TORONTO, Nov. 21, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Koskie Minsky announced the following:
Lawyers in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver have filed three separate lawsuits against COSECO Insurance Company, Commercial Union Assurance Company Limited/CGU International Insurance PLC and Guarantee Company of North America. Car owners who held policies with the insurers may be eligible for a refund of their insurance deductible as a result of their vehicle being written off. Each lawsuit seeks damages in the amount of $50 million.
McNally Cuming Allchurch (Calgary), Koskie Minsky (Toronto) and Klein Lyons (Vancouver and Toronto) have filed the lawsuits against the insurers on a joint basis. The claims allege that the insurers retained the salvage obtained from the vehicles, but did not pay the car owners the actual cash value of the vehicle, having withheld the deductible. An Ontario Court of Appeal ruling states that car owners must be paid the actual cash value of their car, not the actual cash value less the deductible.
Bill McNally of McNally Cuming Allchurch stated that, "the Supreme Court of Canada has decided that they do not want to tinker with an Ontario decision on the same issue. It means for all intents and purposes, it's the law of the land."
The three law firms have also file similar claims against a number of private insurers across Canada. Affected policyholders should call 1.888.723.4303 or visit www.koskieminsky.com, www.mcalaw.com or www.kleinlyons.com for more information.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca