Our client was an older woman who was struck by a motor vehicle while walking across the street. Before the collision, she was independent and responsible for the cooking, cleaning, laundry and other household tasks in her home.
The collision caused significant injuries that affected her mobility and ability to manage these activities. Her husband, who had not previously been responsible for the household work, had to take over these responsibilities while also providing his wife with additional assistance.
The collision therefore affected more than our client’s physical health. It changed her independence and the way she and her husband managed their everyday lives.
When an Injury Changes Everyday Life
When our client retained our firm, our legal team considered both her medical injuries and the changes to her day-to-day functioning following the collision.
Activities that our client had previously performed routinely had become difficult or were no longer possible for her to manage on her own. Her husband began preparing meals, doing the laundry, cleaning the home and providing other assistance as she dealt with the limitations caused by her injuries.
Understanding these changes helped provide a more complete picture of the impact of the collision. Although many of the household tasks were still being completed, they were now being performed by her husband because our client could no longer manage them as she had before.
Can a Pedestrian Receive Accident Benefits Without Car Insurance?
Our client faced an additional challenge because she did not drive and did not have her own automobile insurance policy.
Despite being a pedestrian without her own automobile insurance, our client was still able to pursue accident benefits. In her circumstances, the accident benefits claim proceeded through the insurer of the vehicle that struck her.
Our legal team assisted her with navigating that process, gathering information about her injuries and limitations, and identifying the assistance she required following the collision.
This allowed our client and her husband to focus on her recovery while we addressed the insurance and legal issues arising from the collision.
Housekeeping and Home Maintenance After a Serious Accident
Our client’s loss of independence at home was also relevant when considering the accident benefits available to her.
Ontario’s accident benefits system can provide benefits for housekeeping and home maintenance expenses in certain circumstances, depending on the nature of the person’s injuries and the available coverage.
For our client, documenting the household activities she had performed before the collision and the assistance she required afterward helped demonstrate the practical effect of her injuries. Her husband’s increased responsibilities provided further evidence of how significantly her day-to-day abilities had changed.
The assistance provided by her husband was also difficult to quantify because many of the tasks he had taken over were being completed informally within the family. Without that assistance, our client may have needed to pay for outside help with housekeeping and other day-to-day activities.
Why Loss of Independence Matters After an Injury
Our client’s claim involved more than the injuries she sustained when she was struck by the vehicle. Understanding what her life looked like before and after the collision was important to demonstrating the full impact of her injuries.
Our legal team assisted her with navigating the accident benefits process and documenting the effect of her injuries on her mobility, household responsibilities and independence.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a pedestrian collision, contact Bergeron Clifford Injury Lawyers for a free consultation.
