Determining if Your Injury Qualifies for Accident Benefits

Many people know that if you’re involved in a car accident in Ontario, you may be eligible for something called statutory accident benefits. These benefits are part of our no-fault insurance system. This means that even if the accident wasn’t your fault, you can still get financial support to help you recover from your injuries. But did you know that you might qualify for these benefits even if your injury didn’t involve a collision with another vehicle?

How Ontario Determines If an Incident Qualifies for Accident Benefits: The Two-Part Test

To qualify for accident benefits, Ontario law uses a two-part test to decide if an incident is an “accident”:

Purpose Test: This test looks at whether the car was being used for something cars are normally used for, like driving or transporting things.

Direct Cause Test: This part is a bit more complicated. It asks whether the car was the main reason for the injury. For instance, if someone is driving and gets hurt by a stray bullet from an unrelated shooting nearby, the car wouldn’t be the direct cause of the injury. In that case, the shooting would be considered the main cause.

Ontario law has been changing and expanding what counts as an “accident” for no-fault benefits. A recent court case highlighted different situations where people were found eligible for accident benefits.[1] Some of these might surprise you.

Examples of Incidents That Qualified for No-Fault Insurance Benefits:

• • A person slipped on ice while walking back to their car after inflating their tires.[2]
  • Someone fell while running towards a car that was sliding down a hill.[3]
  • A person got hit in the eye by a bungee cord used to tie down a friend’s boat on a trailer.[4]
  • A person slipped on a snowbank while getting off a bus.[5]
  • A person tripped over a motorcycle in the dark while walking back to their camper.[6]
  • A person got burned when hot coffee spilled while transferring it from a drive-through window to their car’s cup holder.[7]
  • An individual fell while “car surfing” (skating behind a vehicle while holding onto the bumper).[8]
  • Someone got injured when the hood of a parked car dropped on them as they were adding window washer fluid.[9]
  • A person slipped while clearing snow off their car.[10]
  • A person slipped on ice after getting out of their car.[11]
  • Someone fell off the roof of a trailer hitched to a pickup truck while inspecting and cleaning it.[12]

As you can see, you don’t always need to be driving or inside your car to qualify for these benefits. If you are seriously injured in a car-related incident similar to the cases described above, you may still qualify for no-fault insurance benefits.

However, figuring out whether an automobile-related incident qualifies as an “accident” is often complicated and depends on the specific details of each case. Insurers, courts, and tribunals will carefully examine the facts and evidence involved. It’s a good idea to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer who can review your situation and help you understand if you’re eligible for compensation. If you're unsure whether you qualify for accident benefits, you may contact our firm for a free consultation.

This blog post provides general information and does not constitute legal advice. Accident benefits are intended to provide support for individuals who are genuinely injured in automobile-related incidents, and fraudulent claims can have serious legal consequences.

[1] Northbridge General Insurance Corp. v. Jevco Insurance Co., 2024 ONSC 1520 (CanLII)

[2] Saad v. Federation Insurance Co. of Canada, 2003 ONFSCDRS 66 (CanLII)

[3] Belair Insurance Company Inc. v. Cassandra Seale, 2003 ONFSCDRS 7 (CanLII)

[4] AXA Insurance v. Dominion of Canada Insurance Co., 2004 CanLII 34995 (ONCA)

[5] Pinarreta v. ING Insurance Co. of Canada, 2005 CarswellOnt 6926

[6] Economical Mutual Insurance Company v. Caughy, 2016 ONCA 226 (CanLII)

[7] Dittmann v. Aviva Insurance Co. of Canada, 2017 ONCA 617 (CanLII)

[8] 16-003163 v. Intact Insurance Company, 2017 CanLII 69443 (ON LAT)

[9] Davis v. Aviva Canada Inc, 2017 ONSC 6173 (CanLII)

[10] G.R. v. Economical Mutual Insurance Co, 2019 CanLII 122726 (ON LAT)

[11] VB v Economical Insurance Company, 2020 CanLII 87992 (ON LAT)

[12] Madore v. Intact, 2023 ONSC 11 (CanLII)