If you've been injured in a car accident in Ontario, your insurer may have placed your claim under the Minor Injury Guideline (commonly referred to as the MIG). What that means in practice is that the medical and rehabilitation benefits your insurer is required to pay are capped at $3,500. In many cases, that limit runs out before a person has fully recovered, leaving them to cover additional treatment costs on their own.
The minor injury guideline is one of the most consequential and least-understood parts of Ontario's accident benefits system. Understanding how it works, what it covers, and when it doesn't apply can significantly affect both the quality of your recovery and the value of your claim. Equally important: being placed in the MIG doesn't automatically mean you should stay there. The classification can be challenged.
Strype Injury Lawyers have helped Ontario accident victims navigate and challenge MIG classifications for decades. This guide explains what you need to know before speaking further with your insurer.
Key Takeaways
The minor injury guideline (MIG) is a regulatory framework under Ontario's Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule (SABS), part of the Insurance Act. It governs how insurers cover medical and rehabilitation costs when a car accident victim's injuries are classified as 'minor.' The MIG is administered by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) and was introduced in 2010 with three stated objectives:
In practice, the MIG streamlines treatment for soft-tissue injuries by establishing a structured protocol and a fee schedule. One of the guideline's intended benefits is that injured people can begin treatment right away, without waiting for the insurer to approve it first.
One point that often surprises accident victims is that the MIG governs accident benefits only. It's completely separate from any lawsuit against the at-fault driver for pain and suffering.
The MIG definition of minor injury covers soft-tissue conditions expected to resolve with standard care within 12 weeks. One thing to understand about this definition is that it’s deliberately narrow. The guideline was designed for injuries with a predictable recovery trajectory, not for conditions with lasting complications, pre-existing vulnerabilities, or structural damage that requires more than routine rehabilitation. The table below outlines what falls inside and outside that definition.
|
Covered Under the MIG |
Not Covered (May Qualify for Higher Benefits) |
|
Sprains (ligament damage) |
Fractures of any kind |
|
Strains (muscle or tendon damage) |
Concussions / mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) |
|
Whiplash (WAD Grade I and II) |
Nerve damage |
|
Contusions and abrasions |
Fully torn ligaments |
|
Seat belt bruising |
Psychological impairments (anxiety, depression, PTSD) |
|
Any injury causing 'serious impairment' of daily function |
Insurers apply the MIG based on early information, including the accident report, the first OCF-3 Disability Certificate, and whatever medical documentation exists at the time of initial assessment. That information is often incomplete. Symptoms of a concussion may not be apparent in the first days after a collision. Psychological impairments like anxiety or PTSD may take weeks to develop. A structural injury such as a torn ligament or nerve damage may not show up clearly without imaging that hasn’t yet been ordered. Because the classification happens early, it frequently happens before the full picture is known.
This is one reason why the right column of the table above matters as much as it does. Any one of those diagnoses is sufficient, on its own, to remove a claimant from the MIG. The classification is not permanent, and the evidence that displaces it doesn’t have to come from a specialist. The Licence Appeal Tribunal has accepted family physician diagnoses of concussion as sufficient grounds to exit the MIG. What matters is that the diagnosis is credible, documented, and connected to the accident.
The minor injury regulation structures recovery through a functional restoration approach organized into three four-week phases. Regulated health professionals, including physiotherapists, chiropractors, and occupational therapists, design and oversee care within this framework. Because treatment can begin without waiting for insurer approval, the MIG is intended to ensure prompt access to rehabilitation.
|
Phase |
Weeks |
Focus / Key Activities |
|
1 |
Weeks 1–4 |
Initial assessment: physiotherapy, chiropractic care, pain management |
|
2 |
Weeks 5–8 |
Active rehabilitation: exercise programs, continued manual therapy |
|
3 |
Weeks 9–12 |
Return to function: reintegrating normal activities, monitoring residual symptoms |
The MIG includes a fee schedule that sets the maximum amounts insurers must pay regulated health professionals for services provided within the guideline. Providers submit an OCF-23 Treatment and Assessment Plan that identifies the MIG as the applicable guideline and itemizes the estimated fee for each service. If a provider's fee exceeds the schedule maximum, the insurer isn't required to cover the difference.
As of July 1, 2026, the structural framework of SABs as it applies to auto insurance is changing. To summarize, certain accident benefits, including income replacement, caregiver benefits, death and funeral benefits, and more are becoming optional with auto insurance where they were previously required to be included. This means that if you currently have a policy, you’ll be able to keep these benefits upon renewal unless you agree in writing to have them changed, but if you’re purchasing a new policy, you’ll have to choose which benefits you want to pay for.
If your injuries are classified as minor under the MIG, your insurer is only required to cover up to $3,500 in total medical and rehabilitation benefits. For context, accident victims whose injuries fall outside the MIG (their injuries are considered major instead of minor) can access up to $65,000 in medical and rehabilitation benefits under the current SABS.
That $3,500 is a total cap for the duration of your claim, not a per-phase or annual allowance. Once it's gone, no further medical and rehabilitation funding is available under the MIG unless your injury classification changes.
The MIG applies only to medical and rehabilitation benefits. The following are not subject to the minor injury cap:
|
Benefit Type |
Under the MIG |
Outside MIG / Non-Catastrophic |
|
Medical & rehabilitation |
Up to $3,500 total |
Up to $65,000 |
|
Income replacement |
Not affected by MIG |
Not affected by MIG |
|
Attendant care |
Not affected by MIG |
Not affected by MIG |
|
Tort claim (pain & suffering) |
Completely separate from MIG |
Completely separate from MIG |
An initial MIG classification doesn't have to be permanent. If your injuries, or the medical evidence underlying them, don't fit the minor injury definition, the designation can be challenged and overturned. The difference between staying in the MIG and exiting it can be worth tens of thousands of dollars in additional benefits.
Just to be clear, being placed in the MIG is not a judgment on whether your injury is real or serious. It's a funding classification applied by your insurer based on early information, and that initial classification can be wrong.
Strype's in-house nursing staff review complex medical files from the outset, identifying evidence of non-minor injuries that might otherwise be missed before an insurer applies the MIG designation and the window to challenge it narrows.
Accident victims often assume that being placed in the MIG limits everything they're entitled to. It doesn't. The minor injury guideline affects only one part of the compensation picture: the no-fault accident benefits stream. Your right to pursue a tort claim against the at-fault driver is a separate matter entirely.
A successful exit from the MIG also strengthens the record underlying a tort claim. If the medical evidence demonstrates your injuries are not minor for accident benefits purposes, that same evidence supports the case that your injuries cross the tort threshold as well. The two streams are independent, but they reinforce each other when the evidence is developed properly.
Insurers have a financial incentive to keep claims within the MIG. An early classification that goes unchallenged can persist and limit both accident benefits and the eventual tort settlement. If the $3,500 cap is exhausted before the problem is identified, you may lose treatment time you can't recover.
Speaking with a lawyer before signing anything or accepting treatment under the MIG protects both streams of your recovery, not just the accident benefits side.
Strype Injury Lawyers works on a contingency fee basis, meaning no fees unless we recover compensation for you. All disbursements, including the cost of medical expert opinions, are advanced by the firm at its own risk. There are no out-of-pocket costs at any stage.
No. Concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries are not within the minor injury definition. The LAT has consistently held that a credibly diagnosed concussion, even from a family physician, removes a person from the MIG and opens access to substantially higher benefit limits.
Yes, initially. Insurers apply the MIG based on early accident reports and medical information. However, you have the right to challenge that designation at any time with supporting medical evidence. A lawyer can help you build and present that evidence in a way that gives the challenge the best chance of success.
Once the limit is exhausted, no additional medical and rehabilitation funding is available under the MIG unless your claim is reclassified. Early assessment of whether your injuries truly qualify as minor is critical. Waiting until the cap is spent before raising a challenge can cost you both money and recovery time you can't get back.
No. The MIG governs accident benefits only. Your right to sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering and other losses is a separate matter governed by Ontario's tort threshold for serious and permanent impairment. These two streams run in parallel and are independent of each other.
The minor injury guideline is a funding classification, not a verdict on how serious your injuries are or how much your claim is worth. It can be challenged, and in many cases it should be. Whether the basis is a concussion diagnosis, a pre-existing condition, persistent symptoms beyond the 12-week window, or a psychological impairment arising from the accident, the evidence matters, and the rules support a challenge when the facts are there.
Getting legal advice as soon as possible after a car accident, before signing anything or accepting treatment under the MIG, to protect both your accident benefits and your right to pursue a tort claim. The insurer's initial classification isn't necessarily the final word.
Strype Injury Lawyers operates on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you, and the firm advances all disbursements, including medical expert costs, at its own risk.
If you've been injured in a car accident and want to understand whether your MIG classification is correct, start with a free, no-obligation case evaluation. Don't talk to the insurance company. Talk to us.
Legal Disclaimer: The information in this article is intended for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every personal injury claim is unique, and the facts of your situation may affect your legal rights and options. If you have been injured or believe you may have a legal claim, contact a qualified personal injury lawyer in Ontario as soon as possible.