A recent Licence Appeal Tribunal decision provides important clarification on Income Replacement Benefit (“IRB”) entitlement where a claimant has a mixed history of employment and self-employment.
In Zeineddine v. Economical Mutual Insurance Co., the Tribunal confirmed that weeks of self-employment cannot be counted toward the requirement of being employed for at least 26 weeks in the 52 weeks preceding an accident under Ontario’s Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule (“SABS”).
The Issue
The claimant had approximately:
- 7 weeks of employment, and
- 39 weeks of self-employment in the year prior to the accident. He argued that his self-employment should be combined with his employment to satisfy the 26/52 employment test for IRB entitlement.
The Tribunal’s Decision
The LAT rejected this argument and upheld the insurer’s denial of IRBs. The Tribunal emphasized that the SABS draws a clear distinction between “employment” and “self-employment.”
Under section 5(1) of the SABS, a claimant may qualify for IRBs if they:
- Were employed at the time of the accident;
- Were employed for at least 26 weeks in the preceding 52 weeks; or
- Were self-employed at the time of the accident.
The Tribunal held that:
- The 26/52 test applies only to employment, not self-employment; and
- Self-employment is a separate eligibility pathway, available only if the claimant was self-employed at the date of loss.
Because the claimant did not meet any of these criteria, he was found not entitled to IRBs.
Key Takeaway
Zeineddine confirms that self-employment income cannot be used to meet the 26-week employment requirement for IRB entitlement. Eligibility must be determined strictly under section 5 of the SABS, before any consideration of income calculation methods.