When you or a loved one has been injured in a motor vehicle accident in Ontario and are applying for Accident Benefits, the insurance company probably is going to send you a lot of documents.
Among the various documents will likely be a Permission to Disclose Health Information (OCF-5) form. At first glance, the document looks harmless and might be described by the insurance company as something they urgently need in order to “better understand your claim” or “move your claim forward.” But before you sign an OCF-5, it’s important to understand exactly what it authorizes and why your insurer wants it.
What is the OCF-5?
The OCF-5 is a very broad medical authorization. It allows the insurance company to request and obtain personal records from any treatment provider they want under the guise of better understanding your pre-accident and post-accident health.
The insurance company uses these medical records to assess your entitlement to various Accident Benefits, including your entitlement to medical and rehabilitation benefits (physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, psychotherapy etc), income replacement benefits, non-earner benefits, death and funeral benefits and even catastrophic impairment benefits.
So long as the authorization is not withdrawn by the injured person, the insurance company will continue to use it to gain access to your medical records without restriction, whenever they want.
Why Your Insurer Wants You to Sign It
Insurance companies get injured people to sign the OCF-5 authorization because it simplifies their job. Instead of getting the injured person to go out and obtain their own medical records and forward them to the insurance company, the insurer can get a signed OCF-5 and send out requests for the disclosure of your medical records directly to them.
Why You Should Not Sign an OCF-5 Without Legal Advice
Unless you limit the scope of the authorization, the insurance company’s access to your records can be unlimited and endless.
Signing the OCF-5 can unintentionally allow the insurer access to decades of records from almost any medical source. Many injured people don’t realize they have the right to deny, modify, or limit what information the insurer has access to.
Before you sign anything it is a good idea to speak with a personal injury lawyer.
At Bergeron Clifford Injury Lawyers, we guard our clients’ privacy closely. It is important to us that only relevant medical documents are provided to insurance companies.
SAMUEL DAVIES
Sam is an associate lawyer at Bergeron Clifford LLP.
His range of experience in civil litigation includes advocating in medical negligence, mental health, motor vehicle and boating accident actions, statutory accident benefits and various other personal injury matters.
