Ontario promises auto insurance changes in 2024 budget
The Ontario government will move forward with “auto insurance reforms” as part of its 2024 provincial budget.
Very few details have been released, but the idea is to avoid duplication with workplace health plans while also providing Ontarians with more options.
Drivers will continue to pay into mandatory auto insurance, which covers health and personal injury.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
After that, it would be up to the driver to opt in or out of the other optional benefits listed under the Statutory Accident Benefit Schedule.
This includes damage to property, death benefits, expenses to visitors, income replacement benefits and home maintenance benefits.
“This would provide drivers with an opportunity to lower their premiums by taking advantage of a wider range of coverage options to meet their needs,” the 2024 budget explains.
An example provided by officials is that drivers who have access to benefits through their workplace would not need to double up.
“What we're really focussed on is making sure that we provide as much choice and convenience,” Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said.
“And by that I mean that you have options, that we continue to continue to look at ways to innovate and encourage competition in the market so that we can have a robust level of auto insurance coverage at reasonable prices in this province.”
Bethlenfalvy said he did not have an estimate on how much these changes may save drivers in the long run, noting that it depends on a number of factors such as driver history and coverage choices.
The government already made auto insurance changes in January, giving motorists the option not to buy into direct compensation property damage (DCPD) coverage, which protects car owners from costs related to vehicle damage from a collision if they are not at fault.
This coverage also covers the loss of the vehicle or its contents.
While opting out will reduce the driver’s bill, it also means they will not be reimbursed for vehicle repairs, loss of a vehicle or its contents, or a replacement vehicle, among other items.
It’s unclear how much drivers can save on average by opting out of this coverage, however Morgan Roberts, director of RH Insurance, previously told CTV News Toronto it’s likely “not a significant savings.”
“You're opting out of any coverage in the event of…a not-at-fault-accidents,” she said in November.
“So if you're not at fault for an accident that happens, you're not going to be reimbursed for [the] replacement value of the vehicle. No loss or damage. There won't be any repair costs, towing costs, anything like that. You're opting out of all of it.”
Ontario's auditor general said in a 2022 report that average auto insurance premiums in the province increased by 14 per cent between 2017 and 2021, to $1,642.
According to a 2023 May report by Ratesdotca, insurance premiums in Ontario have risen about 12 per cent in 2023 compared to 2021, averaging at about $1,766.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.