If you've been hurt in a crash, but your vehicle received only minor damage, ICBC may deny your personal injury claim under its Low Velocity Impact Program.

The premise of this program is that if there was little or no damage, you couldn't have been injured. The courts, however, don't follow the same philosophy. Many people with legitimate claims receive compensation after obtaining legal help.

ICBC's controversial No Crash, No Cash policy dates back to 1992. To save money, ICBC decided that claims for most low velocity impact collisions -- where the impact occurred at less than eight kilometres an hour -- would be denied. Not surprisingly, the Ombudsman's office received many complaints. Concerned that injured people were being denied fair access to compensation, the Ombudsman investigated the matter. As a result, ICBC revised many of its earlier decisions and paid out over $1.2 million in claims that had previously been denied.

ICBC revised its program somewhat in 2003. But Low Velocity Impact Guidelines are still in effect. If the damage to your vehicle is less than about $2,000, you're likely to get a standard ICBC letter stating something like:

"The information currently available to ICBC, including the minimal nature of the impact forces involved in the collision, as well as your physical condition at the time of the accident, has led us to believe that the above-noted accident did not result in any compensable injury to you."

In law, however, the issue is not how serious the vehicle damage was, but whether you can establish on a balance of probabilities that you were injured in the accident.

The case of Gordon v. Palmer is often cited by the B.C. courts. Justice Thackray said:

"I do not subscribe to the view that if there is no motor vehicle damage then there is no injury. This is a philosophy that the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia may follow, but it has no application in court. It is not a legal principle of which I am aware and I have never heard it endorsed as a medical principle."

In a recent case, Athena Dao, a nurse, was awarded $9,000 for her pain and suffering (plus some $3,200 for lost wages and expenses) even though ICBC denied her claim because the crash was a low velocity collision. Her vehicle was bumped from behind on Granville Street in Vancouver, resulting in a minor scratch costing $38 to repair. But she suffered headaches and pain in her neck and upper back, and she consulted her doctor as well as a massage therapist. The case was handled quickly by a "summary trial" using affidavit evidence from sworn written statements (the witnesses didn't have to testify personally in court). The court concluded that Ms. Dao was an honest witness and accepted her self-report of her injuries as true.

In another recent case, Edward Lubick, a pub manager, received $18,000 for pain and suffering for his whiplash injury (plus $3,500 for expenses) after being rear-ended in Victoria. His car damage was also minor (cosmetic damage to the bumper). Yet after hearing from him, his doctor and his physiotherapists, the court concluded that he suffered a whiplash injury that deserved to be compensated.

The courts have consistently rejected ICBC's No Crash, No Cash position in many other cases too.

If you are the victim of a crash and have been injured, you should consult your lawyer.

Janice Mucalov is a lawyer, award-winning writer and author of the best-selling "Incorporation & Business Guide for British Columbia," published by Self-Counsel Press. Her column provides information only, not legal advice.