Auto Insurance Update: More Cutbacks are Coming
With big reductions coming to Ontario’s accident benefits insurance coverages this spring, it is time to take another look at your auto policy.
The Ontario government has announced significant changes to the auto insurance system effective June 1, 2016. As of that date, the following changes will further reduce the limits of insurance available to persons injured in motor vehicle accidents (including most cars, trucks, motorcycles, snowmobiles, ATV’s, etc.):
• Coverage limits for medications, rehabilitation and attendant care will be cut from $86,000 to $65,000;
• Rehabilitation and care limits for catastrophically impaired persons (the most severe injuries) has not only been cut in half, to $1,000,000 from $2,000,000, but the qualification definitions for this coverage has been made more difficult to meet, especially for those suffering from brain injuries;
• Income benefits for those who were not employed at the time of the accident (called “non-earner benefits”) have been cut to a maximum of 2 years, whereas previously they were payable for life; and
• The maximum benefit period for rehabilitation in non-catastrophic cases has been reduced to 5 years from the previous 10.
The effect of these cuts will be devastating to those who suffer the most significant injuries. We recommend that you speak with your insurance broker well in advance of June 1 in order to arrange for supplementary or optional coverage for your own protection in the event of a serious accident. Usually, such additional coverage is very inexpensive and will provide protection and peace of mind in the event of an accident.
Oatley Vigmond is Ontario’s Personal Injury Law Firm. If you require assistance with an insurance claim, we may be able to help.
About the Authors
Adam Little earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto in 1996. He graduated from Queen’s University Faculty of Law in 2000 and was called to the bar in 2002. Adam was practicising on Bay Street for a leading Toronto litigation firm that represented doctors in medical malpractice claims when he realized that helping people through personal injury litigation was what he wanted to do. “I wanted to work for the best,” he said. A partner at Oatley Vigmond had written the best-known book available about addressing jury trials, which Adam had read and admired. He wrote to the partner, went through an intense interview process and became a partner at the firm in 2005.