The dictionary’s definition for a catastrophic injury does not match with the definition that serves as the basis for Ontario’s related laws. Those related laws would be the ones that concern disabling impairments. At the same time, Ontario’s insurance companies have chosen to give greater consideration to the definition of a disabling catastrophe, with respect to the way such an event has been defined by the Province.
How does Ontario define a catastrophic injury?
It is something that harms the body physically, and impacts the rest of the injured victim’s lifetime. It affects the victim’s ability to care for himself or herself. At the same time, it requires a long recovery, and may introduce a need for the injured victim’s home care.
What are some examples of a catastrophic injury?
Brain damage, spinal cord injuries and an amputation are all examples of a catastrophic injury. Sometimes, too, a mental condition can combine with physical harm to the body, in order to impose a catastrophic condition on the affected body.
How do insurance companies test the impact that a given injury has on the victim’s life?
Insurance companies, including those in Ontario use something called a Glasgow Coma Scale. That scale matches a numerical number with a patient’s response to specific triggers. That numerical number lies on a given scale, and usually falls at a point between 3 and 15.Still, insurance companies do not give much consideration to a Glasgow score, unless one element has been proven true. That element relates to the time when the score-creating tests were taken. Those tests must have been completed as soon as possible, following the occurrence of the injury-causing accident.
What functions get tested, in order to obtain a Glasgow score?
The speed with which the victim’s eyes open in response to pain. The speed with which the same eyes open in response to a human voice. Can the victim speak, or make any sort of noise? Do the victim’s limbs move in response to pain?
Car drivers in Ontario carry a no-fault automobile insurance.
That means that any driver or passenger that gets injured in a motor vehicle accident has the right to seek accident benefits. Someone that has suffered a catastrophic injury has the right to seek full accident benefits, with the personal injury lawyer in Cornwall. Still, there are times when even the full benefits to not manage to cover all the accident –related costs. When that proves to be the case, then the injured victim needs to look elsewhere for funds. That added search can force an injured victim to utilize an available option.That option entails the victim’s pursuit of a lawsuit. The insured driver can sue the motorist that caused the injury-producing accident.