An ICBC injury claim always gets to a point where offers to settle have to be made. If an injury claimant makes a reasonable offer and ICBC refuses to to accept the offer, the Court can punish ICBC if the court award in more than the offer. However, the rules of court allow judges to…
The worth of an ICBC personal injury case can be significantly changed by accident benefits received. ICBC accident benefits are deductible from a personal injury case award against an at fault driver in British Columbia. Here are some important benefits to consider when reviewing what benefits may be deducted from an out of court settlement…
ICBC injury claimants need to be aware that accepting an offer to settle is a binding agreement and further requests to ICBC to make their “best offer” will be futile. In today’s case study the court was asked by ICBC to declare that the personal injury lawsuit was settled for $20,000 plus court costs, for which the court…
This injury claimant made an offer to settle in the amount of $195,000 about 2 weeks before trial and ICBC responded with an unrealistic and meager $70,000 offer. It only took the jury 6 hours to award $294,500 as damages for the injuries she sustained in a motor vehicle accident. This jury verdict was an incredible 4x…
In this ICBC personal injury case the claimant was awarded $622,500 after she was injured by a vehicle that turned left across the path of her vehicle. The claimant had however made an offer to settle to ICBC one week before the trial for $315,000 plus costs and disbursements, which was rejected. The claimant was therefore entitled to an…
Should a prior ICBC Settlement amount be deducted from a second and new car accident injury claim? We answer this question in today’s a motor vehicle accident case review. This personal injury case involves a chronic pain claimant with a prior accident she settled with ICBC for $153,300 plus case expenses (the “Settlement”). Should the claimant be awarded a global amount…
For ICBC personal injury claims, and other personal injury cases, the laws governing settlement offers are more confusing than any time in history. The Supreme Court Rules changed in 2010 and judicial interpretation since then has set settlement negotiations on a new course. The consequences for failing to accept a reasonable offer are now left to judicial…
ICBC is the auto monopoly defending most personal injury claims in British Columbia. In the last 6 years ICBC has refused to settle legitimate personal injury claims making very low offers, slogging through and clogging the courts. ICBC is causing intense aggravation of pain and suffering to victims of personal injury.Some may be convinced the recent crisis within…
Here is an important tip for personal injury lawyers in BC- If the family doctor ordered or requested your client to have a private MRI and the advice was followed, this cost should be claimed as a special damage, not a disbursement (Uppal v. Judge, 2016 BCSC 642, para 107). The following is a case in point in which the cost…
Formal offers to settle in personal injury cases, including ICBC, filed in the Supreme Court are regulated by the Supreme Court Rules. Rule 9-1 is very specific about what is considered an offer to settle. An “offer to settle” is an offer that: (i) is made in writing by a party to a proceeding, (ii) has been…