ICBC's No-Fault Insurance Faces Constitutional Challenge From Crash Victim and Trial Lawyers Association
Civil claim argues corporation's benefits are insufficient, enhanced care policy goes against charter
After a 2021 crash that left Tim Schober paralyzed and frustrated with trying to access benefits through ICBC, Schorber has launched a legal challenge of ICBC’s no-fault insurance suystem on the grounds that it discriminates against disabled and injured people.
What is Enhanced Care?
In 2020, the B.C. provincial legislature passed Bill 11, making amendments to the Insurance Vehicle Act that came into effect on May 1, 2021.
The biggest change was that people injured in a motor vehicle accident lost the right to take an at-fault driver to court — except in certain cases where the driver committed a criminal offence, such as impaired or reckless driving.
Rather than go through the legal system, drivers, cyclists and pedestrians involved in a collision now deal directly with ICBC. "No-fault benefits" are payments approved by the province to cover rehabilitation, personal care and lost wages for people injured in an accident.
ICBC says the goal of the new program is to cut down on legal costs and drive down premiums for drivers across B.C. The corporation says most of the money it saves is set aside to help improve access to care for crash victims.
New system is unconstitutional, lawyers say
The non-profit Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia (TLAB) has opposed the enhanced care system since the beginning.
The association is the second plaintiff in the civil claim, launched by Schoder, and argues ICBC's new rules go against the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The lawsuit argues victims lost two basic protections: "the right to full and fair compensation for their injuries" and the "ability to go to a court of law to oppose the positions taken by ICBC."
For more information on the Enhanced Care system read the BCCC positioning paper and check out our webpage on insurance and crashes for cyclists.