Head Out To Saskatchewan

"The four-hour round trip from Whitewood to the centre drained Mr. Scott's energy, especially when coupled with his attempts to return to part-time employment. He believed that the trip to and from the centre diminished the benefits he received from the pool therapy he took there.
"SGI had agreed that the lap pool was an approved form of rehabilitation for Mr. Scott. The upshot of this is that SGI admits that it determined the lap pool was considered necessary or advisable for the rehabilitation of the appellant."
Saskatchewan Court of Appeal

Files    According to one pool installation company, a lap pool can cost anywhere between $50,000 to $500,000 to install and maintenance costs can be as little as $200 a month

It is a huge problem, no doubt about it. The interaction of humans and animals in the wild, that is. Particularly at dusk and dawn, for drivers not sufficiently alert to the potential for large animals like deer or moose to dash onto highways from the cover of nearby tree stands. Such encounters are almost always fatal for the wildlife. They collapse and die at the scene of the collision or they desperately limp their way back into the bush, to die a slow agonizing death.

As for the people driving their vehicles -- most often for country folk trucks like half-ton pick-ups, or if they're city folk, vans -- the encounter can be a costly one in vehicle repair, or in a long miserable rehabilitation period to recover from physical injuries they themselves may have come away with. There are, of course, highway warning signs to be particularly vigilant for the presence of wildlife. Turkeys roaming in flocks have become more commonplace in the last few years.

They aren't about to do huge damage to a vehicle if there's a collision, but the dust-up is likely to distract a driver who may then steer into a ditch, a tree, another vehicle. The horrendous roadkill at certain seasons of the year when animals begin their mating rituals, when certain species begin their migratory period or begin laying eggs or having young, making them vulnerable, is an aspect of man-animal interaction that is truly regrettable.

In the case of a man from Saskatchewan, Dennis Scott of Whitewood, there is no word on the condition of the moose he hit on December 23, 2005, but Mr. Scott suffered serious spinal damage. The Saskatchewan government insurer came to an agreement with Mr. Scott in 2010 to pay for the installation of a lap pool at his home.

Saskatchewan Government Insurance consulted with a physiotherapist who assured them that a lap pool would most certainly aid Mr. Scott in his ongoing rehabilitation. Water therapy was a significant portion of his rehabilitation, and he would often swim at pools at the Wascana Rehabilitation Centre in Regina and alternately a nearby fitness centre. Visiting them from his home required a two-hour drive each way.

Mr. Scott testified before the Court of Appeal that the long, tedious drive diminished the beneficial results of the swim therapy, because he felt exhausted after the drive. A situation that led him to approach the government insurer to pay for the installation of his own private lap pool to ameliorate the situation, and they agreed.

Consultation with the physiotherapist convinced SGI to build the pool for an estimated cost of $278,782. They agreed, in addition to allocating an annual $692 for maintenance.

Mr. Scott, however returned to SGI to complain that the allotted maintenance sum was insufficient; it would cost about $10,000 yearly, including chemicals heat and energy to maintain the pool and he felt the insurance corporation should be prepared to pay that, too, which SGI was reluctant to commit to.

The appeal court, however, ruled that since the insurer had agreed that the plaintiff required a lap pool for his rehabilitation and they would pay for it, they should also be committed to pay the $10,000 annual upkeep.

When a Saskatoon pool installer was asked to render estimates of lap pool installation costs and annual maintenance, Neil Shule of Pleasureway Sales commented that such a pool can cost anywhere between $50,000 to $500,000 to install. "It depends on what material the pool is [made of] and how large the pool is", he said. Although maintenance costs vary, they can be as little as $200 monthly.

Good deal for Mr. Scott, not so much perhaps for the taxpayer of Saskatchewan.

The court in its wisdom ruled that the insurer is released from an obligation to pay for any raise in Mr. Scott's house insurance or property tax increase, since the lap pool will have the effect of increasing his house value.