Boneman
Super Moderator
Hopefully you will never find yourself in this situation but I thought I would share the results of my ICBC settlement with the riding community in case others needs some help if they find themselves with an ICBC claim. Just over one year after my accident, I've finally settled my accident claim with the assistance of a lawyer - Patrick Sweeney.
** Note: This is my experience and everyone's situation will be different **
The Accident:
For those that don't know the back story, last August in Vancouver while returning home from a nice 2 day ride with friends, I was hit by a car that decided to make an abrupt left tun that was travelling in the same direction, but in the lane to my right. The collision wrote off my much loved 05 FZ6 and set me flying 15M into oncoming traffic on Oak Street that was thankfully about 1/2 a block back. Accident was 100% cagers fault and ATGATT saved me from what could have been some major damage. Pics of my bike here: http://www.bonemanfz6.com/FZ6 Crash Pics - Intact Insurance.pdf
Bike = written off
Me = major soft tissue damage (STI) to my right leg (amazingly no broken bones). Developed an large ulcer (hole) on inside thigh near knee. Some additional bumps and bruises. Possible permanent nerve damage around right knee area (no on knows if this will heal in time). All in all I faired VERY well all things considered.
The Claim:
I started a claim with ICBC and my insurance. All went very smooth, although you need to stay on top of ICBC as they don't move as fast as I wanted them too. Here are some tips for your claim:
- Document EVERYTHING!! Regardless if you are getting a lawyer, document everything you can think of!!
- Keep all your documents ORGANIZED! Don't just throw everything into a shoe box.
- Take daily pictures of injuries. I kept a photo journal of my injuries.
- Keep a journal of how you are feeling. Include things that you can no longer do at that time as a cause of your injuries - no matter how small (can't go for walks with daughter, etc).
- Use email to contact your ICBC representative so there is a paper trial of things said. I found there were some difference between what people told me on the phone and what was the actual case.
- keep all your receipts!!!
- make a spreadsheet of all your expenses, including things like mileage to and from Dr. appointments, cost of parking at hospital/Dr. office, etc.
Why Did I get a Lawyer?
I got a lawyer because ICBC presented me with what I felt was an incredibly low settlement amount considering what I had gone through. I think this was in large part to "nothing broken" and ICBC thinking that an STI is a bad bruise!
During a claim, ICBC will do a one time payout to reimburse you of expenses (bills, wages, expenses, etc.). I got fed up of not seeing much action from ICBC and I was the one who called and initiated a face to face meeting as I felt that my adjuster was not on the same page with details of my claim (kept asking me for stuff that I had previously submitted to him).
During our face to face, he was very good and went over all my expenses and receipts to date and they did cut me a cheque that brought me up to date with lost wages and expenses. THIS IS NOT PART OF YOUR SETTLEMENT. The settlement and this payout are 2 separate things. I told him that I was not prepared to settle at this time as I was not fully healed.
DO NOT SETTLE UNTIL YOU ARE FULLY HEALED!!
When I was leaving his office, he informed me that if I were to settle now, that my claim would be worth $5,000.00. I almost chocked, but said nothing and left. I'm not sure why he tipped his hat like that and told me the amount?
ICBC also works in 'tiers' in which your claims adjuster is only authorized to pay out a certain amount. If you want more, then you get passed onto another person and up the chain you go. A lawyer is good at getting to the top of this chain.
ICBC will tell you that you have up to 2 years to settle. This is true, unless you seek legal council, in which your lawyer can very easily extend that 2 years by filing a writ with the courts if you need more time to heal from your injuries.
Don't let ICBC panic you or pressure you into thinking you have to settle!
So knowing ICBC's low offer, I asked around on here for any lawyer recommendations and I was told to try Patrick Sweeney of Pearlman/Lindholm. Patrick now only does personal injury.
Prior to this, I have never used a lawyer before other than for signing doc when buying a house. I met with Patrick and found him to be a very nice and straight forward person. I presented my documents and details during our initial consultation (no charge and about an hour). Patrick agreed that ICBC's offer was "a tad low".
So I decided to retain Partick's services. The services were as follows:
Patrick would receive 25% of the settlement amount; or 30% if it went to court.
Since ICBC had already made me an offer of $5,000, I was guaranteed that amount, even if Patrick spent the next 6 months working on the case and it got thrown out. So basically it was a no brainer - no lose situation for me.
A lawyer also has better access to all the medical and accident documents needed and assumes the cost of acquiring those instead of you (the cost gets rolled up in the end as part of their payment). Doing only personal injury, Patrick also knows the in's and out's of how ICBC works and how to work their system in your favour.
So I left it all in Patrick's hands. He sent a letter to ICBC informing them that he was representing me and not to contact me directly anymore.
The Result:
Patrick came though for me and presented a strong case to the ICBC adjusters - this is what you are paying the lawyer for! He had to go back and forth a few times and up the chain, but the end result was a settlement over 9x what ICBC originally offered me!!
In the end, we got what I felt was fair. I wasn't looking for a 'quick payday', I was looking for a settlement amount that better reflected what I had gone through/going through for something that was not my fault.
I can't say enough good things about Patrick Sweeney and if you ever find yourself in need of a personal injury lawyer, I would fully endorse Patrick Sweeney.
If anyone wants more information or has questions about dealing with ICBC, just PM me or shoot me an email: dmbone at shaw.ca
** Note: This is my experience and everyone's situation will be different **
The Accident:
For those that don't know the back story, last August in Vancouver while returning home from a nice 2 day ride with friends, I was hit by a car that decided to make an abrupt left tun that was travelling in the same direction, but in the lane to my right. The collision wrote off my much loved 05 FZ6 and set me flying 15M into oncoming traffic on Oak Street that was thankfully about 1/2 a block back. Accident was 100% cagers fault and ATGATT saved me from what could have been some major damage. Pics of my bike here: http://www.bonemanfz6.com/FZ6 Crash Pics - Intact Insurance.pdf
Bike = written off
Me = major soft tissue damage (STI) to my right leg (amazingly no broken bones). Developed an large ulcer (hole) on inside thigh near knee. Some additional bumps and bruises. Possible permanent nerve damage around right knee area (no on knows if this will heal in time). All in all I faired VERY well all things considered.
The Claim:
I started a claim with ICBC and my insurance. All went very smooth, although you need to stay on top of ICBC as they don't move as fast as I wanted them too. Here are some tips for your claim:
- Document EVERYTHING!! Regardless if you are getting a lawyer, document everything you can think of!!
- Keep all your documents ORGANIZED! Don't just throw everything into a shoe box.
- Take daily pictures of injuries. I kept a photo journal of my injuries.
- Keep a journal of how you are feeling. Include things that you can no longer do at that time as a cause of your injuries - no matter how small (can't go for walks with daughter, etc).
- Use email to contact your ICBC representative so there is a paper trial of things said. I found there were some difference between what people told me on the phone and what was the actual case.
- keep all your receipts!!!
- make a spreadsheet of all your expenses, including things like mileage to and from Dr. appointments, cost of parking at hospital/Dr. office, etc.
Why Did I get a Lawyer?
I got a lawyer because ICBC presented me with what I felt was an incredibly low settlement amount considering what I had gone through. I think this was in large part to "nothing broken" and ICBC thinking that an STI is a bad bruise!
During a claim, ICBC will do a one time payout to reimburse you of expenses (bills, wages, expenses, etc.). I got fed up of not seeing much action from ICBC and I was the one who called and initiated a face to face meeting as I felt that my adjuster was not on the same page with details of my claim (kept asking me for stuff that I had previously submitted to him).
During our face to face, he was very good and went over all my expenses and receipts to date and they did cut me a cheque that brought me up to date with lost wages and expenses. THIS IS NOT PART OF YOUR SETTLEMENT. The settlement and this payout are 2 separate things. I told him that I was not prepared to settle at this time as I was not fully healed.
DO NOT SETTLE UNTIL YOU ARE FULLY HEALED!!
When I was leaving his office, he informed me that if I were to settle now, that my claim would be worth $5,000.00. I almost chocked, but said nothing and left. I'm not sure why he tipped his hat like that and told me the amount?
ICBC also works in 'tiers' in which your claims adjuster is only authorized to pay out a certain amount. If you want more, then you get passed onto another person and up the chain you go. A lawyer is good at getting to the top of this chain.
ICBC will tell you that you have up to 2 years to settle. This is true, unless you seek legal council, in which your lawyer can very easily extend that 2 years by filing a writ with the courts if you need more time to heal from your injuries.
Don't let ICBC panic you or pressure you into thinking you have to settle!
So knowing ICBC's low offer, I asked around on here for any lawyer recommendations and I was told to try Patrick Sweeney of Pearlman/Lindholm. Patrick now only does personal injury.
Prior to this, I have never used a lawyer before other than for signing doc when buying a house. I met with Patrick and found him to be a very nice and straight forward person. I presented my documents and details during our initial consultation (no charge and about an hour). Patrick agreed that ICBC's offer was "a tad low".
So I decided to retain Partick's services. The services were as follows:
Patrick would receive 25% of the settlement amount; or 30% if it went to court.
Since ICBC had already made me an offer of $5,000, I was guaranteed that amount, even if Patrick spent the next 6 months working on the case and it got thrown out. So basically it was a no brainer - no lose situation for me.
A lawyer also has better access to all the medical and accident documents needed and assumes the cost of acquiring those instead of you (the cost gets rolled up in the end as part of their payment). Doing only personal injury, Patrick also knows the in's and out's of how ICBC works and how to work their system in your favour.
So I left it all in Patrick's hands. He sent a letter to ICBC informing them that he was representing me and not to contact me directly anymore.
The Result:
Patrick came though for me and presented a strong case to the ICBC adjusters - this is what you are paying the lawyer for! He had to go back and forth a few times and up the chain, but the end result was a settlement over 9x what ICBC originally offered me!!
In the end, we got what I felt was fair. I wasn't looking for a 'quick payday', I was looking for a settlement amount that better reflected what I had gone through/going through for something that was not my fault.
I can't say enough good things about Patrick Sweeney and if you ever find yourself in need of a personal injury lawyer, I would fully endorse Patrick Sweeney.
If anyone wants more information or has questions about dealing with ICBC, just PM me or shoot me an email: dmbone at shaw.ca
