The Jaws of Life was used to free the driver of this minivan, according to police. (CBC)

Some B.C. volunteer search and rescue groups say they are no longer responding to highway accidents because they are not getting adequate liability coverage from the province.

Jim Devall, a Cranbrook Search and Rescue volunteer who used to cut out people trapped in cars with the Jaws of Life, said he now cringes when he hears sirens on the highway.

"It used to be that we wanted to know what was happening. We wanted to know of every accident. But right now I don't want to know 'cause I feel really guilty about not being out there," said Devall.

Earlier this year, several search and rescue groups including Golden and Cranbrook said they would no longer conduct backcountry searches because of similar concerns stemming from a recent lawsuit. Now many of those same groups said they cannot respond to highway accidents either.

'The province has next to no legal exposure, and volunteers and their society have all of it.'—Kyle Hale, Golden Search and Rescue spokesman

Volunteers in Golden and Cranbrook said they respond to up to 100 highway-related calls a year. They feared that if this issue is not settled soon, someone will die on a B.C. highway because the volunteer rescuers were not there.

Kyle Hale, spokesman for Golden Search and Rescue, blamed the B.C. government.

"The province built a liability program 20 some years ago and hasn't updated to the reality the rescue community in British Columbia are dealing with it. As a result, the province has next to no legal exposure, and volunteers and their society have all of it," said Hale.

Liability chill started in B.C. backcountry

The groups first became concerned about their exposure to liability in May, when Gilles Blackburn sued the Golden and District Search and Rescue Association for the death of his wife Marie-Josée Fortin. The case has not yet been heard in court.

The couple had stamped SOS signs which were spotted in the snow, but the search and rescue team said they decided not to send a team because they had checked with the nearby resort and found no evidence of anyone missing.

After the groups had withdrawn their services in June, B.C. Solicitor General Kash Heed met with B.C. Search and Rescue Association and was hopeful a deal could be reached. Though the problem has yet to be resolved, Glen Plummer, spokesman for the Solicitor General, said it is a top priority.