Law firm seeks to win back HST for crash victims
For those injured in an auto collision, sometimes insurance coverage under certain medical benefits can be limited.
For that reason, a Windsor law firm has helped launch a $600-million class-action lawsuit against six Canadian insurance companies the law firm claims are improperly deducting the 13 per cent HST charges against those amounts. Under current regulations, insurance companies are supposed to be responsible for paying the HST charges related to medical services — and not subtracting that amount from a client’s eligible coverage amounts, said local lawyer Jennifer Bezaire of Greg Monfor- ton & Partners.
“They are taking the HST and reducing the eligible benefits amounts — so you have less benefits available to cover your treatments,” she said.
“(The lawsuit) is incredibly important because benefit limits can be low, as it is, and often there is not enough money for treatments. What these companies are doing is gouging their own policy holders.” Her firm is part of consortium of lawyers, which includes three Toronto-area law firms, to launch the lawsuit against six Ontariobased insurance companies. They include Intact, Aviva, Unifund Assurance, Belair Direct, Certas Direct and All-State.
Up to 100 clients of her own in Windsor would be eligible under the class-action lawsuit, Bezaire said.
The lawsuit seeks to force the insurers to pay back the HST they allege has been wrongly charged to policy holders injured in car crashes. The Financial Services Commission of Ontario — the industry’s regulator — is also being named in the lawsuit for turning “a blind eye to the unfair industry practices.”
Given that the lawsuit was filed in court on Oct. 31, the insurance companies have not yet filed their statement of defence, Bezaire said. For anyone wishing to learn more about the class-action lawsuit, a toll-free hotline has been established at 1-866-540-2747 or information can be found online at autohstclassaction.com. The lawsuit also seeks an injunction that prohibits insurance companies from continuing the HST practice.