When a driver leaves after a crash, you may be left without the other driver’s name, insurance information, or an immediate explanation of what happened. You can still take useful steps: get safe, seek care, make a report, preserve evidence, and notify your own insurer. The other driver’s identity may be unknown, but it is still important to document the crash and ask which coverage may apply.
This guide focuses on Utah hit-and-run crashes involving injuries or vehicle damage. It explains practical steps, possible insurance paths, and evidence issues. The outcome depends on the facts, the available coverage, and current law. For an emergency or serious injury, call 911 first.
What to do right after a hit-and-run
1. Get to safety and call for help
Move away from traffic if you can do so safely. Call 911 if anyone may be injured, a vehicle or debris creates a hazard, or police and fire assistance are needed. Do not chase the other driver or place yourself at risk trying to stop them. If someone appears seriously injured, do not move them unless remaining in place creates immediate danger.
Get medical evaluation for pain, dizziness, numbness, headache, confusion, or other symptoms. Tell the clinician what happened and follow their instructions. Keep visit summaries, prescriptions, bills, referrals, and appointment information. Some symptoms become clearer after the scene has settled; do not assume you are uninjured just because you could leave.
2. Report what happened
Tell the responding officer that the other driver left and give the most accurate description you can. Ask how to obtain the incident or crash report and write down the agency, officer’s name or badge number if available, and report number. If police are not at the scene, promptly contact the appropriate law-enforcement agency to find out how to report the crash.
Utah law addresses a driver’s duties after crashes involving injury, death, or property damage. The requirements depend on what happened; see Utah Code § 41-6a-401 (property damage), § 41-6a-401.3 (injury or death), and § 41-6a-401.5 (death). A victim’s immediate priority is safety, medical care, and accurate reporting—not investigating or confronting the other driver.
3. Write down vehicle and witness details
As soon as you safely can, record what you remember, even if details are incomplete:
- Vehicle make, model, color, body style, and any distinctive damage or markings.
- License plate characters, state, or partial plate—label uncertain characters as uncertain.
- The direction the vehicle traveled and the route it took.
- The time, exact location, lane positions, traffic signals, weather, and lighting.
- Names and contact information for witnesses, passengers, or people who stopped.
Do not fill gaps by guessing. A partial description honestly marked as incomplete is more useful than a confident but inaccurate detail.
4. Preserve video and physical evidence
Save dash-camera, helmet-camera, or phone video in its original form and make a backup. Photograph the vehicles, damage, roadway, debris, skid marks, visible injuries, and nearby signs if it is safe. Note businesses, homes, transit vehicles, or intersections that may have cameras. Ask the owner or operator promptly whether footage can be preserved; many systems overwrite recordings. Do not trespass or access a camera or account without permission.
Keep damaged property available for inspection when practical, and save repair, towing, and storage records. For a motorcycle crash, also preserve the helmet, clothing, and damaged riding gear. Our guides explain how to document evidence and prove fault and police reports after a Utah crash.
5. Notify your insurer promptly
Contact your own insurer even if the other driver is unknown. Provide the date, location, report number, vehicle description, available evidence, and injury information as accurately as you can. Ask which coverages may apply and what written notice, forms, statements, or other documents the policy requires. Keep a record of the adjuster, claim number, date, and requests.
Do not assume that every part of the loss is covered by the same policy. Medical bills, vehicle repairs, lost income, and other losses can involve different coverage and conditions. Your policy’s deadlines and cooperation duties can matter before the police investigation identifies a driver.
What insurance may apply?
Personal injury protection (PIP)
Utah is a no-fault state for many motor-vehicle injury claims. PIP is first-party coverage that may pay certain medical and related benefits without first resolving who caused the collision. Which policy applies, what bills should be submitted, and what limits or conditions govern depend on the people involved and the policy. Our Utah car accident guide explains the general PIP process.
Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage
Utah’s uninsured motorist statute, § 31A-22-305, and the policy may provide a path to seek bodily-injury benefits for a qualifying hit-and-run crash. The Utah Insurance Department describes UM bodily-injury coverage as coverage for injury caused by a hit-and-run driver or an at-fault driver without liability insurance in its auto insurance glossary.
The statute includes a special proof rule when an unknown vehicle allegedly caused a crash without touching the claimant or the vehicle they occupied: the claimant must show the vehicle’s existence by clear and convincing evidence beyond the claimant’s testimony alone. That makes independent evidence especially important in a no-contact scenario. Save witness information, nearby video, vehicle data, photographs, and any contemporaneous report that may help corroborate the event.
Ask the insurer to identify the applicable UM provisions, reporting requirements, and any proof it needs. The policy and facts determine whether coverage applies. See also our guide to Utah auto insurance rules.
Collision and other vehicle-damage coverage
If your vehicle is damaged, ask your insurer whether collision coverage applies and what deductible or inspection process is involved. Do not assume that bodily-injury UM coverage also pays for vehicle damage. The Utah Insurance Department explains that uninsured-motorist property-damage coverage has separate conditions and is not the same as UM bodily-injury coverage. Keep the vehicle available for inspection when practical and request a copy of the estimate and valuation.
Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage
If the driver is later found but has too little liability insurance to cover an eligible injury claim, underinsured motorist coverage may be relevant if it is part of an applicable policy and its conditions are met. If a policy is available in your household, preserve its declarations page and coverage selections. Do not assume that a particular policy covers every household member or every vehicle.
What if the driver is never found?
Continue to cooperate with law enforcement and your insurer. Provide new evidence when you find it, and keep a written record of each update. If you locate a camera or witness after the initial report, tell the investigating agency and ask how to supplement the report. Avoid posting unverified accusations or private information online; send relevant evidence to the investigator or insurer instead.
An unidentified driver does not automatically mean that there is no possible insurance claim. It also does not guarantee payment. Coverage may depend on whether a motor vehicle caused the crash, whether the evidence meets statutory and policy requirements, who qualifies as an insured, notice, and the relationship between the collision and the claimed injury. An insurance lawyer can review those issues if the injuries or coverage dispute are significant.
Keep injury, bill, and wage records
Save medical records, itemized bills, explanations of benefits, prescriptions, mileage or transportation costs, and messages about treatment. Keep a dated note of symptoms, appointments, and effects on ordinary activities. If you miss work or change duties, save pay stubs, schedules, employer communications, and restrictions from medical providers. These records help explain what happened and what losses you are claiming; they do not guarantee a recovery.
For more detail, see medical bills after an accident and our motorcycle accident guide if you were riding a motorcycle when the driver left.
Deadlines and releases
Different deadlines may apply to a lawsuit, insurance notice, proof of loss, or government claim. A policy may require prompt notice even while police are still investigating. A crash involving a government vehicle or entity can have special notice rules. Do not wait for an unknown driver to be identified before checking deadlines with a lawyer and reviewing your policy.
Before accepting a settlement or signing a release, read which claims and losses it resolves. A property-damage settlement may be separate from an injury settlement, but the documents control. If your medical condition or future care is not yet clear, ask questions before signing a final release.
When legal guidance may help
Consider speaking with a Utah injury lawyer when you have significant injuries, the other driver has not been identified, your insurer disputes UM coverage, there is a no-contact question, several policies may apply, or you are being asked to sign a release. You can ask what the lawyer would do, how fees and costs work, who will handle your questions, and which decisions remain yours.
Gunter Injury Law represents injured people in Provo, Orem, and across Utah County. You can contact the firm or call (801) 373-6345 to discuss the basic facts. No result is promised, and not every matter will be a fit.
Frequently asked questions
Should I follow the driver who hit me?
No. Do not pursue or confront a driver. Move to safety, call 911 when appropriate, and give the police the vehicle description and direction of travel.
What if I only remember part of the license plate?
Write down the characters you remember and clearly mark any uncertainty. Include the vehicle description, color, direction, location, and approximate time. Give those details to law enforcement and your insurer.
What if the hit-and-run driver caused me to crash but never touched my car?
Report the event and preserve any evidence that can corroborate the other vehicle’s presence, such as witness accounts or video. Utah’s UM statute requires more than the claimant’s testimony alone to establish the existence of an unknown vehicle in a no-contact claim. Coverage depends on the facts and policy.
Do I need to wait for a police investigation before opening an insurance claim?
No. Report the crash and contact your insurer promptly. Give updates as new information becomes available and keep the report number and copies of communications.
Talk through next steps after a hit-and-run
If you were injured in a Utah hit-and-run and have questions about a report, insurance, or evidence, contact Gunter Injury Law. You can send a message or call (801) 373-6345. This article is general information, not legal advice, and does not predict the outcome of a particular claim.
Call (801) 373-6345Last reviewed October 7, 2026. Utah law, insurance policies, and claim deadlines can change; confirm the rules that apply to your circumstances.