Can my employer take money from my paycheck to pay for an accident I had in the company car?

Under Utah law, an employer is limited in what deductions it may make from an employee's paycheck. Generally, deducting monies for reimbursement of damages suffered by an employer as a result of an employee's negligence or accident is not one of them. However, the deduction may occur if certain conditions are met: 1) if the employee's negligence and the damages caused to employer occurred in the course of employment; 2) the employer has not received any payment or compensation for the same loss (like an insurance payment); 3) the deduction (or, offset) is reasonably related to the amount of damage; and, 4) the damage is over and above reasonable wear and tear to the property that can normally be expected in the course of business. Whether an employee was negligent and the amount of damage that may be taken usually has to be established first before the deduction can be taken. The employee's negligence and the amount of damage may be established by: a) Judicial Proceeding; b) the employer's written and published procedures for the deduction PLUS the employee's express written permission for the deduction to be taken; or, c) or any other provision allowed by law as set forth in Utah Code Annotated 34-28-3(5).