Claim for ongoing weekly benefits dismissed; severe psychiatric problems found not significantly caused by motor vehicle accident.
The applicant, a 15-year-old high school student, was seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident.
She received weekly income benefits until January 1993.
The applicant claimed she suffered a brain injury in the accident that caused severe psychiatric and behavioural problems, entitling her to further benefits.
The insurer argued her psychiatric difficulties were not caused by the accident but were the result of a pre-existing condition, likely bipolar disorder.
The arbitrator found that the applicant sustained at most a mild head injury and that the accident was not a significant contributing factor to her subsequent severe mental illness.
The claim for ongoing weekly benefits and a special award was dismissed, though the applicant was awarded her arbitration expenses.
OFSCDRSOntario Financial Services Commission - Dispute Resolution ServicesFeb 9, 1994
