Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many residents of Ontario have been logging far fewer miles on their cars. With fewer cars on the road, collisions and subsequent insurance claims have plummeted. Given that the risk of operating a vehicle on Ontario roads has decreased significantly since the beginning of the pandemic, drivers in Ontario should be seeing cheaper rates on their automobile insurance. Unfortunately, not everyone has been lucky enough to see a drop in their premiums.
The risk of operating a vehicle in your specific community is one of the primary considerations behind the cost of your insurance premiums. This is part of the reason that your insurer has a right to know where you live. Certain areas of the province (such as downtown Toronto) are far riskier for drivers than more rural locations where there are fewer cars on the road.
When the COVID pandemic hit, some insurance companies automatically dropped their rates given the substantial reduction in traffic and risk. Others did not apply a discount automatically, but if you contacted your insurer to notify them that you would be working from home or travelling less, they would adjust your premiums for a few months at a time.
Despite the fact that we are now in yet another lockdown, rates have continued to rise across the province. If you are going to be working from home for the foreseeable future or are going to be doing far less travelling than you usually do, it is definitely worth it to give your insurer a quick call to discuss your premiums. They may well have discounts available for you to take advantage of, but it is unlikely they will be proactively notifying you of these options. A quick phone call could give you a respectable discount on your insurance for a few months and given the uncertainty of the pandemic, a few extra dollars in your pocket could go a long way.
Oatley Vigmond
Oatley Vigmond is a leading Ontario personal injury law firm with a long-standing focus on representing people seriously injured due to negligence. The firm is known for its work in complex injury cases, including catastrophic injuries, motor vehicle accidents, and wrongful death claims.