No fault car insurance in New Brunswick means Section B: the accident benefits in every standard auto policy that pay for treatment and part of lost income whoever caused the crash. Most injured people do not know these benefits exist until an adjuster mentions them, and many do not know the limits, the deadlines, or the fact that the benefits can be cut off. This post sets out each benefit with its dollar limit, the application deadlines, and how Section B fits with the lawsuit against the at-fault driver.
Insurers do not make Section B easy. The benefits are mandatory, but every payment depends on a form, a deadline, or a medical opinion the insurer controls. Forms, deadlines, and independent medical examinations all give an adjuster a reason to delay or stop payment. A car accident lawyer handles those for clients.
What Is No Fault Car Insurance in New Brunswick?
No fault car insurance in New Brunswick is the set of Section B benefits paid by your own insurer without regard to fault. It does not mean nobody is responsible. It means the injured person’s own insurer pays the initial medical and income benefits, without waiting for fault to be decided.
If another driver ran a red light and hit you, you still claim Section B from your own insurer. Fault is sorted out later in the tort claim.
Section B is mandatory in every standard auto policy issued in the province. It covers medical treatment, lost income, and death benefits, each with a limit.
Receiving Section B does not prevent a lawsuit against the at-fault driver. The two run together, and pain and suffering is claimed in the lawsuit, not under Section B.
A passenger claims from the policy on the vehicle they were in, while a pedestrian or cyclist claims from the policy on the vehicle that hit them.
Section B Pays Up to $50,000 in Medical Costs Over Four Years
Section B pays up to $50,000 per injured person for medical and rehabilitation expenses, for up to four years after the accident.
That includes medical, surgical, dental, chiropractic, hospital, and nursing services that the treating physician considers necessary, and ambulance costs.
Medical benefits are payable for up to four years from the date of the accident. When four years pass or $50,000 is spent, whichever comes first, the insurer stops paying.
Section B is the payor of last resort. If you have private health coverage through an employer, receipts go there first, and Section B pays the balance.
Most clinics take both the private plan and the auto insurer’s details and bill each directly, so the injured person is not paying and waiting for reimbursement. When the private plan’s annual limit is reached, Section B covers the full cost.
Adjusters approve only treatment they consider medically necessary for the accident injuries, and they apply internal guidelines on the number of physiotherapy or massage sessions. A denied treatment can be challenged.
Income Replacement Pays 80% of Wages to a Maximum of $250 a Week
Section B pays a weekly income benefit, called Weekly Indemnity, of 80% of gross wages to a maximum of $250 a week when the injury keeps you from working.
You qualify if you are entirely unable to perform the essential duties of your job. The benefit is 80% of gross weekly income, to a maximum of $250 per week.
The $250 maximum has not been updated in years and does not cover most people’s living costs. That is why a tort claim against the at-fault driver is usually needed to recover the actual lost wages.
Nothing is paid for the first seven days of disability. You must be continuously disabled for at least a week to qualify.
For the first 104 weeks, the test is whether you can do your own occupation. After 104 weeks, the test becomes whether you can do any occupation for which you are reasonably suited by education, training, or experience.
Courts in Canada and New Brunswick have held that the any occupation must be comparable to the former occupation in status and pay. An insurer cannot cut off a surgeon because they could work a minimum wage job.
The Housekeeper Benefit Pays $100 a Week for Up to 52 Weeks
Section B pays up to $100 a week for hired housekeeping when the principal unpaid housekeeper cannot do the work. If you were the principal unpaid housekeeper, you have a specific benefit.
To qualify, you must have been solely responsible for the upkeep of the home and the care of its occupants before the accident, and the injuries must completely prevent you from doing that work.
The benefit is up to $100 per week to hire someone to do the housekeeping, for a maximum of 52 weeks.
Medical proof of complete incapacity for household duties is required. The person hired cannot be a relative living in the home; it has to be an outside person or a service.
Keep every receipt. Adjusters review these invoices closely, and Mike Murphy Law Group assembles the documentation for clients.
Death Benefits Are Fixed Sums and Funeral Costs Are Covered To $2,500
Where a collision is fatal, Section B pays the surviving family fixed death benefits and up to $2,500 toward the funeral.
Funeral expenses are covered to a maximum of $2,500. That rarely covers a funeral, but it is paid quickly.
Death benefits depend on the deceased’s role in the household. If the head of the household dies, the surviving spouse receives $50,000. If the spouse or common-law partner of the head of household dies, the payment is $25,000. If a dependent dies, the payment is $5,000. A further $1,000 is paid for each surviving dependent child.
Mike Murphy Law Group handles the fatal accident claim for the family, including making sure Section B death benefits are paid to the right beneficiaries.
Notice Is Due Within 30 Days and the Forms Within 90
Section B requires written notice within 30 days and completed forms within 90, and a missed deadline is a reason to deny coverage.
Written notice of the accident must reach the insurer within 30 days. The insurer then sends an application package, and the completed forms must be returned within 90 days of the accident.
The package has three parts. The Proof of Loss Form is your own statement and notice of claim. The Attending Physician’s Form is a medical certificate completed by the treating physician or nurse practitioner. If you are claiming lost income, the employer completes an Employer’s Form.
Inconsistencies between the forms give the adjuster grounds to delay. Fill them out accurately.
Do not wait until you have recovered to apply. Section B is meant to pay for treatment as it happens. If the forms are difficult, Mike Murphy Law Group completes them with clients.
The Insurer Can Require an Independent Medical Examination
Once you are receiving benefits, the insurer can require you to attend an Independent Medical Examination with a doctor it chooses and pays.
Attend. Take a note of the date, the doctor, how long the examination lasted, and what was tested, because a two-minute examination that produces a ten-page report matters later. Refusing without a valid reason breaches the policy, and the insurer will suspend medical and income payments immediately.
The IME doctor is not treating you. The report goes to the adjuster’s file. Describe your symptoms accurately and do not exaggerate.
If benefits are cut off after an unfavourable IME, the decision can be challenged with supporting reports from your treating specialists. Mike Murphy Law Group has had benefits reinstated on this basis many times.
Section B Pays Fixed Benefits and the Tort Claim Pays the Rest
Section B pays fixed benefits from your own insurer. The tort claim against the at-fault driver pays everything above them. A Section B claim is a contract dispute with your own insurer, and a tort claim is a lawsuit against the driver who caused the crash.
Section B pays specific expenses to fixed limits, regardless of fault. The tort claim recovers everything above those limits, and pain and suffering, which Section B never pays.
The tort claim also recovers full lost income, past and future. Section B pays $250 a week; the tort claim makes up the difference and covers diminished earning capacity where you cannot return to your previous work.
There is no double recovery. Amounts paid under Section B are deducted from the tort settlement, so the same physiotherapy bill is not paid twice.
Running both claims at once takes coordination. The Moncton office manages both so that the total recovery is what it should be.
The Tort Claim and a Section B Dispute Each Have a Two-Year Deadline
The tort claim has a two-year deadline counted from the day the injury was known or ought to have been known, and a Section B dispute has a two-year deadline from the denial. A limitation period is the deadline to file a lawsuit, and after it the claim is barred.
The tort claim against the at-fault driver must be filed within two years of the accident. A lawsuit against your own insurer over Section B has a different clock: two years from the date the benefit was denied.
So if the insurer stops paying for physiotherapy, the two years to challenge that decision start running from the denial. After that you cannot force reinstatement.
Some circumstances change the deadline, for example where the injured person is a minor or where the claim is against a government body with its own notice rules. Do not assume; have the dates confirmed.
Mike Murphy Law Group identifies every applicable deadline on retainer and files ahead of it.
Mike Murphy Law Group Runs the Section B File and the Tort Claim Together
The firm handles the Section B application, challenges cut-offs, and runs the tort claim alongside. It is led by Michael B. Murphy, KC and has over 40 years of experience in injury litigation. It knows how adjusters handle Section B files and how to hold them to the policy.
The firm handles the whole file, from the first medical forms to challenging a premature cut-off. Where the injury means a permanent inability to work, the firm also handles long-term disability claims.
Personal injury matters are taken on contingency. No win, no fee: nothing is paid upfront.
The provincial statutes are on the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick site, and federal law on the Justice Laws Website. Advice on a specific accident needs a lawyer. Contact Mike Murphy Law Group.
FAQ
What Happens If I Was at Fault for the Accident?
You still receive Section B from your own insurer: medical treatment and lost wages to the policy limits. What you cannot do is sue another driver for pain and suffering.
Can My Insurance Company Force Me to See Their Doctor?
Yes. The standard policy requires attendance at an Independent Medical Examination on request, so the insurer can verify ongoing need. Refusing will get benefits suspended.
Do Section B Benefits Cover My Damaged Vehicle?
No. Section B is for bodily injury: medical expenses, income replacement, and death benefits. Vehicle damage falls under a different section of the policy, usually Section C or collision coverage.
How Long Do I Have to Apply for These Accident Benefits?
Notify the insurer within 30 days of the accident. Return the completed medical and employer forms within 90 days of the accident. Missing either deadline can cost the coverage.
Why Do I Need a Lawyer If the Benefits Are Mandatory?
Because insurers dispute the severity of injuries and the need for treatment, cut off funding early, and miscalculate income benefits. A lawyer challenges each of those and runs the tort claim alongside.