UBC basketball player loses $7,252 scholarship after car crash, tribunal rules against ICBC claim

A B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal has ruled against a UBC basketball player seeking injury benefits to cover the scholarship she lost after a car crash.

Katrina Fink suffered a concussion in a June 2023 motor vehicle accident. When ICBC rejected her claim to include the scholarship amount in income replacement benefits, she appealed, arguing the scholarship was compensation for the time and commitment required to play for the Thunderbirds.

The tribunal agreed a scholarship is a form of income but found it does not qualify as employment income under B.C.'s Insurance (Vehicle) Act and benefits regulations. While the court acknowledged that university athletics requires significant time, effort and commitment, it found no evidence the scholarship was compensation paid in exchange for services to the university. Playing on a basketball team is not a remunerative occupation, the tribunal concluded.

Fink's scholarship, valued at $7,252.60, covered full tuition and fees. She had received it every year from 2020 to 2024 until UBC Thunderbirds head coach ended it in January 2025 after she was not medically cleared to play or participate in regular team activities.

Fink said the ruling highlights a gap in how B.C. law treats scholarships. The legislation focuses on employment and wages but does not account for other forms of income that students rely on, she argued. ICBC countered that if lawmakers intended scholarships to be included, they could have expressly listed them among covered income sources.

The tribunal noted it is not its role to recommend legislative changes. The ruling leaves the question of whether future scholarship holders facing similar circumstances would have legal recourse—a gap Fink says the province should address.