Articles Posted in OCF-1

The OCF-1 is the Application for Accident Benefits.

How do I get an OCF-1?

Getting an OCF-1 Application for Accident Benefits is very easy. You can download a copy here at from the website of the Financial Services Commission of Ontario. But most people get the OCF-1 from their car insurance company after a car accident.  The car insurer will send the OCF-1 Application for Accident Benefits to you by regular mail, courier or by email. You can also ask a personal injury lawyer for the OCF-1. Most personal injury lawyers have access to these forms; not that it’s anything special because these are public forms.

The only problem with getting the OCF-1 on your own (not from the car insurer) is that you won’t know your claim number, or the name and contact information of the insurance adjuster who is assigned to your claim. What you don’t want happening is submitting the OCF-1 to the car insurer only for it to “get lost” in the void of mail which car insurers receive everyday. If there is no claim number and no adjuster assigned, you would hope that a file gets opened. But more often than not what happens is that the claim gets put aside and a file does not get opened. This isn’t right, but this is what can and what often happens if there isn’t a claim number or an insurance adjuster assigned.

Can an insurer be penalized for this sort lack of attention to a file? Sure. But getting to the bottom of that could take months or years. In the meantime the accident victim is not receiving the benefits which s/he needs. Take a more practical approach to this. Ask for a claim number and get the name and contact information of the insurance adjuster. Send the OCF-1 to him/her by email, fax and registered mail so that you know the adjuster receives it. This way your claim will get moving forward and you will get the benefits you need in a timely manner (we hope).

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