If you have been involved in a car, truck, bus or motorcycle accident, Ontario Law allows you to claim Accident Benefits for loss of income, medical and rehabilitation costs and other expenses incurred as a result of the accident.

If there are negligent parties involved and the injuries are unfortunately serious and permanent you may be able to sue for compensation of pain and suffering and economic loss. Our job is to help you recover all the benefits to which you are entitled as soon as possible.

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS

There are 2 possible ways to claim compensation:

1. You may be entitled to claim an award of damages if another person is at fault.

2. You may be entitled to claim certain benefits called “no-fault accident benefits”, no matter who is at fault.

Claims Against At-Fault Drivers

If you are injured in an accident and another person is at fault, you may be able to sue for losses you have suffered including:

  • Pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life
  • Loss of income
  • Health care expenses
  • Other losses

Pain, Suffering, Loss of Enjoyment of Life

In order to sue you have to prove that the injury you suffered meets a certain “threshold” as defined by the Insurance Act i.e. the injury has resulted in a

  • Permanent serious impairment of an important physical, mental, or psychological function or
  • Permanent serious disfigurement (i.e. scarring)
  • If your injury meets the threshold, your award for pain and suffering is reduced by a deductible $37,385.17 unless your award exceeds $124,616.71  You may purchase additional coverage to reduce the deductible by $10,000.

ACCIDENT BENEFITS

If you have been injured in a car, truck, bus or motorcycle accident, Ontario Law entitles you to claim Statutory Accident Benefits for loss of income, medical and rehabilitation costs and other expenses incurred as a result of the accident.

Anyone injured in a motor vehicle accident is automatically entitled to “Accident Benefits”. Accident Benefits are available whether you were driving, were a passenger or were a pedestrian hit by a motor vehicle; and benefits are available even if the accident was your fault. You must notify your motor vehicle insurer within 7 days of the motor vehicle accident, or as soon after as is reasonable considering your injury, stating that you want to apply for Accident Benefits. An application for Accident Benefits needs to be completed within 30 days of receipt from your insurance company.

You may be in need of therapy, equipment, assistive devices, attendant care or other medical services upon discharge from hospital. Accident Benefits can assist you financially with your therapy costs, the cost of caring for you in hospital and at home, and other needs while in hospital and at home. The key benefits include the following:

  • Income Replacement Benefits: to compensate you for income lost as a result of your inability to return to work;
  • Medical and Rehabilitation Benefits: to pay for medical treatment, therapy, medication and required equipment, housing alternatives and transportation;
  • Attendant Care Benefits: to cover the cost of compensating those, including family members, for providing care to you while injured;
  • Visitation Expenses: to reimburse family members for visitation expenses including travel, parking, meals and accommodations.

There are additional benefits as well which cover, to varying extent, housekeeping and home maintenance, lost education expenses, non-earner benefits, caregiver benefits and damage to clothing expenses. In cases of death, death and funeral benefits are available to the family as well. Make sure you retain all receipts that reflect your expenses related to any accident.

The availability of the above benefits vary based on the severity of your injury and whether optional insurance benefits are available to you. The benefits are amplified in cases where catastrophic injuries occur, resulting in quadriplegia, paraplegia, brain or spinal cord injury, amputations, or severe orthopedic injuries. Cases of “catastrophic impairment” generally involve serious head injuries, paralysis, loss of use of a limb, complete loss of vision and certain other serious injuries.

We, at Ephraim Michael Law, are here to address whatever difficulties you may encounter in recovering those benefits to which you are entitled. We will negotiate directly with your insurer and represent your best interests. Should your insurer fall short of allowing all the benefits you deserve, we will determine whether you should initiate mediation, and further advocate on your behalf until compensation is restored.