Civil Resolution Tribunal jurisdiction expands to include motor vehicle accident responsibility claims

THE BC Government has amended the Civil Resolution Tribunal Act to expand the Civil Resolution Tribunal’s accident claims jurisdiction.

As of September 1, 2022, someone who doesn’t agree with the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia’s assessment about responsibility for a motor vehicle accident, may be able to ask the CRT to decide responsibility.

This is a new area under the CRT’s accident claims jurisdiction, which also includes claims about entitlement to accident benefits, fault and damages, and minor injury determinations.

The CRT is an independent tribunal. It isn’t part of ICBC or any other auto insurer. CRT decisions are made by legal experts, independently from ICBC and government.

Generally, if a motor vehicle accident happens in British Columbia, ICBC will assess responsibility for the accident. After receiving a short assessment letter (CL281) the person has 90 days from the letter date to ask ICBC for a detailed responsibility assessment letter (CL722).

They can only make a CRT claim if they have the detailed letter. They have 90 days from the CL722 letter date to make a CRT claim to ask the CRT to decide responsibility for the accident. Both deadlines are set by law, and the CRT can’t extend them or make exceptions.

Simmi K. Sandhu, CRT Chair, explains: “We are operationally ready to receive and resolve these claims. The CRT can only decide responsibility for an accident if the person shows that ICBC acted unreasonably or improperly in making its assessment. We have tribunal members with expertise in this area.”

A party to a claim under the tribunal’s accident claims jurisdiction may have a lawyer represent them.

www.civilresolutionbc.ca

 

Quick Facts:

  • The CRT began resolving claims about stratas on July 13, 2016, small claims on June 1, 2017, motor vehicle injuries on April 1, 2019, societies and cooperative associations on July 15, 2019, entitlement to enhanced accident benefits on May 1, 2021, and accident responsibility on September 1, 2022.
  • As of July 31, 2022, members of the public have accessed the CRT’s online “Solution Explorer” over 207,000 times for free legal information to help them resolve their issue on their own or make a claim with the CRT.
  • As of July 31, 2022, the CRT has received 28,655 claims including 752 under the CRT’s accident claims jurisdiction.