Whiplash settlements
in Quebec.
Quebec is Canada's only civil-law jurisdiction and operates a SAAQ no-fault auto scheme that bars tort recovery for motor injury since 1978. For whiplash claims specifically, the band is built from the Andrews v Grand & Toy non-pecuniary cap framework and then adjusted for Quebec's no-fault statutory scheme and any applicable statutory cap.
Quebec operates within a no-fault statutory scheme that channels whiplash claims away from common-law tort recovery and into a first-party benefits framework. The scheme typically requires the claimant to exhaust statutory benefits (medical, wage loss, rehabilitation) before a residual tort claim becomes available, and even then only above an impairment or expense threshold. This materially compresses the lower end of the whiplash settlement band relative to traditional tort jurisdictions.
Quebec's caps (andrews cap (non-pecuniary)) apply to the non-economic component of whiplash damages and can compress upper-tier verdicts. The exact application depends on the cause of action and the head of damage; the caps section on this page sets out each ceiling and the conditions under which it bites.
Because Quebec is a no-fault auto insurance state, whiplash claims arising from motor-vehicle accidents are first routed through Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. Tort recovery against the at-fault driver is gated by the state's serious-injury threshold, which materially limits the lower end of the whiplash settlement band. Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) administers no-fault auto. No tort recovery for motor injury since 1978 reform.
The Canada band is the starting point. Quebec's fault rule and any applicable cap then adjust the figure.