FREDERICTON – New Brunswickers who suffer minor injuries in automobile accidents would get a boost in compensation for pain and suffering if the provincial government accepts the recommendations of a report released Wednesday.
A government-appointed review group is recommending that a cap for minor-injury compensation be raised to between $4,000 and $6,000.
The existing cap of $2,500 for pain and suffering was set eight years ago to stem insurance premium increases. There was a huge public outcry in 2003 from people who complained they could no longer afford auto insurance or were being denied coverage.
Opponents of the cap have complained it is too low, and too many injuries – including broken bones – are being labelled as minor.
Michel Leger, chairman of the government-appointed review group, said that’s why the most important recommendation is for a change in the definition of what is considered a minor injury.
“Minor personal injury should be a sprain, strain or whiplash-associated disorder or a combination thereof, which results in minor consequences in a person’s life,” he said in an interview.
He said the affects of a minor injury shouldn’t last more than six months.
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Leger said the government still needs to look at information on claims submitted by the insurance companies and an actuary report before setting a new cap. Those results weren’t available when his committee prepared its report.
Justice Minister Marie-Claude Blais said a lot of work still needs to be done before the government can decide whether to change the cap.
“We need to run numbers and we need to look at the impact on rates,” she said.
“It will not be done quickly because it is important work that has impact on almost every New Brunswicker, so I am thinking of maybe early next year.”
The Insurance Board of Canada says the average auto insurance premium in New Brunswick in March 2003 was $1,239. It says the average premium in July was $812, a drop of 34.5 per cent.
Bill Adams, Atlantic vice-president of the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said he believes the cap can be raised without affecting rates, but he believes it’s important not to go too far.
“Consider changes that could be made, but not do it by sacrificing the low premiums and the broad availability that New Brunswickers now enjoy,” he said.
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In April 2010, Nova Scotia changed its definition and raised its cap for minor injuries from $2,500 to $7,500. Adams said it could be a couple of years before the impact of that is known.
Chris Collins, the Liberal party’s justice critic, said he’s worried rates in New Brunswick will increase and that the New Brunswick Insurance Board won’t stop it.
“We should have a more effective regulatory body put in place before insurance companies can use this as an excuse to increase rates,” Collins said.
Collins said he’s pleased to see a new definition for minor injuries, but believes it needs to be refined further to remove any “wiggle room” for insurance companies.
While the review committee was only mandated to look at the cap and definition of minor injuries, Leger said they felt it important to make three other recommendations.
The report calls for better information for claimants after a motor vehicle accident.
“At the public consultation sessions, we saw victims break down in tears,” the report states.”It was not the relating of their accident and injuries that brought on the emotion. It was the stress and frustration they said they’d endured post-accident, trying to navigate the complex, confusing and often unfriendly systems they must overcome if they hope to get a fair settlement for their pain and suffering.”
The report also recommends quicker access to care for claimants, and a review of auto insurance at least every five years.
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