The use of video surveillance in personal injury cases: ICBC might be watching.

 

If you’ve been injured in a motor vehicle accident, ICBC may have hired personal investigators to watch and record you. These investigators might be filming you from any public place.

ICBC will often hire private investigators in situations where fraud is suspected or where the claim is potentially large. If a case is large enough, ICBC may decide potential benefits of video footage are so large that the costs of hiring an investigator are justified. As far as privacy is concerned, the courts have ruled that there is no expectation of privacy in public places, and the expectation of privacy while in a private place that is visible from a public place is low:

http://www.canlii.org/en/bc/bcsc/doc/2005/2005bcsc1661/2005bcsc1661.pdf

Practically speaking, what this translates into is that ICBC can film you from any public space, as long as what they are filming is potentially relevant to the personal injury case. This could include the right to film you through windows into your private residence or vehicle. This could include filming you while doing menial tasks such as shopping for groceries or having coffee with friends.

In a recent Supreme Court of British Columbia case, surveillance footage played a key role:

http://www.courts.gov.bc.ca/jdb-txt/SC/15/13/2015BCSC1346.htm

The defence had obtained video footage of the plaintiff at various different times. This footage appeared to show the plaintiff in little to no distress. This footage was then compared to the plaintiff’s demeanour in court and while attending medical appointments, and there was a visible contrast between the two. The judge used this information, in combination with other inconsistencies, to conclude that parts of the plaintiff’s testimony were not “entirely reliable”. This had a severe and negative affect on the plaintiff’s award.

All of this illustrates why hiring a lawyer to deal with ICBC and properly present your case is extremely important. The value of video footage is dependent on the losses you are claiming.

 

 

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