When a car drove into the West Vancouver Whole Foods in June 2023, Jasmine Osterman was left with serious injuries.
Last week, the driver was handed a $1,000 fine and an 18-month driving prohibition for driving without due care and attention.
“So my life is worth $1,000 under the BC Motor Vehicle Act and I can’t sue him,” Osterman told Global News.
“I can’t seek any kind of restorative justice, that’s it.”
Since it was a Motor Vehicle Act offence, not a criminal offence, Osterman can’t sue. Countless others with major injuries are facing the same situation.
“We are working on trying to change the wording of the legislation so that people who are injured seriously in an accident are not left along the side without being able to get help,” Personal injury lawyer Robyn Wishart told Global News.
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Amid calls for change to B.C.’s no-fault insurance program, BC Conservative Leader John Rustad is vowing to alter the system if he’s elected B.C.’s next premier.
“I do not think it is fair that a Crown corporation should have a list of services that they provide, everyone is different, especially when you have a major accident, there are different issues that need to be done,” he said.
“So, for major injuries, we would remove no-fault. We will allow people to defend their rights.”
The NDP says it won’t bend on no-fault, noting that since its introduction in 2021, premiums have been substantially reduced.
“ICBC rates are frozen for the next two years, and we’re certainly not considering that,” said Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth.
“Nor are we considering any policies that are going to turn ICBC back into a dumpster fire, the way it was when John Rustad sat around the cabinet table.”
The debate over how much car insurance costs individuals, and what is provided to those who are seriously injured appears sure to become an election issue in the weeks ahead.
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