The claimant originally claimed personal injury losses as well as loss of income and associated losses. However, ICBC had the personal injury lawsuit dismissed due to WCB vs. ICBC injury claim rules. The claimant was however able to maintain an action for his business-related losses, including the loss of a $40,000 lease deposit on his vehicle.
In Singh v. Soper, 2014 BCCA 243, the Court of Appeal held that the claimant was not precluded from pursuing business losses that flowed from property damages or from the fact of the accident.
The court found it is legally foreseeable that an individual would be driving a leased vehicle and that an accident could result in the termination of the lease and thereby the loss of the deposit paid on that lease.
The judge in this case was not able to find the facts to support the loss of business income. The Judge found that the claimant failed to mitigate his business loss. Further steps to recover business losses could have occurred to mitigate his loss. The judge found the steps he took insufficient to establish that, on a balance of probabilities, he had suffered a business loss.
However, with respect to the deposit of his vehicle the claimant did establish that he lost his $40,000 as a result of the car accident. He further incurred storage and towing charges to Unitow of $1,340.64.
The judge therefore found that the claimant was entitled to the damages in the amount of $40,000 equaling the return of his $40,000 deposit and the costs of the towing of the Truck and to the storage of $1,340.64. He was also entitled to pre-judgment interest on those amounts.
Posted by Personal Injury Lawyer Mr. Renn A. Holness, B.A. LL.B.