It’s important to contact a brain injury lawyer immediately
after an accident so you can file an insurance claim. A brain injury can take a
long time to heal and can have tough emotional and financial repercussions.
How Insurance Works After
a Brain Injury in Ontario
It’s a good idea to contact a lawyer immediately following
an accident. Your lawyer can concentrate on accident-related details, like
collecting details about the accident, dealing with insurance companies and
insurance adjusters, filling out paperwork and filing it on time, preparing for
any future expenses, and other details that you may be too ill or too
distracted to manage. If you’re making medical decisions for a loved one who
has sustained a brain injury, contact a brain injury lawyer to help file an
insurance claim on that person’s behalf. Some claims can have time limits on
when you’re allowed to file and some of those limits are as short as ten days.
According to the
Law Society of Upper
Canada, there are a few places where the victim of an accident can turn to
make a claim. The first place your lawyer will file a brain injury-related
insurance claim is with the at-fault person’s insurance company. If the
at-fault person doesn’t have insurance, a claim may be filed with the Financial
Services Commission of Ontario’s Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund, which was
set up just for that purpose. If you were injured at work, the claim may need
to be filed with the
Workplace
Safety and Insurance Board first since they have a compensation system for
workers injured on the job. Your lawyer can help you determine where your claim
should be filed.
Who Pays for Health
Care-Related Costs?
When you or a loved one is injured, you face a loss of
income for both the injured person and the family member who is helping to care
for that person. This comes at a time when there may be additional financial
strain on your family because of the injury. Costs like medication, medical
devices, and transit may not be covered by OHIP or employee benefit plans.
If additional care is needed after a brain injury, the
Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has a list of who is responsible
for associated medical and home-care costs after a
motor
vehicle accident. According to Ontario’s Statutory Accident Benefits
Schedule, the at-fault person’s insurance company is required to pay for
non-professional health care service. That includes services like meal
preparation, transportation, support for caregivers, help with home maintenance
and repair, and help with accessing social or recreational services that you
need. You’re also entitled to help with personal hygiene, laundry,
housekeeping, and other personal care that may be hard to do, especially if
your brain injury has led to a temporary or permanent physical disability.
The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care pays for physician
services, hospital services, air ambulance, mental health facilities, and some
other professional services like speech-language pathology, nursing,
occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and other services.
The brain is a complex organ that can take a long time to
fully heal. A brain injury lawyer can help you file an insurance claim that
will take this into account so you can stop worrying about finances and focus
on getter better.