Herault v. Intact Insurance Company, 2025 CanLII 75776

Licence Appeal Tribunal

Citation: Herault v. Intact Insurance Company, 2025 ONLAT 24-003480/AABS Licence Appeal Tribunal File Number: 24-003480/AABS

In the matter of an application pursuant to subsection 280(2) of the Insurance Act, RSO 1990, c I.8, in relation to statutory accident benefits.

Between:

Vital Herault Applicant

and

Intact Insurance Company Respondent

DECISION

ADJUDICATOR: Kate Grieves

APPEARANCES:

For the Applicant: Vital Herault, Self-Represented For the Respondent: Lazina Khan, Counsel

HEARD: By way of written submissions

OVERVIEW

1Vital Herault (the “applicant”) was involved in an automobile accident on March 18, 2022 and sought benefits pursuant to the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule - Effective September 1, 2010 (including amendments effective June 1, 2016) (the “Schedule”). The applicant was denied benefits by Intact Insurance Company (the “respondent”) and applied to the Licence Appeal Tribunal - Automobile Accident Benefits Service (the “Tribunal”) for resolution of the dispute.

ISSUES

2The issues in dispute are:

i. Are the applicant’s injuries predominantly minor as defined in s. 3 of the Schedule and therefore subject to treatment within the $3,500.00 Minor Injury Guideline limit?

ii. Is the applicant entitled to an income replacement benefit?

iii. Is the applicant entitled to an undisclosed amount for medical benefits, rehabilitation benefits, damage to glasses, housekeeping and home maintenance, and other disputes?

iv. Is the respondent liable to pay an award under s. 10 of Reg. 664 because it unreasonably withheld or delayed payments to the applicant?

RESULT

3The applicant did not receive notice as required by the Statutory Powers Procedure Act, RSO 1990, c. S.22 (the “SPPA”).

4The Notice of Hearing dated August 8, 2024 is vacated.

5The Tribunal shall canvass the parties for their availability for a case conference to take place within 30 days of the release of this Order.

ANALYSIS

Notice was not provided to the applicant

6I find that the applicant has not received notice as required by the SPPA. Therefore, the Tribunal may not proceed with this written hearing.

7Proceeding with a written hearing where a party fails to participate under section 7(2) of the SPPA, requires the Tribunal to be satisfied that the party has been given notice of the written hearing in compliance with ss. 6(1) and 6(4) of the SPPA.

8Rule 6.2 of the Licence Appeal Tribunal Rules, 2023 (“Rules”) states that where a document sent by the Tribunal by email, receipt is deemed to have occurred. However, Rule 6.3 states that the deemed receipt rule does not apply if it is established that the document was not received until a later date or not at all.

9I find that the Tribunal inadvertently noted the applicant’s email address incorrectly when the application was received. Accordingly, all communications thereafter from the Tribunal were not delivered to the applicant, including the Notice of Case Conference and Notice of Hearing as set out below.

10The following is a brief chronology of relevant events since the application was filed on March 15, 2024.

11A Notice of Case Conference was sent to the parties by email on April 23, 2024 of a case conference on July 23, 2024.

12The applicant did not attend the case conference on July 23, 2024. In accordance with Rule 14.6, the Tribunal decided to proceed in the absence of the applicant. At the case conference, the Tribunal scheduled a written hearing. The Case Conference Report and Order (“CCRO”) was sent to the parties by email on July 31, 2024.

13A Notice of Written Hearing was sent to the parties by email on August 8, 2024, advising of a written hearing on May 2, 2025.

14The applicant’s written submissions were due on April 2, 2025, however none were filed. The respondent filed its submissions on April 17, 2025, requesting that the application be dismissed.

15On April 9, 2025, the applicant contacted the Tribunal to request that the Tribunal update his contact information. At this point, it was determined that the Tribunal had been sending correspondence to an incorrect address and that the applicant had not received communications from the Tribunal.

16On April 25, 2025 the Tribunal provided the CCRO and the Notice of Written Hearing to the applicant for the first time to the correct email address.

17I acknowledge that the respondent proactively tried to remedy the situation in its communications with the applicant. However, I find that as a result of the Tribunal’s error in recording the applicant’s email address, none of the communications were provided to the applicant until April 25, 2025. This includes the Notice of Case Conference and Notice of Hearing.

18Accordingly, I am not satisfied that the applicant received notice as required by ss. 6(1) and 6(4) of the SPPA.

19For these reasons, I find that this written hearing may not proceed.

ORDER

20The Notice of Hearing dated August 8, 2024 is vacated.

21The Tribunal shall canvass the parties for their availability for a case conference to take place within 30 days of the release of this Order.

22I am not seized of the matter.