Defence Medical Examinations - Insurer wants me to attend an medical examination, what do I do?

Defence Medical Examinations - Insurer wants me to attend an medical examination, what do I do?

In many cases, as a party to a court case wherein you are seeking damages for injuries you sustained in an accident, the defence counsel may ask you (on behalf of the insurance company) to be examined by a health care provider of his choice. This is called a defence medical examination, sometimes called “independent medical examination”. However, to be clear, there is nothing independent about the process.

The physician who will be examining you is not your doctor, will likely prepare a report favorable to the insurance company and will be called as an expert medical witness at the trial of the case. That doctor will be paid by the insurance company.

Any health care provider who is hired by the defence is not being hired to provide you with treatment or to assist you medically, but rather as a means by the defence to destroy your case. That doctor may try very hard to obtain information from you that is prejudicial to your case.

There are ways to protect your interests when asked to attend a defence medial examination. However, the Courts have placed very strict limits on refusing to attend such examinations. There are some instances where you may be allowed to examine the examinations to ensure that there is an accurate account of what transpired during the examination. The Courts rarely allow recording however.

The defence has the right to subject you to defence medical examinations. You should therefore be ready for the defence medical examination and consult a personal injury lawyer to control the process as much as is legally possible.

At Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki, Ottawa Injury Lawyers, we would be pleased to represent your interests in the event you are injured in an incident through the fault of someone else. We are very familiar with all aspects of a personal injury case and have experience dealing with defence tactics, including the use of a medical examination. If you or someone you care about has been injured in an accident, contact us for a free consultation. We take cases on a No Fee Until You Settle basis. Call us at 613-315-4878. Marc Quinn, Ottawa Accident and Injury Lawyer. www.pqtlaw.com.