Why Car Accidents in Canada Can Sometimes be Messy

Canada may be a relatively safer place to drive than, say, the United States, but accidents on the road can and still do happen in this part of North America. In 2010, about 125,000 traffic-related accidents were reported throughout the country, which is still a slight improvement compared to the approximately 153,000 cases reported almost ten years ago. As such, legal battles for damage settlements are still fairly common and are, indeed, the reason why car accident lawyers exist.

One of the most pressing issues car accident lawyers handle involves determining the right amount of compensation a victim is entitled to. The matter can be complicated by the “fault policy” used by the victims' and drivers' respective insurance companies, since a no-fault policy means that a person can only rely on his or her insurance policy for compensation and nowhere else. An at-fault policy, on the other hand, means that the person's premium must be renewed once it's proven that he or she was at fault in the accident.

Some aspects of Canadian law can also make matters more complicated, especially those that involve lending and borrowing vehicles. According to Financial Services Commission of Ontario, lending a vehicle also entails lending the insurance policy associated with it. In essence, if a woman who borrows her boyfriend's car gets into an accident, she'll be using the terms and conditions of her boyfriend's insurance policy and not hers.