Ontario residents are entitled to apply for accident benefits if they have suffered financial losses as a result of injuries sustained in motor-vehicle accidents. These benefits are available in their own automobile insurance policy.

Known as the SABS (Statutory Accident Benefits Scheme) these benefits are provided regardless of fault. It includes drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, motor-cyclists who can all apply for benefits even if the other party in the collision was at fault. If you don’t have insurance, you can apply against the coverage of your immediate family-members (parent, spouse etc).

However, achieving the compensation settlement can be an uphill task as there are several complex medical, legal and insurance issues involved.

We assume that our insurance company would release the funds without delay so that we can resume our normal lives as soon as possible. But insurance companies are for-profit organizations which focus on protecting their own business interests. Hence they may deny or dismiss your claim, or delay payments inordinately, citing technical reasons etc.

An experienced Cornwall personal injury lawyer who regularly handles such claims can provide the right information, advice and assistance in such matters.

Seeking Statutory Accident Benefits

SABS is governed by Ontario’s Insurance Act. It is intended to compensate those injured in motor-vehicle accidents for financial losses they have suffered as a result of their injuries.

Victims have to inform their insurer within seven days of the accident. The insurer then provides an Accident Benefits Application kit which has to be completed and returned within 30 days. It’s wise to keep a copy of the forms you have completed and submitted.

What Benefits Can Be Claimed?

The benefits that will be provided are based on the nature and extent of your injuries and their impact on your daily functioning. These include:

Non-earner benefits: These are available to someone who cannot carry on their normal functions, but is not eligible for income-replacement since they’re not employed. Full-time students or those who graduated a year earlier but still unemployed are eligible.

Income-replacement benefits: You are eligible to receive up to 70% of your gross weekly income, capped at $400 weekly. It’s available provided you can satisfactorily demonstrate that you’re unable to perform the functions as you did earlier. Additionally, you should have been employed continuously for at least 26 weeks previously and were receiving employment insurance benefits.

Caregiver benefits: If you are a primary caregiver to someone and have been living with the person in need of care, without being paid for this service, you may be eligible. You must prove that you’re unable to perform your caregiving functions.

Medical and rehabilitation benefits: Compensation is available for reimbursement of any reasonable expenditure incurred as a result of the accident. This may include ambulance, dental, optometric, chiropractic, hearing-aid, medication etc and rehabilitation benefits can include treatments and services like physiotherapy, occupational and vocational therapy etc. In certain cases, it could also cover home/workplace modifications, financial and psychological counseling etc.

If you’ve suffered catastrophic injuries, a different set of criteria may be applied.

Consult your experienced Cornwall personal injury lawyer without delay to receive the statutory benefits you’re entitled to.

Car accidents can leave a trail of destruction in their wake if you or a dear one has been seriously injured. The road to recovery can be a long and expensive one, and in many cases, it may not even lead to complete recovery.

Accidents are the result of someone’s fault or negligence. A moment’s inattention, one extra drink at a party, speeding, answering a phone call or typing out a quick response to a text message can lead to someone else’s life being altered irrevocably.

The injured are entitled to seek compensation. Ontario laws entitle all those injured in motor-vehicle accidents to receive statutory benefits from their own insurance companies. Additionally, they’re also entitled to claim compensation by filing a civil/personal injury suit against the at-fault party.

This is best done with the assistance, advice and advocacy of an experienced Chatham Kent personal injury lawyer.

Treatment Issues 

Benefits for motor-vehicle accident injuries are governed by Ontario’s Financial Services Commission (FSCO) and not by the Ministry for Health and Long-Term Care.

If you have been injured in a motor-vehicle accident, getting medical attention is of utmost importance. Some injuries may appear to be minor at that time, but could turn out to be much worse if they’re left undiagnosed or untreated. Whiplash injuries are typical examples of this. Many victims don’t realize that they’ve suffered injuries till a few days have passed. Stiffness, numbness, blurred vision, ringing in the ears, memory/concentration problems, fatigue, sleep disturbances etc are some of the common symptoms of whiplash.

Such injuries require extended physiotherapy and other ongoing treatments for complete recovery, relief from pain and restoration of mobility and function. Treatments include ice and heat applications, cervical support, gentle mobility, electrical stimulation, acupuncture, pain-killers and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Unfortunately, Ontario’s funding system for physiotherapy is one of the most complicated in Canada, according to Dr. M Landry, Dept of Physical therapy, University of Toronto. There are different agencies which have to be approached, your eligibility under these has to be determined and finally the funds have to be released when they’re really required.

Our experienced Chatham Kent personal injury lawyers can help you with the complex paperwork and the difficult legal, medical and insurance issues involved.

The Role Of Insurers

The accident must be reported immediately to your insurance company. There are two types of claims-adjusters who will handle your case: One for the vehicle damage and one for your injuries. As a result of the accident, if you have been injured, this must be indicated in your report. Following this, an accident claims adjuster and claim number will be assigned to you.

This allows the physiotherapy clinic to co-ordinate your treatment with your doctor and your insurer.

Physiotherapists are deemed to be primary health care providers in Ontario and a physician referral is not strictly necessary, but it may be so under certain health care plans.

Your Chatham Kent personal injury lawyer can help you understand these aspects better so that you get the best possible treatment and get your life back on track again.

If you or a dear one has slipped, fallen and sustained injuries in a public place, this is certainly not the time to feel embarrassment of the slipping-on-a-banana-peel variety.

Such accidents can cause serious injuries, ranging from traumatic brain injury to spinal and neck damage, internal organ injuries, hip/pelvic/extremities fractures etc.

Apart from the pain and suffering, victims and their family-members also suffer physical and financial losses. Inability to work and earn wages, coupled with out-of-control medical and rehabilitation costs cause anxiety, depression and even suicidal thoughts.

If your injury happened in a public place, the process of seeking compensation for your injuries can involve several highly complex medical, legal and insurance issues. As a lay-person one may not be familiar with these matters and if you need to enhance your chances of a more successful outcome, consult a Brampton personal injury lawyer without delay.

Seeking Compensation

If your accident occurred in your local supermarket, grocery store, retail outlet, public park, building or pavement, it was probably caused by someone else’s fault or negligence.

People are entitled to feel safe when they’re on another person’s property and it is that person’s responsibility to ensure that the premises are maintained in a state of reasonable safety.

However, the process of seeking compensation is not very simple or straightforward. Insurance companies which make the settlement payouts could dispute your claim, deny the nature and extent of injuries or delay the settlement citing a host of technical reasons. It’s preferable that you seek the assistance, advice and advocacy of an experienced Brampton personal injury lawyer to enhance your chances of a better settlement outcome.

Important Aspects To Keep In Mind

Compensation claims for slip and fall injuries hinge on the concepts of negligence and liability. A robust body of evidence has to be presented. A majority of personal injury claims are settled out-of-court.

Such claims are also governed by statute of limitations deadlines within which claims or suits have to be filed.

Keep these crucial factors in mind while seeking compensation:

• Report the accident immediately to the at-fault party and preferably to someone in authority. Ensure you get an acknowledgment or that the report is documented

• Keep all records or receipts of such reports

• Get medical attention without delay. Consult a qualified physician and keep all reports, test-reports, X-rays, MRI or CT scans, receipts etc.

• Get a genuine and comprehensive assessment of your claim based on merits. This helps you determine whether you have a valid case or not and whether you can expect a successful outcome.

• Public liability claims are governed by slightly different regulations. Apart from proving that the party owes you a duty of care, it’s also crucial to provide evidence that such a duty was breached and that the injuries you sustained were caused by such a breach.

• Time-limits are vital in these cases. In case the injured person was a minor, there may be different time-limits. There are also different rules for notifying municipalities and local government bodies about the accident  and for intention to claim compensation.

• Public liability claims can be brought against the at-fault body/organization/entity.

Consult a Brampton personal injury lawyer with specific experience in handling slip and fall accident claims.

Slip and fall accidents can happen anywhere and at any time, to anyone! They strike like a bolt from the blue but their effects can last for an entire life-time in some cases.

The risks lie everywhere and property owners are responsible for ensuring that their premises remain in a state of reasonable safety for all visitors.

In Ontario, for instance, the Occupier’s Liability Act holds property owners responsible for maintaining premises under their control so that visitors and their belongings remain safe. Accidents can happen due to the fault or negligence of the person/s or entity that had a duty of care to ensure safety.

The injured are entitled to seek compensation for the physical, financial and emotional trauma that they face as a result of the accident.

Negligence Is a Key Concept

In slip and fall accidents, as with other personal injury claims, the concept of negligence and proving liability are fundamental to achieving a successful outcome.

Most claims are settled out-of-court and seldom make it to trial. As Bolton personal injury lawyers know, a process of negotiations between both parties can settle matters to the final satisfaction of both.

While claiming compensation for slip and fall injuries, the injured party has to prove that it was the at-fault party’s negligence

• that caused the hazardous conditions
• which led to the accident
• and ultimately to the injuries.

Evidence and proof can make or break your claim as experienced Bolton personal injury lawyers can advise.

Photographs as Evidence

One of the crucial pieces of evidence that can be presented is photographs. As the saying goes, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” There’s nothing that helps to establish facts like photographs taken at the location, at the time of the accident.

Today, almost everyone carries a mobile-phone and unless you’re seriously injured or unconscious, it’s not very difficult to click a few clear pictures showing:

• Location with important landmarks to fix it
• Dangerous conditions that caused the accident
• Time and date which stamps on photographs
• Weather and visibility conditions
• Damage/injuries sustained
• Lighting
• Other contributing factors like construction, etc

If you’re unable to take pictures, get a trustworthy friend or family-member to visit the place immediately and take them. It’s important to document the conditions immediately, because things can change with time. By the time the negotiation process begins or the case goes to trial, things may have changed and our memory is notoriously fickle.

The property owner may change the conditions, fearing legal action. They may repair, replace or destroy evidence.

Photographs can also help to pinpoint the exact reason for the accident. For instance, if the picture shows the air-conditioner from which water was dripping and causing a puddle in which you slipped, or it shows a water-spout that empties water on to a driveway causing ice to form where it may not normally do so, or the picture shows damaged tiles, unanchored/frayed carpets, lack of Wet Floor signs after cleaning, or shows debris/clutter left out of place, etc, these are important to prove negligence.

The examination of discovery stage in a personal injury suit is something that many plaintiffs worry about.

This happens in the pre-trial stage of the trial process and comes at a time when the case has progressed to the trial stage. Although almost 90% of personal injury cases are settled out-of-court, there are times when the settlement negotiations, arbitration or mediation fail to achieve a mutually satisfactory outcome. The case then proceeds to trial.

This is also the first time that the opposite, at-fault party’s lawyer will come face-to-face with the plaintiff. The impression they form of your integrity, the validity of your claim, the nature and extent of your injuries and their impact on your life is a crucial element in their assessment of how strong your case is.

Slip and fall accidents can be challenging to deal with, since there are several complex medical, legal and insurance issues involved.

An experienced Ajax personal injury lawyer with proven success at trial can provide the right advice and assistance.

What Is Examination of Discovery?

This is a pre-trial process where lawyers on both sides can question opposite parties (and their agents/employers) under oath on any matter relevant to the claim. The entire process is recorded and can be produced as a transcript in court later if required. It’s important that you attend, otherwise it could affect your case negatively. The time duration depends on the facts/circumstances/procedures.

This process allows both sides to get information about each other’s cases. Lawyers who conduct this procedure seek to establish:

• What the opposite party’s views are on the claim
• That you are committed to a particular version of facts as given directly by you
• Whether there are any areas of consensus
• What the specific points of dispute are
• Whether there is any information given or admissions made by the opposite party that can be used in trial against them

Both lawyers seek to protect their clients’ interests and rights.

The procedure is held in a special location designated for it, or a privately-operated “Examiner’s Office.” There is no judge present. Members of the public are not allowed.

Preparation

Lawyers, investigators, insurance-company representatives etc are highly-trained, experienced and focused people who handle these situations regularly, hence, you need to remain alert and vigilant.

• Remain calm and focused
• Speak only the truth
• Speak clearly and confidently
• Ensure that you’re consistent even in minor details
• Don’t volunteer information
• Listen carefully to the question, answer only when you’re ready to answer the whole question
• You’re not compelled to answer immediately, take your time
• Never speculate, guess or provide more than what is asked
• Don’t answer without understanding the question
• If you’re asked to estimate or guess, ensure that you specify that this is a guess
• Your lawyer’s duty is to protect your interests and they will object if the questions are improper
• The questions can cover an extremely broad range and may go into personal areas
• You won’t be allowed to have a private conversation with your own lawyer during the process

It’s not unusual to feel anxious or nervous beforehand. Share your emotions with your lawyer. Your experienced Ajax personal injury lawyer will spend adequate time with you to help you prepare and practice for this.

If you or a loved one has sustained serious injuries in a car accident you know what it’s like – the confusion, anxiety, fear, pain and grief can be overwhelming.

Added to these, you’re worried about the way your bank account seems to be getting depleted. Medical expenses, hospitalization, medication, continuing care and rehabilitation expenditure can swiftly spiral out of control. You’re probably unable to resume work for an indefinite period as a result of your injuries, so there’s no money coming in.

Obviously, this is a time of enormous emotional trauma too. It’s easy to slip into depression, panic attacks, sleep disturbances, feelings of low self-worth and dependence.

While monetary compensation can never replace what you lost, it can certainly make things a bit more comfortable for you and your family.

Accidents are the result of someone’s fault or negligence. Injured persons are entitled to seek compensation from those whose carelessness or breach of safety norms caused the accident.

Get in touch with an experienced Burlington personal injury lawyer without delay to understand your rights and get assistance with achieving a satisfactory settlement.

Select The Right Personal Injury Lawyer

Keep these factors in mind:

• You need an exclusive practitioner of personal injury law. The person should be a full-time, experienced professional who doesn’t just occasionally take up the odd personal injury claim. This field like any other has its own specialists who gain expertise and knowledge and keep up to date with all the latest developments, amendments and regulations in the field.

• Are you being outsourced? Check if your lawyer/law-firm does in fact handle your entire case. Some lawyers may take up cases but later refer them to another lawyer or law-firm whom you may not be familiar or comfortable with.

• Meet the lawyer who will actually handle your case. Law-firms may be in touch with “runners” whose job is to trawl hospitals for accident victims and get them to less reputed, unqualified or inexperienced lawyers. Ensure that you sign documents only with a lawyer whose background and credentials you have verified.

• You need to feel comfortable – whether it’s demeanor, language, attitude, respect and dignity given. Remember that the case could take some time to be resolved and hence you need to trust the lawyer/law-firm, and feel secure that your rights are being safeguarded.

• Experience is crucial. Obviously everyone has to start somewhere, but it need not be with your claim! A successful track-record of handling cases like yours gives you the confidence and faith that your claim may work out the way you want. Though 90% of claims are settled out-of-court, look for a personal injury lawyer with trial experience. In the event negotiations break down, they should be prepared to take the case to court.

• Ensure that you select a Burlington lawyer who handles only plaintiff claims. If they do work for insurance-companies there could be a potential conflict of interest.

The right lawyer can make all the difference to the outcome of your claim. Insurance companies may not always act in good faith since their focus would be on protecting their own business interests. An experienced Burlington personal injury lawyer will advise, assist and advocate for you keeping your rights uppermost.

We assume that car accidents are usually just that  – “Accidental.” In fact, most of them are the result of someone’s fault, negligence or the deliberate or unknowing flouting of safety norms.

Unfortunately, car accident victims who have been seriously injured  and their family-members and dependents have to shoulder the physical, financial and emotional burdens that arise from such a mishap.

Getting one’s life back on track following a serious car accident can be a lengthy, expensive and emotionally-draining process. Although monetary compensation cannot replace the time and health that was lost, it can certainly make life a little easier for victims and their families. Hence, under civil laws, injured victims are entitled to seek compensation from those whose actions/omissions resulted in the accident.

However, insurance companies who make the settlement payouts, whether statutory or through a personal injury claim, may not act in good faith. They may dispute, deny or delay your claim.

An experienced Barrie personal injury lawyer can provide the right information, advice and assistance to help you get the compensation you deserve.

Issues In Seeking Compensation

Insurance companies and claims-adjusters are part of a for-profit system. Their main focus is to safeguard their own business  interests which may not be in sync with yours.

Claims-adjusters are highly trained, educated and experienced professionals whose mandate is to keep settlements at a minimum or avoid them altogether. They look for any information that can be used to contradict the claims you make. You may inadvertently provide access to confidential, private information regarding your health and finances which could harm your claim.

The at-fault party’s insurers focus on reducing/denying their client’s liability and negligence and also discover whether you may have contributed partially to the accident.

Tips To Ensure You Get Due Benefits

• Ensure you get medical attention immediately, no matter how minor you think your injuries are
• Follow all medical advice – this is important from a health and legal aspect
• Be scrupulously honest and limit your information to what you really know while speaking to the police, since this becomes part of the accident report
• Unless you’re seriously injured, get all possible information about the other vehicle/driver involved. Address, phone-numbers, insurance, details of make and model of vehicle etc will also go into police reports
• Request a copy of the police report
• Take pictures on your mobile phone of location, position of vehicles, important landmarks, your injuries, weather/road conditions, road-signs/traffic signals if any.
• Begin keeping an accident journal: note down names, addresses and contact details of witnesses if any, all conversations with at-fault party, insurance-companies, doctors, your physical, financial and emotional state etc
• Record all the personal property damaged like spectacles, etc.
• Preserve clothing and footwear
• Preserve all test and ER room reports, bills, receipts for all expenses connected with the injury
• Don’t communicate with at-fault parties/their insurers/legal representatives without your personal injury lawyer’s advice
• Never confront or apologize to anyone on the spot
• Avoid making a social media presence for some time

Don’t underestimate insurance company representatives or assume that they have your interests at heart. Finally, select a Barrie personal injury lawyer who is prepared to take your claim all the way to court if necessary.

Motor-vehicle accidents, slip or trip and fall accidents and other kinds of devastating mishaps can cause a variety of injuries. Sometimes people are fortunate to get away with minor cuts, bruises or sprains, otherwise, catastrophic injuries can result, causing long-term or permanent damage to the brain or spine.

A common cause of disability/death in adults, TBI presents a global socio-economic health problem. The incidence is increasing globally and that could be because of the higher use of motor-vehicles in developing countries where safety norms are yet to be fully realized and enforced. Statistics show the decline of TBI cases in more developed countries, though the incidence due to motor-vehicle accidents is still very high. Demographically, young males suffer more instances of TBI although in terms of severity, women are more severely affected.

If you or a dear one has sustained such injury, getting the right medical help immediately is of paramount importance. Contact an experienced personal injury lawyer without delay. You may be entitled to compensation from those whose fault or negligence caused the accident. 

What Is TBI?

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the most serious types of brain injuries that result from sudden, external impact which cause damage.

This is an umbrella term that describes numerous types of injuries to the brain. They can impact any area of the brain, and the damage can be confined to a focus area or it can be spread over a larger area. The severity can also vary, from a mild concussion to catastrophic injury that causes disability, coma or death.

Types of TBI include:

• Closed Brain Injury: When there is an internal injury to the brain caused by motor-vehicle accidents, falls or sports. Shaken-baby syndrome is a typical example where blood-vessels and tissue are damaged, with no external signs.

• Penetrative Brain Injury: Is caused by an external object piercing through the skull or from the neck, eye, face etc. Typical examples include bullet injuries or falling on sharp objects etc.

• Diffuse axonal injury:  occurs when the long nerve fibers (axons) are torn or damaged due to impact. This is one of the most difficult injuries to detect, as it may not show up on CT or MRI scans.

• Primary brain injury: is the immediate trauma to the brain as a result of motor-vehicle accident, fall or gunshot wound

• Secondary brain injury: occurs when changes develop over hours/days after a primary impact. 

Effects of TBI

• Headache/nausea/vomiting
• Dizziness/Loss of balance
• Blurred/Double vision
• Motor/Sensory problems
• Difficulties in abstract thinking/concentration/making judgments/decisions
• Perception/Spatial/time difficulties
• Paralysis/Coma
• Mood/behavior/personality changes
• Loss of cognitive abilities
• Communication and language problems
• Social and functional deficit
• Epilepsy
• Death

Some amount of recovery may be possible in younger people with a better general health profile. However, it can be a lengthy and expensive process.

The person may need help with:

• Self-care
• Mobility
• Nutrition/Medication
• Communication
• Socialization
• Pain management
• Mental health
• Family support
• Education
• Counseling

An experienced personal injury lawyer who has knowledge and expertise in dealing with TBI claims can work with the medical team to ensure that a robust claim is presented. This helps to get the best possible settlement that takes care of present and future needs.

A new tech marvel that has caught the attention of virtual reality (VR) enthusiasts is the game Pokemon-Go. While some have found it fun, exciting, overwhelming, hazardous or part of a mass addiction phenomenon, others have absolutely no clue what it’s all about!

Pokemon-Go players enter any space, whether private or public, in keeping with the requirements of the game. They may be oblivious of the hazards present in these locations and could suffer serious injuries if they slip and fall.

Such accidents can have an enormous physical, financial and emotional impact on not just the injured person, but also on his/her family-members too.

These mishaps also raise larger questions of liability, and the question of who is responsible when someone is injured on another’s property under these circumstances.

Whitby personal injury lawyers, along with lawyers all over the world, are aware that there are challenges in working out the modalities of such cases.

What Is Pokemon-Go?

Played on cellphones, this VR game uses GPS to capture tiny creatures or Pokemons while walking around in the real world. This augmented reality game uses real locations from the player’s own mobile device’s ability to identify them.

Released in July 2016, the game quickly caught the imagination and  is free-to-play, with purchasable additional apps if you want them. As a social media phenomenon, it connected people from all walks of life, helped to capture real-life criminals, report crimes in progress, built better relations between law-enforcement and the community, contributed to higher footfalls in businesses and better knowledge of the locality and neighborhood.

However, it has been widely criticized for causing traffic congestion, littering, noise, trespassing, distraction while driving/walking and security threat.

Whose Responsibility?

The question of liability in slip and fall injuries while playing is complex in such cases: Is it the property owner, player, the game-maker, the retailer who sold the game etc who is responsible for paying compensation to injured victims?

According to Ontario’s Occupier’s Liability Act property-owners have to ensure the safety of all those who enter. Pokemon-Go players may be trespassing in which case, they still have certain rights! If  owners have not posted No Trespassing signs or otherwise prohibited entry, they can be held liable for injuries sustained on their properties. Property owners can also ask players to leave their premises if they find them playing Pokemon-Go on the premises.

Some businesses attract players by encouraging them to play on their premises. Obviously, they bear the legal responsibilities too.

There are several aspects to consider and each case is unique. But in general, Pokemon-Go playing while trespassing or crossing the street at non-designated spots could reduce a damages claim because the plaintiff has contributed to causing the accident. However, the fundamental principles of personal injury law – viz, negligence – still applies.

Stay Safe!

The best option is obviously to be aware of the physical hazards and the legal consequences of chasing virtual creatures in a real world. Stick to common-sense safety norms, be aware of your surroundings and respectful of other people’s rights while playing.

Such games present unique challenges to law but an experienced Whitby personal injury lawyer can ensure that your rights are protected if you are injured due to someone else’s fault or negligence.