Marc Gignac

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and received income replacement benefits until the insurer terminated them, alleging his ongoing disability was due to a pre-existing congenital neck condition, degenerative changes, or self-limitation.

The arbitrator found that while the congenital condition was not caused by the accident, the accident injuries combined with the fear generated by the discovery of the condition led to a chronic pain syndrome.

The arbitrator rejected the insurer's video surveillance evidence as proof of ability to return to work and ordered the reinstatement of income replacement benefits.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident while riding his bicycle and subsequently claimed income replacement benefits.

The insurer terminated these benefits based on a Designated Assessment Centre report.

The arbitrator found that the applicant was substantially disabled from performing the essential tasks of his pre-accident employment, which included multiple labour-intensive part-time jobs.

The arbitrator preferred the evidence of the applicant's medical experts over the insurer's assessors.

Furthermore, the arbitrator awarded a $5,000 special award, finding that the insurer acted unreasonably by ignoring additional medical evidence that supported the applicant's claim.