Sean will never forget Monday August 11, 2008. The day had been going perfectly; he and a couple of his friends had spent the afternoon cruising on their motorcycles north on I-215 towards the Park City. Sean was traveling around 65 mph in the center lane of the freeway when an SUV clipped the back of Sean’s 2007 Custom Sucker Punch Sal Bobber bike. The impact put Sean into a high speed “death wobble.” Sean went down with his bike. Confused and hurt, he rolled instinctively over to the emergency lane; thereby avoiding being hit by oncoming traffic. His motorcycle was not so fortunate: it was hit three times and smashed to pieces. Several other car crashes ensued as vehicles hit the motorcycle or swerved to miss Sean. Sean remembers thinking, “What if it was me instead of my bike—I’d be long gone.” The driver of the SUV, whose carelessness caused this Utah car accident, fled the scene without bothering to check if Sean was okay.
Sean was at a loss of what to do. Along with the cuts, road rash, and whiplash, Sean sustained several serious injuries including a laceration on his left arm that required over 100 sutures. His shoulder and hip, injured in the motorcycle accident, needed additional medical treatment. The injuries left Sean debilitated so he was no longer able to work his keep up with his regular workload at his shop. Sean had over $10,000 in medical bills and they continued to pile up. His $20,000 custom road bike was totaled. Furthermore, Allstate, his insurance company was dragging their heels in replacing his motorcycle. The insurance adjuster assigned to Sean’s claim made it clear that there wasn’t anything Allstate would do since the driver of the SUV in this hit and run accident had never been found by the Utah Highway Patrol. Basically, Allstate was not willing to step up to the plate and help their insured through this painful and difficult time.
After months of not getting return phone calls from his insurance adjuster, Sean decided to find a Salt Lake City Motorcycle Attorney. “The worst part about being in this accident”, according to Sean, “was feeling overwhelmed and having my own insurance ignore me. I didn’t know what to do but I knew that I wasn’t being treated justly. So I found Kenneth Christensen and finally I got answers to all my questions. Mr. Christensen did the leg work—I no longer had to worry about things getting done.”
Under the Phantom Vehicle Statute, Attorney Kenneth Christensen was able to file an Uninsured Motorist claim (UM) claim under Sean’s insurance. Within four months, Mr. Christensen settled Sean’s claim with Allstate which included payment of all Sean’s medical bills, future medical care, lost wages and pain and suffering.
If you have been injured in a Utah hit and run accident or motorcycle accident, you are entitled to compensation and justice. The expert Utah motorcycle attorneys at the Christensen Law Firm can help you through the complicated legal process. Our attorneys are well-versed in Utah’s accident and personal injury laws, and aggressively pursue every case with superlative legal knowledge and arbitration skills. For a free consultation, contact us at 801.506.0800.