BC Supreme Court Rejects LVI Defence Again

In a recent case of the BC Supreme Court, (Midgley v. Nguyen 2013 BCSC 693) the court again attacked ICBC’s low velocity defence. This defence is basically a “no crash no cash” policy. If there is little to no damage to the vehicle ICBC maintains that the occupants cannot be injured. In dismissing the LVI Defence the Court provided the following critical comments:

[174] “The overarching submission of the defence was that “this was a nothing accident”. The tenor of the defence submission was that, since there was no damage to Mr. Midgley’s motor vehicle, he could not have sustained the damage he alleges in the 2004 Accident.”

[175] “There is no legal principle that holds that if a collision is not severely violent or if there is no significant damage to a motor vehicle, the individual seated within that vehicle at the time of the impact cannot have sustained injuries. The authorities clearly establish that, while the lack of vehicle damage may be a relevant consideration, the extent of the injuries suffered by a plaintiff is not to be measured by the severity of the force in a collision or the degree of the vehicle’s damage. Rather, the existence and extent of a plaintiff’s injuries is to be determined on the basis of the evidentiary record at trial: see “Gordon v. Palmer” (1993), 78 B.C.L.R. (2d) 236.”

[176] “As I referred to earlier, the defence led no opinion evidence to support the assertion that the force of the impact in this case was incapable of producing the injury alleged by Mr. Midgley. I accept Mr. Midgley’s evidence regarding his body position at the time of impact and that, as far as he was concerned, the collision was jarring. In any case, there is expert medical evidence, which I find persuasive, that supports the relationship between the 2004 Accident and, in particular, Mr. Midgley’s body position at the time of impact and the existence of his injuries.”

Lehal Law has successfully represented clients whose claims were deemed to fall within ICBC’s low velocity criteria. If you receive a letter declining to pay anything because the claim is a low velocity claim contact Lehal Law for a free initial consultation.