If a pedestrian is hit by a British Columbia car, ICBC accident benefits can provide up to $150,000 in medical rehabilitation expenses and disability benefits of up to $300 per week. If the same pedestrian was hit by a bicycle, she would get nothing. The Chinese tourist pedestrian killed by a cyclist in Stanley Park…
ICBC has a statutory monopoly on third party automobile liability insurance coverage in BC and appears to be manipulating this monopoly in ominous new ways, testing our courts sense of justice. The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia has been systematically refusing to pay for necessary medical and other expert opinion upon settlement of cases to…
ICBC gets a failing grade in my books when it comes to road safety expertise and providing accurate data about road safety. Their most recent attempt at obtaining a 5.2% rate increase is filled with misleading propaganda trying to convince drivers that there is suddenly a distracted driving catastrophe about to occur in our Province.…
Personal injury lawyers in Vancouver are in often required to travel to remote areas of British Columbia to examine witnesses. This Supreme Court case however may help change all that. In Schroeder v. Sweeney, 2014 BCSC 1843 the defendant was trying to force the Claimant to attend Examination for Discovery at an Okanagan court reporters office.…
This personal injury Claimant was walking through a parking lot of a strip mall in Cranbrook, B.C. when he was struck by and injured by a motor vehicle. The trial judge concluded that the driver was 33 1/3% liable and the Claimant was 66 2/3% liable for the accident. However the Claimant’s appeal was allowed and…
May 24, 2019- Whether personal injury claimants have been diagnosed with whiplash, soft tissue injury, WAD (whiplash associated disorder), back or neck injury, a $25,000 offer from ICBC to resolve a personal injury claim can be temping to accept, especially with minor injury caps.In British Columbia money awarded for pain and suffering is assessed and…
Hit and Run personal injury claims in British Columbia require injury claimants to name ICBC as a nominal defendant and prove that the unknown driver was at fault. In this hit and run bifurcated summary liability trial (Link v. Insurance Corporation of British Columbia,2014 BCSC 1765) the determination of liability was the sole issue before…
This unrepresented personal injury claimant was a passenger involved in a car accident for which fault was admitted. At the Vancouver trial the Judge awarded the claimant $25,000 for pain and suffering, $2,066 for lost wages, and $1,084.45 in out of pocket expenses, much less than she sought. The claimant therefore appealed alleging that the trial judge…
This personal injury lawsuit was settled about 10 days before the beginning of the trial, after the claimant accepted an Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, offer of settlement for approximately $155,000.00 plus costs and disbursements (Salsman v. Planes,2014 BCSC 1726). Following settlement, the claimant’s personal injury lawyer presented a bill of costs in the sum…
Personal injury lawyers in Vancouver and the rest of BC need to consider taking a new approach to making allegations of injury. Overstating injuries in a personal injury lawsuit, as found in this case (Rasmussen v. Blower,2014 BCSC 1697) can lead to a poor outcome. The claimant in this personal injury case was a passenger…