Road map of a car crash case

2. WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE IN A CAR CRASH Post Crash Checklist • Ensure that the vehicle has come to a complete stop, the engine is turned off, and the parking brake is on. • Determine whether you or the other occupants of the vehicle are injured. • If you or the other occupants of the vehicle are injured determine whether or not it is safe for any of you to move. • Call 911 for ambulance and police. • If you are physically able to exit your vehicle, determine if it is safe for you to do so . • Determine if the occupants of the other vehicle (s) are injured and who was driving which vehicle. Observe and make notes on: • The damage to all vehicles in the crash. • The resting position of the vehicles in the crash including the direction they are facing and where on the road they have come to rest. • The scattering of debris on the road. • Skid marks on the road. • Weather conditions and condition of road (wet, dry, slippery). • If a tow truck arrives at the scene get the business card from the tow truck driver so you can later collect your personal items from the vehicle. • Contact your personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.

3. MEET A PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER & PROCESS ICBC DOCUMENTS The Beginning of the Journey • Your personal injury lawyer will have an interview with you over the telephone or in person to get a assessment of the car crash, your injuries, and prioritize what needs to be done next. • Your lawyer will contact ICBC Dial-A-Claim on your behalf and report the crash. • Your lawyer will prepare all documentation required by ICBC to formalize the claim including: a statement, accident benefit claims form, salvage release form, and, if necessary, a hit-and-run statutory declaration. • Obtain medical evidence from your family physician and other medical professionals providing opinions on your time off work. • Investigate the crash in terms of liability, causation, and damages. Our office, or a private investigator hired by us, will interview potential witnesses that saw the crash or its aftermath. Your lawyer may hire an accident reconstruction engineer to examine the vehicles and, if possible, download data from the event data recorders. Your lawyer may have a professional prepare a scale diagram of the scene together with photographs of the scene from various views. Your lawyer will determine if there is any available video of the crash [i.e. a camera at intersection, or video from a nearby commercial premises].

4. EXAMINATION FOR DISCOVERY Stopping for the View Examination for discovery is an important step in the lawsuit. You have the right to have your personal injury lawyer ask questions of the defendant or defendants under oath. These questions are not asked in a courtroom but rather a court reporter’s office. The questions and answers are recorded by an official court reporter and then transcribed into a book called a transcript. The transcript can then be used in court as a sworn statement. Similarly, ICBC, on behalf of the defendant or defendants, can have their personal injury lawyer ask you questions under oath in the presence of the court reporter who will record those questions and answers, and create a transcript that can be used in court. The questions you will be asked include questions concerning your pre-crash health, the injuries you sustained in the crash and the effect these injuries have had on your life. These are questions that you can easily answer better than anyone else because it is your life that is the subject matter.

5. FOCUS ON YOUR RECOVERY AND GATHER INFORMATION Halfway There • Your personal injury lawyer continue to ensure the funding of your disability benefits until you return to work. • Your lawyer commence lawsuits on your behalf in both the tort claim [suing the individual that caused the crash, who is insured by ICBC], and if necessary, the no-fault benefits claim [that is, suing ICBC directly for disability benefits or treatment]. • Your lawyer will gather all relevant income loss information, pre-and post crash, and forward copies of the relevant documents to which ICBC and their defence lawyers are entitled. • Your lawyer may send you to medical professionals for assessment, who in turn will provide us with medical/legal reports that will help us, ICBC, and if necessary the court, to understand your injuries, their prognosis, treatment recommendations, and future disability, if any. • Your lawyer will retain an economist or business valuation expert, as necessary, to assist in the assessment of your income loss.

6. SETTLEMENT OR TRIAL Almost There After you have completely recovered from your injuries or the medical evidence has indicated that you have recovered as much as you will ever recover, it will be time to discuss the settlement of your case with your personal injury lawyer. Because it can take a long time for you to recover or stabilize the beginning of settlement negotiations often do not occur until a year or years after the crash. Therefore we recommend and advise our clients to be patient and not rush to settle their cases. Once you settle your case you cannot reopen it. Therefore we want to ensure that you have recovered or stabilized before we assess your case and recommend a settlement strategy.

7. FINAL ACCOUNTS Time to go Home Legal fees are charged by lawyers on an hourly rate basis or on a percentage (contingency fee) basis. The usual practice is to charge on a percentage (contingency fee) basis. The most that a personal injury lawyer can charge for a motor vehicle crash is 33.3%. With a contingency fee agreement, if you do not recover anything you do not pay a fee. Personal injury lawyers usually also pay the disbursements associated with running your case until it resolves. This includes court filing fees, the cost of expert reports, private investigators, etc. At the conclusion of your case your layer will claim most of these expenses from the insurance company, so you only pay a small portion of them out of your settlement. Contact Hoogbruin & Company 1188 W Georgia St Vancouver BC V6E 4A2