-fault person is pleading for them not to. My response is: you definitely need to call the police. The police can help document where exactly the Provo car wreck happened, what witnesses saw, and make preliminary assessments on who was to blame for it all. It is much more difficult working with the insurance company when no report has been made with the police. If your accident just happened and you didn’t call the police, you should do it as soon as you can. Obviously the accident has to be relatively recent or the police may not take your complaint.

At the Kramer Law Group, our main practice area is car accidents, including pedestrian, motorcycle and scooter, and bicycle accidents. It is the bulk of what we do. And now we are pleased to announce that we have expanded to include an office in Provo at the corner of University and 5th North (open 2/2/09). We look forward to serving the Provo/Orem and surrounding communities even better than we have in the past and will offer Utah car accident attorney services for the cities of Springville, Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Cedar Hills, American Fork, Spanish Fork, Mapleton, Nephi, Santaquin, Price, Payson, etc.

Published by: Ron Kramer