Bicycle and Pedestrian Accidents

Other factors that lead to accident are road and weather conditions and a defect in the bike that affects the tire or it braking.

Drivers should maintain at least 3-feet of space between them and bicyclists and not drive in bike lanes unless making a turn. Before entering a bike lane, the motorist should signal and ensure that no bicyclists are at risk. Motorists in parked vehicles also have a duty to safely open their car doors so as not to interfere with an approaching cyclist.

In some cases, a poorly maintained road surface or defectively designed bike lane could leave a municipality liable for a cyclist’s injuries. If the bicycle was negligently manufactured or serviced, the manufacturer or the bike shop that performed the service could also be found responsible. These cases are usually brought if the injuries are severe and permanent since insurers for these parties will vigorously defend their insureds, and negligence can be difficult to prove. Consult a Mississauga bicycle accident lawyer from Affinity Law if you were injured in a bicycle accident from the fault of another party.

Proof of Negligence

Typically, in a third party injury claim, the onus is on the plaintiff or injured party to prove that another party’s negligent conduct caused the accident. However, where a bicyclist or pedestrian is the one injured in an accident with a motor vehicle, there is a “reverse onus” pursuant to Section 193(1) of the Highway Traffic Act. This section presumes that the motorist was negligent so that the burden of proof is upon the motorists to demonstrate that they acted reasonably. If they present evidence of their reasonable conduct, then the claimant must present evidence that rebuts it. In many bike accident cases, liability or the degree of fault is challenged so that having an experienced Mississauga bicycle accident lawyer from Affinity Law is essential so that you can pursue a third-party claim against the responsible motorist.

Currently, only minors are required to wear bicycle helmets in Ontario. But you could be found comparatively negligent in an accident even if it was caused by a motorist if you suffered a head injury that evidence shows could have been prevented or minimized if you had worn a helmet. In such cases, your compensation would be decreased by your own degree of fault.

Accident Benefits

Accident Benefits are available to injured parties in motor vehicle accidents regardless of who was at fault. Injured bike riders can look to their own auto policies for benefits, or to that of a household member such as a parent who possesses a policy. If no policy is available, the injured rider can obtain benefits from the involved vehicle’s insured. If the motorist was uninsured, then the last resort for benefits is through the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund.

A claimant needs to notify the insurer from whom benefits are sought within 7-days of the accident. You will receive an Application from the insurer for which you have 30-days to complete and submit. The form Includes a Disability Certificate to be completed by a health provider along with a Treatment Plan if you are unable to return to work or to normal or household activities for any period of time.

Third Party Claims

As an injured rider receiving Accident Benefits, you can also pursue compensation against the responsible party for pain and suffering as well as for lost income and future medical expenses that were not covered under your Accident Benefits. To have a valid third-party claim, your injury must meet a threshold standard, which is that your injury be a permanent serious impairment of an important physical, mental or psychological function, or a serious and permanent disfigurement.

A $30,000 deductible remains with the responsible motorist’s insurer if your award for pain and suffering is less than $100,000.

Your claim for additional compensation if you meet the threshold injury standard may include the following damages:

• Pain and suffering
• Diminished quality or enjoyment of life
• Past and future medical expenses
• Psychological impairment
• Past and future income loss
• Family Law Act claim by close family members

You have 120-days from the date of the accident to notify the other party of your intention to claim damages, and 2-years from the accident to file your claim in court.

Slip and fall accidents

All property owners, commercial and private, also referred to as “occupiers, “have a legal duty to keep their premises reasonably safe from hazards that could injury anyone lawfully on their property”. The severity of the injury may depend on the condition of the surface where the victim fell as well as the physical condition of the claimant. However, it is irrelevant if the person who fell was in poor physical condition and prone to serious injury from even a slight fall that would not have likely resulted in a serious injury to a person in normal or good physical health.

Slip and falls can occur on any type of property, including:

• Roadways
• Retail stores
• Grocery stores
• Sidewalks
• Parks
• Public or private restrooms
• Private residences

• Schools
• Bars or nightclubs
• Parking lots or garages
• Malls
• Offices
• Apartments

By promptly retaining one of our highly experienced Mississauga injury lawyers after a fall, you have a greater opportunity for obtaining the most compensation available for your claim.

Many slip and fall accidents occur in the winter months when sidewalks, driveways, parking lots, and residence and store entrances are slippery from ice and snow. In grocery stores, liquid from a broken bottle, a dropped piece of fruit, or freshly mopped or waxed floor can present hazards that store owners must warn patrons about or take steps to remove. In a residence or office building, there may be faulty steps, torn carpeting, or a defective handrail that can lead to severe injuries.

What is Reasonable Care?

Ontario law requires that property owners take reasonable measures to ensure that those persons lawfully on their property are free from harm due to slick surfaces, broken steps, uneven surfaces, or any other condition that could reasonably cause harm to someone. If a person does suffer an injury from a slip and fall, the court will look at what measures or practices the landowner undertook to fulfill his or her duty of reasonable care. For example:

• Did the property owner maintain a routine procedure for inspecting the property?
• Was there a schedule for inspecting and cleaning the property?
• If a hazard was found, what steps were taken to warn persons of the risk?
• How long had the hazard been present before the accident occurred?
• Had the owner been previously alerted to the hazard?
• Did the owner clearly post a warning to others about the hazard?

Obviously, a commercial business owner who invites and encourages people to come onto the property will be scrutinized to see what safety measures were taken to ensure the property was free of hazards. For instance, were the food aisles in a grocery store inspected on a routine or standard basis such as every two hours? If a floor surface was uneven or slick, were there signs warning patrons of the risk? Is there a record of the inspections? Landlords of rented apartments also have a duty of care toward their tenants to keep common areas safe and to warn of hazard within leased units or in the common areas.

In case of a trespasser, the landowner’s duty of care is only to “…not create danger with the deliberate intent of doing harm or damage to the person or his or her property and to not act with reckless disregard of the presence of the person or his or her property.” Occupier’s Liability Act. In other words, the landowner may not set a trap or set out to purposely create a dangerous condition that physically injures the trespasser or person committing a criminal act on the property.

However, a person who trespasses willingly accepts the risk of injury from hazardous conditions as does a person who signs a waiver of liability. Signed waivers are routinely seen in situations where people undertake certain recreational activities for a fee. But if you are engaging in a recreational activity for which no fee was charged, such as walking or playing in a park, wilderness area, or forest trail, then you have also willingly assumed the risk of harm. However, the risk of harm is not assumed where there is an unexpected hazard that the landowner knew or should have known about and failed to remedy. An example is that of child who is injured from a swing in a public park that broke because the metal chains holding it were worn out.

For municipalities, their degree of responsibility is found in the Ontario Municipal Act (2001). In cases of municipal liability for slip and falls on a sidewalk, the municipality must have been “grossly negligent,” which is a higher burden of proof for the claimant to show. Also, If you are injured on city or provincial property, you have only 10-days to give notice of your injury unless circumstances prevented you from giving timely notice. For all other slip and fall claims, you have 2-years from the date of the injury to file your claim in court.

Your Mississauga slip and fall lawyer from Affinity Law can demonstrate liability on the part of the occupier by reviewing inspection reports, if any, and having experts examine the floor, sidewalk, step, handrail, balcony, or other defect or condition that caused the accident. In some cases, witnesses can attest to how long the defect or hazard had been present.

Damages in a Slip and Fall Accident

Damages in a slip and fall accident can be substantial. Typically, they may consist of the following:

• Past and future loss of income
• Past and future medical expenses
• Rehabilitation costs
• Housekeeping and home maintenance expenses
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Pain and suffering
• Family members claim for loss of the injured person’s care, companionship, and guidance and other financial losses

Your Mississauga slip and fall lawyer from Affinity Law can obtain all documentary and testimonial evidence to support damages, including your medical records and billing and paystubs or employment records. A medical report from your treating physician or health care provider can detail the history of your injury, symptoms, your physical condition before the fall, the severity of the injury, rehabilitation period, complaints of pain, and your inability to perform work, routine daily activities, or recreational activities. Because demonstrating proof of your damages can be as complex proving liability, it is vital that you consult with one of our experienced Mississauga injury lawyers from Affinity Law as soon as possible to avoid submission/notice related delays in filing your claim.

Call us today for a free consultation at  1 844 786 5291 .

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No-Fault or Accident Benefits

Ontario has a no-fault insurance or Accident Benefits system whereby you can claim certain compensation from your own auto insurer in an accident regardless of who was at fault. Benefits include medical treatment, costs of rehabilitation, replacement of lost wages, caregiver benefits, and others.

In non-catastrophic cases or where your injuries are not life-altering, you can receive up to $100,000 in benefits over 10-years in med/rehab benefits. For catastrophic cases, you can receive up to $1,000,000 over the course of your lifetime. Income replacement means you may receive 80% of your net pre-accident income as averaged from the 26 of the 52-weeks that preceded the accident. You may not receive more than $400 weekly, though you can receive more if you paid a higher premium on your insurance.

To recover additional compensation from the at-fault driver such as for pain and suffering or for emotional distress, you must demonstrate that your injuries were “serious and permanent.” This includes disfigurement or impairment of an important physical, mental, or psychological function.

Damages in a Mississauga car accident claim may include:

• Past and future medical expenses
• Past and future income loss
• Diminished enjoyment of life
• Disfigurement
• Pain and suffering
• Family members’ claims under the Family Law Act

Pain and suffering, or non-pecuniary damages, are cappedwith yearly increases. The cap is currently at $340,000 in Ontario.

Motorcycle Accidents

Motorcycles are fun to ride, are economical, and take up little space on city streets or garages. However, riders are vulnerable to any minor mishap that can cause them to lose control or be propelled from the bike, easily causing fatal or catastrophic injuries such as paralysis, traumatic brain injury, severely broken limbs, permanent disfigurement, and other life-altering injuries.

About 80% of all motorcycle accidents result in injuries as compared to just 20% for passenger vehicles, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Riding a motorcycle also increases your risk of being in a fatal accident by at least 15 times over that of driving or being a passenger in other motor vehicles.

You may take all necessary precautions including wearing protective clothing and a helmet and driving defensively, but still be at the mercy of reckless and inattentive motorists.

The most common factors leading to motorcycle accidents include:

• Left turns at intersections
• Unsafe lane changes by drivers
• Motorists’ failure to see motorcyclist when entering a roadway from side road or driveway
• Poor weather
• Slick road surface
• Uneven pavement
• Roadway defects or objects on the road
• Rider inexperience
• Failure to maintain a proper distance
• Rear-end accidents at stop lights and stop signs
• Motorcycle design and manufacturing defects (fuel system leaks)
• Poor service or maintenance of the bike
• Alcohol or drug impairment by rider or motorist

Motorcycle riders are generally perceived as reckless individuals and their version of the facts are often dismissed as not credible if challenged by that of an involved driver of a passenger vehicle. It is not uncommon for an experienced Mississauga motor vehicle accident lawyer to use experts in accident reconstruction or human factors in order to prove liability.

Call us today for a free consultation at 1 844 786 5291