You’ve just bought your new car for which you’ve spent thousands of dollars on. It’s a brand new model, straight from the dealership. However, you take it out for a spin and your break malfunctions leading to a terrible accident. It’s clearly the manufacturer’s fault but what can you do in this case? Luckily for you, this is the perfect representation of a product liability case, which is one of the most lucrative fields of expertise in the entire law. However, filing a claim of the kind requires thorough knowledge of different laws as well as a lot of experience on handling the case itself because it would commonly include a jury which you’d have to convince.

Contractual and Common Law

It’s worth noting that as per the current legislation on the territory of the province of Ontario, you can file product liability claims under two separate premises – Contractual and Common law. Filing a claim under the grounds provided to you by the Contractual law could be incredibly beneficial. The main reason for which is that you are essentially implying a breach of contract which could lead to some serious compensations. Apart from all of the injuries, you’d also be capable of getting thoroughly compensated for the vehicle itself. This is due to the fact that aside from the regular duty required by the common law, there is also an additional duty of care implied by the sales-purchase contract.

This means that the seller is legally obligated to disclose all sorts of information regarding particular defects in the object of the sale. Hidden defects, as in this case, are also grounds for compensatory claims, regardless of whether the seller knew about them or no. In the first case, the claim is going to be dully civil while in the second, depending on the particular situation it could even get to criminal prosecution. It depends upon each case.

However, the case in point which is subjected to personal injury law is a part of the civil law and there aren’t going to be any criminal charges. This is due to the fact that product liability cases seek monetary compensation and not to legally punish the perpetrator through a penalty, provided by the criminal legislation. If you have been in such a situation, it is important to contact a personal injury lawyer and ensure that you are given your due.

It’s also worth noting that unlike seeking reparations under common law provisions, doing so by claiming responsibility set forth through the contractual law, you can exceed the boundaries offered by common law. In any case, the claims which are filed for product liability are going to be extremely high, especially if they involve a fatality. The main reason for this is that they are usually targeted towards influential companies with billions of dollars in capital.

Now, as per the current legislation of the province of Ontario set forth in the Insurance Act, the victim of a car accident is entitled to compensation from his insurance company regardless of whether he’s at fault or not. This is due to the so called “No Fault” rule which is stipulated within the Rules of Fault Determination in the aforementioned Act.

Rules of Fault Determination

With this in mind, there are quite a lot of complications which might derive, and that’s why it’s highly advisable for you to go ahead and contact a personal injury lawyer immediately after you have been involved in a car accident and you have sustained some sort of injuries. You need to understand that the insurance company is going to do whatever it can in order to legally fend off your compensation claim or, at the very least, to significantly reduce amount of money you are entitled to.

Recently, the deductible which the faulty driver was entitled to was increased. Whether or not this is a fair solution is particularly debatable. First off, the amount of money which the injured is going to receive is going to be determined by factual statements such as medical bills and receipts and acknowledged and approved by the insurance company or, in the event of a trial – by the jury. A deductible of the kind suggests that the legislator doesn’t have faith in both because a provision of the kind aims to provide solid protection for the party which has actually caused the accident in the first place.

Proper documentation

In any case, in order to get your proper compensation, it is highly advisable that you store every single piece of paper that you receive in relation with your injury. Medical bills, rehabilitation contracts and even cab ride bills – all of these are capable of being claimed as long as you can prove they are in rehabilitation. It is important that you talk with your lawyer to discuss the details of the case.

Furthermore, you would strongly benefit if you have an attorney on your side throughout the entire time. This is why it’s very advisable for you to reach out to a professional and experienced personal injury lawyer and get his legal representation from the get-go. This is going to ensure that you are being properly protected throughout the entire process. Even though you might think that filling out a simple OCF-18 form for compensation might be enough, the information which you fill out is going to be used afterwards as evidence. With this in mind, the insurance company is going to use everything it could in order to get your claim dismissed because this is potentially money that it’s going to lose. That’s why you need proper protection from the beginning. That is why it is essential to discuss your requirements with a personal injury lawyer to ensure that your claim is well-represented.

There are quite a few things that you might want to take into consideration in the days after the accident as they could be quite confusing and difficult. Your life might feel as if it has been turned upside down. You are likely to be struggling in your attempts to move on and get the relevant compensation that you are going to need in order to cover the huge piling medical bills.

As difficult as it might be in this particular moment, you would have to act quickly enough if you want to get your compensation promptly after the injury. The legislation of Ontario has placed stringent time limits as well as requirements on your individual right to claim damages deriving from automobile accidents. You are going to be required to meet certain time frames in order to file your claim or you run the risk of losing your right to do so.

Right after the accident you are allowed exactly seven days to formally inform your insurance company regarding the accident. Afterwards you have to submit an accident benefits application form within 30 days after the accident. If you have your claim rejected you would be within your rights to file a civil lawsuit for the damages. The time frame that you could do so is set to two years as required and formally set forth by the statute of limitations.

If you wish to file a claim against the driver who has been found at fault, you would have to provide him with a formal written notice of intent within 120 days after the accident has happened. After this particular action, you would have two years to file your lawsuit. That gives you enough time to find the most appropriate lawyer and hire the personal injury lawyer in Ontario for your case.

Now, if you want to direct your claim towards a governmental institution or municipality, you are going to be required to submit formal written notice within 10 days of the accident. Failing to do so is going to result in a loss of your right to sue. That is why expert legal guidance and professional representation is essential. However, if objective reasons have prevented you from submitting the notice and they were out of your reach to take care of, the term would be revised. After that you would once again have the regular two years of filing your claims with the court authorities.

Now, it’s worth noting that these terms and conditions have been set forth in order to guarantee that the interests of both parties are properly protected. They are designated to stimulate the claimant of filing a case quickly and receiving his compensation in a prompt manner. Furthermore, they are also designated to protect the repugnant from unlimited and timeless responsibility which would be unacceptable.

Did you know that the most oft accident cases included pedestrians and cyclists? However, to ensure their safety, as of the 1st of January 2016, drivers as well as bicyclists have to stop and yield the whole road way at crosswalks and school crossings, if a crossing guard is holding a stop sign. The new regulations are part of the Making Ontario Roads Safer Act. The new regulations pertain to pedestrian crossing and they set forth provision of identifying them with special and specific road markers, lights as well as signs. However, the new rules won’t apply to pedestrian crosswalks which are located at intersections that already have stop or traffic signals unless there is a crossing guard who is currently present.

What the new regulations provide is that the cyclist or the driver has to proceed only after the crossing pedestrian as well as the school crossing guards have already stepped safely on the sidewalk. This particular regulation was set forth in order to make the road conditions safer for pedestrians, children and school crossing guards as these particular members of society are considered to be the most vulnerable and therefore susceptible to pedestrian accidents. The law is a thorough response to a request and recommendation that was made from a lot of municipalities and safety organizations.

In order to provide the law with a sanction, the drivers who fail to abide by the newly set regulations are going to be thoroughly fined between $150 and $500 and are going to get three demerit points on their license. The fines are going to be doubled in the Community Safety Zones which are duly marked as well as near public areas and school areas.

Every driver is being thoroughly encouraged to look around for crossing pedestrians, especially when they are making a tern. The laws are a result and reaction to the disturbing Road Safety Annual Reports of Ontario which stated that about 19% of all of the road fatalities involve pedestrians. They are the most susceptible and vulnerable participants in the traffic and with this in mind they have to be provided with the necessary legal protection.

What is more, pedestrian accidents are going to impact the victim as well as their families and that’s why the seriousness of this matter is tremendous. Furthermore, if you’ve been involved in an accident of the kind, it’s highly recommended that you seek out the assistance of a personal injury lawyer. The claims have to be filed accordingly and in a swift and prompt manner in order to ensure that you get your compensation rewarded as soon as possible so that you could meet your pending medical and other hospital bills. In any case, professional assistance is definitely recommended. You can ask your family or friends for referrals or search for an injury lawyer online.