The claimant’s adult son was killed in a motor vehicle accident. The claimant’s son was a listed driver on the insurance policy of the motorcycle he was riding at the time of the accident. The named insured on the policy was a friend of the claimant’s son. The claimant was the registered owner of the motorcycle, but she had not driven the motorcycle since 2007. The claimant sought accident benefits based on a claim of psychological impairment as a result of her son’s death. The insurer denied the claim for accident benefits on the basis that the claimant was not an “insured person” under the motorcycle policy of insurance nor a dependant of the named insured on the policy. The key issue at the hearing was the determination of whether the claimant was an “insured person” under the SABS at the time of the accident. As the claimant was not a designated driver under the policy and not a spouse of the named insured, Adjudicator Conway found that the only way the claimant could be eligible for accident benefits was if she were a dependant of her son’s friend, who was the named insured under the policy. The claimant failed to establish that she was principally dependant on the named insured for financial support or care. The application was dismissed.
