Courtney Johnson was a loving mother of five children. She had big plans until last June.
The 42-year-old was driving with her eight-year-old twins, Taylor and Haley, along Highway 3 in Cranbrook, British Columbia, when she collided head-on with a logging truck.
All three died on the spot.
Courtney’s mother, Linda Chisholm, told Global News: “This is shocking. Dealing with ICBC is frustrating and a nightmare.”
“This is an ongoing nightmare for all of us.”
Chisholm said ICBC needs to improve the way it deals with tragedies.
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Part of the problem, she said, is how insurance companies will compensate survivors, including her daughter’s three other children and teenagers who were not involved in the accident.
Chisholm said each child received less than $100,000 in trust.
“So she was 42 years old, so multiply her income taxes for the past two years by four. That’s the value of your life,” she said.
“So someone who had a high-paying job and died at age 42 would receive a better settlement than someone with a lower income.”
ICBC payments to the three children were based on the mother’s age and income, which had been low in recent years as she attended school and worked as an electrician’s apprentice.
ICBC spokesperson Greg Harper said there are many areas for improvement in B.C.’s no-fault insurance system.
“Our new insurance model has nearly doubled funeral costs, significantly increased death benefits and provided access to grief counseling,” he said.
“It was not available in the previous system.”
Linda Chisholm said her choice to speak out about her family’s deeply personal tragedy was to warn others in case they faced a similar devastating loss.
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