Unconstitutional. That’s how the Supreme Court of B.C. described a rule introduced by Attorney General David Eby that would save ICBC upwards of $400 million.
Eby first introduced the rule in February 2019. The rule puts a cap on the number of expert witnesses allowed in vehicle injury claims.
ICBC reportedly lost upwards of $860 million in a 9-month span due to high numbers of experts being used in claims.
ICBC found that an average of six experts were used across 1,200 injury claims valued at over $100,000 or more. Eby then introduced this rule to try to put a cap on the expenses this creates for ICBC.
“It doesn’t advance any interest to have a $50,000 expense to resolve a $100,000 claim”, he said.
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Rule To Save ICBC Money Scrapped
In an official ruling released on Thursday, October 24th, the Supreme Court decided that the rule, officially named Rule 11-8, was “unconstitutional in that they […inhibit] the power of the Supreme Court of British Columbia to control its process and by denying access to the court to litigants.”
The ruling stemmed from a case involving Greg Crowder, who suffered severe injuries after a fuel-tanker slammed into his vehicle.
Crowder told CBC News that the court’s ruling will give them a fair trial for their claim, as well as the peace of mind that brings.
When asked about the court’s decision, Attorney General David Eby said that “Why British Columbia couldn’t [limit it] to three is difficult to understand.”
This could ultimately be a net-negative, however. If ICBC won’t be able to decrease their expenses here, they might end up looking elsewhere.
For more Metro Vancouver news, stay tuned to 604 Now News.
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