After a car accident in Newfoundland and Labrador, start by checking whether your policy carries Section B accident benefits, because here that coverage depends on the contract. Where it does, written notice is due within 30 days and proof of claim within 90. There is no minor injury cap in this province. Instead, $5,000 comes off any pain and suffering award, and anyone planning to sue must serve notice within 120 days of the accident.
Newfoundland and Labrador does things its own way. It has a fast-start treatment process for sprains, strains and whiplash, a deductible in place of a cap, and a notice rule that starts counting on the day of the crash. Here is how the pieces fit while you focus on getting better.
Does your policy include accident benefits?
Ask early. The Automobile Insurance Act makes uninsured motorist coverage part of every policy, but its sections on medical expense and accident benefits apply "where in a contract an insurer provides" them. Check your declaration page, or ask your broker or insurer in writing.
Where your policy carries the standard Section B wording in force since 1 January 2020, the base limits are:
- Medical and rehabilitation expenses to $25,000 per person, incurred within four years of the accident, or a higher limit if you bought one
- Loss of income of the lesser of $140 a week, or a higher amount if you bought one, and 80 per cent of gross weekly employment income, less other income replacement
- A housekeeping benefit of $70 a week for up to 12 weeks for a principal unpaid housekeeper who is completely unable to do household duties
- Funeral and death benefits at the limits in the policy
Income replacement generally stops at 104 weeks unless the injury continues to prevent work you are reasonably suited to.
What are the treatment protocols?
Since 2 December 2024, people with a sprain, strain or whiplash injury from a collision can choose to be diagnosed and treated under the province's Automobile Accident Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols. Practitioners bill the insurer directly, and you do not have to use up private health coverage first.
Three dates matter here:
- 10 business days after the accident to get the protocol claim form to your insurer, unless the insurer sets a different timeframe
- 5 business days for the insurer to approve or refuse in writing. If it does not respond, the claim is deemed approved
- 90 days after the accident, or when the visit limit is used, whichever comes first, the protocols stop applying
Treatment visits are capped at 10 or 21, depending on the injury, plus one assessment visit. If you think the insurer did not fairly consider your circumstances when setting the claim form timeframe, you can appeal that to the Superintendent of Insurance.
Is there a minor injury cap?
No. The province chose a deductible instead. Under section 39.1 of the Act and its regulations, damages for pain and suffering are reduced by $5,000 for losses on or after 1 January 2020. Lost income, treatment costs and out-of-pocket expenses are not touched by it. On a $20,000 award for pain and suffering, $15,000 is paid. The deductible lands hardest on modest claims, which is one reason a clear record of how an injury has affected your days matters here. Our article on the $5,000 deductible in Newfoundland and Labrador walks through the arithmetic.
What are the deadlines?
- 30 days from the accident to give your own insurer written notice of a Section B claim, and 90 days for proof of claim, or as soon as practicable
- 120 days from the accident to serve written notice of an intention to sue on the person you plan to sue. Pre-judgment interest does not run for any time before the notice is served
- Two years to sue for injury under the Limitations Act, which starts when you know, or ought to know, you have a claim
The 120-day notice is served on the person you intend to sue, not on their insurer, and serving it early protects interest from that date forward. Missing it does not end a claim on its own, but it is a step worth taking well inside the window.
Anyone suing is also required to apply for accident benefits where they are available, and damages are reduced by the accident benefits you received or remain entitled to.
Our article on Newfoundland and Labrador car accident deadlines lists each date with what starts it.
What if you disagree with your insurer?
Ask for every decision in writing, with reasons. On a protocol claim, the insurer can refuse only on limited grounds, such as there being no contract with accident benefits that covers you. For a Section B dispute that reaches court, the Act says the action must start within the limitation period in the contract, and the standard policy form allows two years from the date the cause of action arose. Read your own policy for the exact period, and keep it in view while you talk with your insurer.
If you were hurt while working, WorkplaceNL may come first. Our article on how a WorkplaceNL claim works explains it.
What should you write down?
- The other driver's full name and address, their insurer and any witnesses
- The date you sent the protocol claim form and the date the insurer answered
- Each treatment visit, numbered, so you know when the cap is near
- The date of your Section B notice and proof of claim, with copies
- The date any notice of intention to sue was served
- Every symptom and what you cannot do, at work and at home, with dates
- Every Section B payment and refusal, because those amounts matter later
Keeping the record
Here, a protocol visit count, a 120-day notice and a deductible can all touch the same recovery. A steady written record keeps each of them clear. Recovering after a car accident in Newfoundland and Labrador covers the whole route. The National MVA Recovery Guide holds the daily record, and the Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide holds the province's dates and forms.
Why use Hurt Square?
Because your policy, your treatment and your deadlines all have to line up, and your record is where they meet. Hurt Square guides give you one place to keep it all.
- Your recovery, with dates. The National MVA Recovery Guide has daily pain and symptom tracking, every appointment, medication, expenses and time away from work.
- The Newfoundland and Labrador rules, in plain words. The Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide holds the deadlines, forms and insurer routes that apply in Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Made for hard days. 192 pages and more than 1,600 fillable fields that work on your phone, tablet or computer, in plain language.
Both guides, $49. The National MVA Recovery Guide and the Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide, with the discount applied at checkout. Normally $63.99.
Get both guidesSources
- Automobile Insurance Act, RSNL 1990 c A-22, sections 25.1, 26.6, 34, 35, 39.1 and 41
- Automobile Accident Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols Regulations, sections 3, 20, 21, 29, 30 and 31
- Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, New Insurance Protocols Give Accident Victims Faster Access to Medical Diagnosis and Treatment
- Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Answers to Consumer Questions about Changes to the Automobile Insurance Legislation
- Newfoundland and Labrador Standard Automobile Policy, effective 1 January 2020, as filed by an insurer
- Limitations Act, SNL 1995 c L-16.1, sections 5 and 14
Last verified: 14 October 2026. If you find something out of date here, write to Recovery@hurtsquare.ca and we will correct it publicly.
This article is general information for people in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is not legal, medical or insurance advice, and your own policy wording governs.
