Binder Insurance Weekly · 2026-10-27
Binder Insurance Weekly · 2026-10-27
Cases, coverage, claims and regulation worth knowing.
Stansfield v Stretton, 2026 BCSC 1994
The BC Supreme Court preserved a civil jury’s $103,000 personal injury damages award, holding that a $1,056.78 upward rounding adjustment was a procedural irregularity rather than an invalid verdict. The court directed the final order to reflect the adjustment while an appeal of the jury verdict remained outstanding.
British ColumbiaAbousaeedi v Cactus Cafe Ltd., 2026 BCSC 1905
The BC Supreme Court set aside the dismissal of a restaurant patron’s battery claim after finding that the trial judge misapplied the legal test for consent and self-defence. It ordered a new trial without deciding whether the restaurant was liable for its employee’s conduct.
British ColumbiaT&S Transportation Systems Inc. v Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC, 2026 BCSC 1942
The BC Supreme Court dismissed a truck fire product liability action because the truck, components and records had been destroyed, creating a substantial risk that a fair trial was impossible. It declined to find spoliation because the evidence did not establish that the items were destroyed to affect the litigation.
British ColumbiaFranks v Viel, 2026 BCSC 1999
The BC Supreme Court distinguished accident-related injuries from the risks posed by a pedestrian’s pre-existing spinal condition and awarded $702,964 following an admitted-liability motor vehicle collision. Its assessment applied thin-skull and crumbling-skull principles to the evidence, without deciding any insurance coverage issue.
OntarioTrebell v. Canada Life Assurance Company, 2026 ONCA 481
The statutory condition governing when a life insurance contract takes effect is analytically distinct from later contestability rules. The Court of Appeal allowed Canada Life’s appeal and set aside summary judgment.
OntarioMonteith & Sutherland Limited v. Novex Insurance Company, 2026 ONCA 384
Not every failure connected with cooperation or notice is sufficient to defeat coverage. The Court of Appeal dismissed the insurer’s appeal.
OntarioGreen Rise Foods Inc. v. N.V. Hagelunie, 2026 ONCA 334
Where a loss results from a sequence of events, coverage analysis cannot stop at the immediate physical cause. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal from summary judgment for the insurer.
OntarioChubb Insurance Company of Canada v. Zurich Insurance Company, 2026 ONCA 302
Ontario’s insurer priority regime requires the first insurer receiving an application to pay pending resolution and to give timely notice if another insurer is said to be responsible. The Court of Appeal allowed Zurich’s appeal and reinstated the arbitrator’s decision requiring Chubb to pay the benefits.