Thanks to a new law, settlements awarded after August 1, 2015 for car accident injuries now stand to receive less money for pain and suffering damages if the amount they’re entitled to is below $121,799.
As we’ve discussed earlier in this blog, injuries must be both permanent and serious to be compensated by pain and suffering damages in Ontario. And like much in the rest of the insurance world, there is a deductible.
The deductible isn’t new, but it has been raised to $36,540 for anyone involved in a car accident and $18,270 for family members. These are up from deductibles of $30,000 and $15,000 respectively.
Any award for damages of pain and suffering under $121,799 is subject to this deductible (this amount has also increased-it used to be $100,000). This means that you would only receive $23,460 after being awarded $60,000 by the court. We did the math, and that’s less than half of the original damages award. It’s a lot of money to lose! By comparison, if you were awarded the exact same damages in a slip and fall case you would receive the full $60,000.00 with no deduction.
The Ontario government justifies these deductibles and thresholds by claiming that they will reduce car insurance rates, but the experience of most people is that rates keep increasing.
With deductibles this high you need to be confident that your lawyers are doing everything to maximize your recovery. Give us a call at 416-533-7133 to discuss how we can help you get the most for your injuries.