Accident Benefit Lawyer: Using Your Extended Health Care Benefits

Ask a Personal Injury Lawyer:  Why do I have to put my medical expenses through my medical benefits from work before the accident benefit insurer will pay me?

Personal Injury Lawyer’s Answer: Ontario accident victims often ask why their insurance company requires them to use the extended health care benefits available through their work or other private insurer before the accident benefits policy will pay.  This requirement is frustrating to clients because they fear that they will use up fixed benefits that their employer provides on the accident.  What happens if they then have another accident or illness and the work place benefits are used up?

The short answer to this question is that Statutory Accident Benefits specifically state that you have to use any other insurance available to you first.  The Statutory Accident Benefits, also known as no-fault benefits, specifically say that payment of a medical, rehabilitation or attendant care benefit is not required for that portion of any expense for which payment is reasonably available to the insured person under any insurance plan or law.

We are well aware that this may be a hardship for some.  However, working with a skilled motor vehicle accident lawyer can assist you to maximize your recovery for your accident and therefore minimize the financial impact of your accident.  If you have questions about the Statutory Accident Benefits, contact us at [email protected].  We’d be happy to speak to you about it.

About the Author: Brenda Hollingsworth

Brenda Hollingsworth co-founded Ottawa’s Auger Hollingsworth in 2005 with her husband Richard Auger. Together, their mission was to create a personal injury law firm for Eastern Ontario that is unrivalled in the province for customer service and legal expertise. Brenda was named an Ottawa Business Journal Forty Under 40 award recipient and took home the Women’s Business Network’s Businesswoman of the Year award in the Professional category. She was also recognized as one of Ottawa Life Magazine’s “Top 50 People in the Capital.” She is often quoted as an expert and has appeared in media outlets such as CTV, The Globe and Mail, National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Sun Media, CBC, Toronto Star, Montreal Gazette, CFRA and many legal publications.

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