Dubious injury claims suck too much money from ICBC

Re: Scathing audit reveals spiralling costs, Aug. 17

Unfortunately, the waste is not limited to the bureaucracy. Many accident victims involved in minor accidents consult a lawyer soon after an accident and then present at the physician’s office with scripted complaints.

Many of these patients have no objective or radiologic signs of injury. Contingency fees are so lucrative the legal profession cannot resist gaming the system.

To put the size of the problem in perspective, in 2011 the cost of claims, where a neck injury was the primary complaint, was $ 661 million.

This is an outrageous amount of money, in fact $ 150 for every British Columbian. Surely a better method of arbitrating injury claims can be devised. JOHN WALTON Castlegar