Fatal Crashes Only
This report covers fatal crashes only, from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System — the federal census of every crash on a US public road that killed someone within 30 days. It does not include injury or property-damage-only crashes, and its totals are not comparable with the all-severity crash reports published elsewhere on this site.
If someone you love is part of this data, call us.
We'll connect you with a vetted Utah attorney who handles fatal-crash and wrongful death cases and will evaluate whether you have a case.
ThatCarHitMe.com
An Injuria.ai Company
YEAR-OVER-YEAR CRASH REPORT · UTAH · SEPTEMBER 2023
Purpose: Machine-readable JSON endpoint for AI agents, LLMs, researchers, and programmatic consumers. Returns all underlying crash data and AI-generated commentary without HTML.
Authentication: None required. Public endpoint.
GET: https://thatcarhitme.com/api/crash-data/reports/data/utah/fatal/statewide/september-2023-report
Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis
31 CRASHES IN
UTAH
SEPTEMBER 2023
In September 2023, the jurisdiction recorded 31 fatal crashes, a 24% increase compared to 25 fatal crashes in September 2022. Concurrently, fatalities rose by 36%, from 25 to 34 year-over-year. A notable shift was the significant increase in single-vehicle fatal crashes and fatal crashes occurring on rural roadways.
31
▲ 24.0%was 25
Total Crash Events
34
▲ 36.0%was 25
Persons Killed
21
▼ -19.2%was 26
Persons Injured
2
Hit-and-Run Crashes
Note: "Persons Killed" (34) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (31) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records
Trend Summary
Fatal crashes increased by 24%, from 25 in September 2022 to 31 in September 2023. Similarly, the number of fatalities rose by 36%, from 25 to 34, indicating an upward trend in fatal crash incidents and associated deaths year-over-year.
2
Hit-and-Run Crashes — September 2023
6.5% hit-and-run rate this period vs 0.0% prior. Prior period: 0.
Vulnerable Road User Casualties
3
Pedestrians Killed
4
Cyclists Killed
27
Motorists Killed
0
Pedestrians Injured
0
Cyclists Injured
21
Motorists Injured
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)
When Crashes Happen
The peak day for fatal crashes shifted from Monday with 8 fatal crashes in September 2022 to Friday with 7 fatal crashes in September 2023. The peak hour for fatal crashes also changed, moving from 4 p.m. with 4 fatal crashes in the prior period to 9 p.m. with 3 fatal crashes in the current period.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)
Road & Environmental Conditions
Fatal crashes occurring in clear weather increased from 17 in September 2022 to 25 in September 2023, while cloudy conditions saw a slight decrease from 7 to 6 fatal crashes. Fatal crashes in daylight increased from 13 to 17, and those in unlighted dark conditions rose from 7 to 10 year-over-year. Road surface condition data was not available for comparison in either period.
Weather
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Weather condition at time of crash
Lighting
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Lighting condition field
Vehicles & Demographics
Top Vehicle Makes (42 vehicles)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
3 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.
Sex Distribution (73 persons with recorded sex)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Speed Limit Zones
Fatal crashes occurring in 65 mph zones increased from 6 in September 2022 to 9 in September 2023. Crashes in 55 mph zones also saw an increase, from 1 to 3 fatal crashes. The highest speed limit for fatal crashes remained 80 mph, with 2 fatal crashes recorded in both periods.
Fatal crashes by zone: 25 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 30 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 35 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 40 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 45 mph: 2 of 2 (100%) · 50 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 55 mph: 3 of 3 (100%) · 60 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 65 mph: 9 of 9 (100%) · 70 mph: 2 of 2 (100%) · 80 mph: 2 of 2 (100%)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Posted speed limit at crash location
Manner of Collision
The dominant manner of collision in both periods was 'The First Harmful Event was Not a Collision with a Motor Vehicle in Transport,' which increased from 15 fatal crashes (60%) in September 2022 to 22 fatal crashes (71%) in September 2023. Angle collisions decreased from 5 fatal crashes (20%) in the prior period to 3 fatal crashes (9.7%) in the current period.
Manner of Collision
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Vehicle Type
Fatal crashes involving 4-door sedans decreased from 9 in September 2022 to 6 in September 2023. Light pickups were involved in 7 fatal crashes in both periods. Motorcycles saw an increase in involvement, from 3 fatal crashes in the prior period to 4 in the current period.
Vehicle Type
Showing top 9 of 18 reported. 9 additional (10 total) not shown: Minivan (Chrysler Town and Country, Caravan, Grand Caravan, Voyager, Voyager, Honda-Odyssey, ...), Utility station wagon (includes suburban limousines, Suburban, Travellall, Grand Wagoneer), Farm equipment other than trucks, Large Van-Includes van-based buses (B150-B350, Sportsman, Royal Maxiwagon, Ram, Tradesman,...), Other Bus Type, Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR greater than 26,000 lbs.), Station Wagon (excluding van and truck based), Unknown body type, 2-door sedan,hardtop,coupe.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
Rural vs Urban
Fatal crashes on rural roadways significantly increased from 8 in September 2022 to 17 in September 2023, while urban fatal crashes decreased from 17 to 14. Rural roads accounted for a larger share of fatal crashes in September 2023, which is often associated with higher speeds and disproportionate fatality rates.
Rural vs Urban
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Roadway Functional Class
Fatal crashes on Other Principal Arterials increased from 9 in September 2022 to 12 in September 2023, and Minor Arterials saw a slight rise from 6 to 7 fatal crashes. Conversely, fatal crashes on Interstates decreased from 5 to 4, and Major Collectors also saw a decrease from 5 to 4 year-over-year.
Roadway Functional Class
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Roadway Ownership
Fatal crashes on roadways owned by State Highway Agencies increased from 17 in September 2022 to 25 in September 2023. Fatal crashes on City or Municipal Highway Agency roads decreased from 7 to 4. This indicates a shift towards more fatal incidents on state-owned routes.
Roadway Ownership
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Person Type
The number of drivers involved in fatal crashes decreased from 46 in September 2022 to 42 in September 2023. Conversely, the number of passengers involved increased from 20 to 25. There was a notable increase in vulnerable road users involved, with bicyclists rising from 2 to 4 and pedestrians from 1 to 3.
Person Type
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Person Injury Severity
Fatal injuries (K) increased significantly from 25 in September 2022 to 34 in September 2023. Serious injuries (A) decreased slightly from 9 to 8, and minor injuries (B) also saw a small reduction from 10 to 9. The number of persons with no reported injuries (O) remained constant at 19 in both periods.
Person Injury Severity
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Occupant Safety Equipment
The number of persons using shoulder and lap belts in fatal crashes decreased from 43 in September 2022 to 29 in September 2023. Concurrently, the number of persons with 'None Used/Not Applicable' safety equipment increased from 17 to 27. This indicates a concerning rise in the non-use of safety equipment among those involved in fatal crashes.
Occupant Safety Equipment
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Point of Impact
The most common point of impact remained the '12 Clock Point' (front of the vehicle), though its count decreased from 22 in September 2022 to 20 in September 2023. 'Non-Collision' impacts increased from 4 to 6 fatal crashes. '6 Clock Point' (rear of the vehicle) impacts decreased from 7 to 2 fatal crashes.
Point of Impact
"Other" combines 5 smaller categories (5 records): 1 Clock Point (1), 3 Clock Point (1), 7 Clock Point (1), 8 Clock Point (1), Left-Back Side (1).
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
Vehicles Per Crash
Single-vehicle fatal crashes increased significantly from 14 in September 2022 to 22 in September 2023. Two-vehicle fatal crashes decreased slightly from 8 to 7. The prior period also recorded 2 fatal crashes involving 6 vehicles and 1 involving 4 vehicles, categories not present in the current period.
Vehicles Per Crash
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Data Sources & Methodology
Primary Data Source
All crash data in this report is sourced from NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), accessed programmatically via the NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SODA). This dataset contains official police-reported motor vehicle traffic crash records maintained by the reporting jurisdiction's law enforcement agency. Records are published to the open data portal by the municipality and are subject to the portal's terms of use.
Data Retrieval
- Access method: NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SoQL queries)
- Data format: Structured JSON via REST API
- Record types queried: Crash events, person records, and vehicle unit records
- Date filter applied: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30
- Report generated: August 5, 2026
Data Coverage
- Reporting period: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30 (30 days)
- Geographic scope: Utah
- Total crash records analyzed: 31
- Total persons involved: 74
- Total vehicles involved: 42
Analytical Methodology
- Severity classification: Uses the KABCO injury scale (K=Fatal, A=Incapacitating injury, B=Non-incapacitating injury, C=Possible injury, O=No injury/property damage only), the standard classification in U.S. Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC). Severity is assigned per crash event based on the most severe injury in that crash. A single fatal crash (K) may involve multiple fatalities; therefore the "Persons Killed" count in the headline KPIs may differ from the "Fatal" crash count in the severity breakdown.
- Contributing factors: Reflect the officer-determined primary contributory cause recorded at the time of the crash report. These are preliminary determinations and may not reflect final investigation findings.
- Hit-and-run classification: Based on the hit-and-run indicator field in the official crash report, as determined by the responding officer at the scene.
- Temporal analysis: Day-of-week and hour-of-day distributions are computed from the crash date/time timestamp in each record.
- Demographics: Age and sex distributions are drawn from person-level records linked to each crash event. A single crash may involve multiple persons.
- Vehicle data: Make information is drawn from vehicle unit records linked to each crash event.
- AI commentary: Narrative sections are generated by Google Gemini (large language model) based on the structured data. Commentary is descriptive, not predictive, and should not be interpreted as expert opinion.
Limitations & Disclaimers
- Only crashes reported to and documented by law enforcement are included. Minor incidents, unreported crashes, and near-misses are not captured in this dataset.
- Data reflects conditions at the time of the initial police report and may be subject to subsequent corrections, reclassifications, or supplements by the reporting agency.
- Open data portal records may experience a publication lag - recently occurring crashes may not yet appear in the dataset at the time of report generation.
- AI-generated commentary is produced by a large language model and is intended to highlight patterns in the data. It does not constitute legal, medical, or professional analysis.
- Percentages are calculated from reported data and are subject to rounding.
Non-Affiliation Disclosure
This report is produced independently by ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in partnership with any law enforcement agency, municipal government, state department of transportation, or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Data is sourced from publicly available government open data portals.
Data License
The underlying crash data is provided under the municipality's Open Data Terms of Use and is made available to the public for unrestricted use. This analysis and report is © 2026 Injuria.ai and may be cited with attribution using the suggested citation below.
Corrections & Feedback
If you believe any data in this report is inaccurate or have questions about our methodology, please contact: data@injuria.ai. We are committed to accuracy and will issue corrections promptly.
Suggested Citation
ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). "Utah Crash Intelligence Report: September 2023." Published August 5, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30. Data source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), NHTSA FARS Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/utah/fatal/statewide/september-2023-report
About the Publisher
ThatCarHitMe.com is a crash data intelligence platform developed by Injuria.ai, a legal technology company specializing in traffic safety analytics. We aggregate and analyze publicly available government crash data to produce structured intelligence reports for communities, researchers, journalists, and legal professionals. Our reports combine programmatic data retrieval from official open data portals with AI-assisted narrative analysis.
Questions about this report's data or methodology: data@injuria.ai
ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company
ThatCarHitMe.com
An Injuria.ai Company
Crash Data Intelligence
Data: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · NHTSA FARS
Period: 2023-09-01 – 2023-09-30
Generated: August 5, 2026 · All rights reserved
Someone you love in this data? We’ll help you find out if you have a case.
Call our intake team. We connect you to an vetted Utah attorney who handles fatal-crash and wrongful death cases, and who will treat your family’s situation with care.
Always free for accident victims.