Dr. Sam Calicchia

The applicant was injured in a rear-end motor vehicle accident and sought statutory accident benefits for caregiver services, housekeeping expenses, and the costs of various medical assessments.

The arbitrator found that the applicant was not the primary caregiver for his nephew's children prior to the accident, and that the invoices submitted for both caregiver and housekeeping expenses were unreliable and failed to establish the amounts claimed.

The claims for caregiver and housekeeping benefits were dismissed.

The arbitrator awarded the costs of a functional abilities evaluation and a reduced amount for an in-home assessment, but denied funding for neurological and orthopaedic assessments as they were not reasonably required.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and sought statutory accident benefits, including caregiver, housekeeping, and medical benefits, as well as the cost of a psychological assessment.

The insurer denied the claims on procedural grounds (late application) and substantive grounds.

The arbitrator held that the insurer could not rely on the late application because it failed to clearly warn the applicant of the consequences of non-compliance.

Substantively, the arbitrator dismissed the claims for caregiver and housekeeping benefits, finding the applicant was not the primary caregiver and did not suffer a substantial inability to perform housekeeping.

The claim for chiropractic treatment was also dismissed as not reasonable and necessary.

However, the arbitrator ordered the insurer to pay for the proposed psychological assessment, finding it was reasonably required based on the information available to the requesting psychologist.

The claim for a special award was dismissed.