Motor Vehicle Accidents

The law in Ontario, through the “No fault” legislation, has made obtaining a recovery a very complex, costly, and time consuming process.  In order to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver, the injuries must be “serious and permanent.”  In many cases, in order to determine whether the injuries are “serious and permanent,” a person will have to undergo months of treatments and therapy.  Only at that point will a person know whether the injuries suffered will have any long term effects.  However, if you have any doubt as to whether your injuries will have a long-term impact on your life, you should give a lawyer a call.

Procedure

If you are involved in an accident, you should report it immediately to your insurance company.  Even if you are not at fault, you can still get sued by other people involved.  Notifying your insurance company will help to ensure that you will be covered if a claim is brought against you. 

You should also notify the proper insurance company so you can obtain accident benefits, regardless of who was at fault.  In order to determine which insurance company you should make the claim to, you should report to the first of the following that apply:  1) your own insurer, 2) the insurer of the vehicle that you were in, 3) the insurer of any other vehicle involved, and 4) The Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund (see http://www.fsco.gov.on.ca/english/insurance/auto/mvacf/).These benefits may provide coverage for damage to your car, and compensation for certain out-of-pocket expenses due to any injuries suffered, such as income replacement and physiotherapy.   You should do this right away, as there are strict time limits to obtain these benefits.  In many cases, the process is as simple as filling out forms and going for treatments.  However, should you have any questions or difficulties about the accident benefits claim process, you should give a lawyer a call.

The next step in the process is to send the other driver(s) a notice of your intent to sue.  You should do this even if you never intend on bringing a lawsuit.  This has to be done within 120 days of the accident.  The letter should describe that you were involved in an accident, and that you will bring a lawsuit against him/her for your injuries suffered.  You should then state that he/she is required to forward a copy of the letter to his/her own insurance company.  The purpose of the letter is to enable you to collect interest on the judgment amount from the date of the letter, should you decide to pursue a lawsuit against the at-fault driver.

The final step is determining whether your injuries are going to have any long term effects on your life.  If they are, you should consult a lawyer right away.  A lawyer will then bring a lawsuit against the at-fault driver.  Again, there are strict time limits for bringing a lawsuit against the at-fault driver(s).  In most cases, a lawsuit must be brought within two years of the accident. 

Important Time Limits

Accident benefits

• You have 7 days from the date of the accident to notify your insurance company (or the other driver(s)’ insurance company so you can obtain accident benefits
• You have 30 days from receipt of the accident benefit forms to fill them out and send back to the insurance company.
• You have 2 years to sue the insurance company for accident benefits.

Claims Against the at fault driver

• You have 120 days from the date of the accident to send out a notice letter to the at fault driver(s) in order to get interest on any judgment from the date of the letter.
• In most cases, you have 2 years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver.

Final Words