Dr. Natalia Lishchyna

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

She initially sent her application to the wrong insurer, resulting in a delay in notifying the respondent insurer.

The respondent denied benefits, citing the delay and a lack of information.

The arbitrator found that the applicant had a reasonable explanation for the delay and that the respondent had failed egregiously in its responsibilities by not expeditiously obtaining her file from the other insurer.

The arbitrator awarded the applicant housekeeping benefits for 104 weeks, caregiver benefits for 52 weeks, and a medical benefit for chiropractic treatment.

Additionally, the arbitrator ordered the respondent to pay a special award of $5,000 because it had unreasonably withheld the payment of benefits.

The applicant sought payment for a chiropractic treatment plan following two motor vehicle accidents in 2001.

The insurer refused to fund the treatment.

The arbitrator found that the applicant had a history of chronic pain and psychological factors, including somatization, which prevented her from benefiting from physical therapies.

Relying on the opinion of a pain medicine and psychiatry specialist retained by the applicant's own lawyer, the arbitrator concluded that no specific treatment could help the applicant's condition.

The application for arbitration was dismissed.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

The insurer denied her claims for income replacement, medical, attendant care, and housekeeping benefits.

At arbitration, the arbitrator found that the applicant's injuries, which included her left hand, wrist, and knee, took her impairments outside the Pre-Approved Framework Guideline.

The arbitrator awarded income replacement benefits for a specific period of disability, medical benefits for chiropractic and physiotherapy treatment, and attendant care and housekeeping benefits, finding the expenses were reasonable, necessary, and adequately supported by medical evidence.

Interest was also awarded on the overdue benefits.