Horwath promises to lower auto insurance rates by 40%

eAwazLocal News

BRAMPTON – NDP Leader Andrea Horwath will lower auto insurance rates by 40 per cent by fixing the auto insurance industry, saving drivers an average of $660 every year. In some communities, like Brampton, the savings will be upwards of $2,000.

To do it, she’ll end postal code discrimination and ban auto insurance rate increases for 18 months while an expert commission investigates and recommends a new system — a public or partially public system, or major reforms to the private system.

“It’s been getting a lot harder for everyday families to afford everyday life. They just want to get back on solid ground again, and we can help them do that by making auto insurance more affordable,” said Horwath. “Let’s stop paying more for auto insurance just because of where we live. The auto insurance system is broken, and together we can fix it — and put $660 a year in people’s pockets.”

Ontario has some of the most expensive auto insurance premiums in the country, despite some of the lowest rates of auto accidents. The average annual rate in Quebec is $851. In Ontario, it’s $1,655. For some Ontario drivers, rates are more than $6,300.

In 2021, drivers on average paid premiums 50 per cent to 72 per cent higher than British Columbia; 55 per cent to 65 per cent higher than Manitoba; and 79 per cent to 116 per cent higher than Saskatchewan.

Horwath and the NDP’s plan for auto includes:

  • Immediately ending postal code discrimination. Postal code discrimination means that drivers in many neighborhoods pay dramatically higher rates than drivers anywhere else, even if they have the same age, experience, car and driving record.
  • An 18-month ban on raising insurance rates.
  • Immediately striking the Ontario Auto Insurance Fair Pricing Commission, led by insurance experts, affordability advocates, and experts in public auto from provinces who use a public insurance system. The commission will be directed to explore:
    • A full public no-fault insurance system like Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia have
    • Quebec’s hybrid public and private model
    • A private no-fault system
    • Specific reforms in legislation leading to permanent rate reductions

In 2020, despite a drop in claims, Ontarians paid higher auto insurance rates and Ontario auto insurers made $3.63 billion in profits.