2 total
The court dismissed the insurer's appeal, upholding the arbitrator's finding that the catastrophically impaired claimant was principally dependent on his sister.
An appeal from an arbitration decision under the Insurance Act concerning priority of payment of statutory accident benefits.
The claimant, a 25-year-old who suffered severe traumatic brain injury in a motorcycle accident, was deemed catastrophically impaired.
The arbitrator determined that the claimant was principally dependent on his sister, who was insured by the appellant, rather than on his parents or the motorcycle insurer.
The appeal challenged the arbitrator's application of the dependency test, arguing that the arbitrator failed to properly apply all four criteria from the leading case and failed to conduct a precise calculation of the 51% threshold.
The court upheld the arbitrator's decision, finding no error of law or palpable and overriding error in the arbitrator's reasoning and factual conclusions.
Appeal allowed and matter remitted to LAT as adjudicator failed to consider statutory interpretation argument.
The appellant appealed a Licence Appeal Tribunal decision that dismissed her application for statutory accident benefits due to her failure to provide a reasonable explanation for notifying the insurer outside the prescribed timelines.
The Divisional Court found that the Tribunal erred in law by failing to consider the appellant's argument that section 32(10) of the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule provides the only consequence for late delivery of an application without a reasonable excuse, and by incorrectly concluding this was a new issue on reconsideration.
The appeal was allowed and the matter remitted to the Tribunal for a new hearing.