Doug has made insurance worse, again

TwistedKestrel

TwistedKestrel

King of GTAM
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As of July 2026, most Statutory Accident Benefits that were previously mandatory will now become optional. I am going to list them directly off the FSRAO fact sheet, along with their descriptions of what they do:
  • Income replacement: Helps replace income you lose because of an accident.
  • Non-earner: If you're a student or unemployed and an accident keeps you from leading a normal life, this provides financial support while you recover.
  • Caregiver benefits: Covers caregiving expenses if you or another covered person is injured and can no longer provide care for a household member such as a child or aging parent who needs it.
  • Lost educational expenses: If a car accident keeps you from attending school or an education program, this benefit helps cover the costs you’ve lost.
  • Expenses of Visitors: Covers reasonable and necessary expenses of visitors if you or another covered person is injured in an accident.
  • Housekeeping & Home Maintenance: Helps cover costs if you or another covered person is unable to perform the housekeeping and home maintenance tasks normally done before the accident.
  • Damage to personal items: Covers the cost to repair or replace personal items (e.g., clothing, prescription eyewear, hearing aids, etc.) that were damaged in the accident.
  • Death benefits: Compensates some family members if you or a covered person dies due to an accident.
  • Funeral benefits: Helps cover some funeral costs.
FURTHERMORE, these now optional benefits will now only cover drivers named on the policy, their spouses, or their dependants. Passengers are NO LONGER covered if they do not have their own insurance policy.

These changes were all made in O. Reg 383/24 by Doug Ford's government, which became law back in October 2024(!!!) but I haven't heard anyone talk about them at all. I personally twigged onto this after seeing this CTV News article "New changes coming to insurance coverage for motorcycles as OPP report increase in related accidents" ... the headline implies that the author of the article themselves doesn't understand what is going to happen.

I think this is a significant loss for everyone. As bad as the loss of mandatory DCPD coverage was, it is easier to understand what you are opting out of. I DO occasionally see questions about people opting out of it on https://old.reddit.com/r/PersonalFinanceCanada/ which shows that it's not completely clear how bad of an idea at is. This is going to be much less clear about what the personal impact will be. So many people are going to hear brokers offer these benefits and think that they are being upsold on coverage they don't need or understand, and they're simply going to opt out of them. The decreasing take rate on these coverages is going to drive up the costs for everyone else that do still take them.

Keep in mind that that minimum payouts on most of these coverages were already kneecapped back in 2010 by Dalton McGuinty's government in O. Reg 34/10. That was being sold at the time as cracking down on insurance fraud.
 
TwistedKestrel said:
As of July 2026, most Statutory Accident Benefits that were previously mandatory will now become optional. I am going to list them directly off the FSRAO fact sheet, along with their descriptions of what they do:
  • Income replacement: Helps replace income you lose because of an accident.
  • Non-earner: If you're a student or unemployed and an accident keeps you from leading a normal life, this provides financial support while you recover.
  • Caregiver benefits: Covers caregiving expenses if you or another covered person is injured and can no longer provide care for a household member such as a child or aging parent who needs it.
  • Lost educational expenses: If a car accident keeps you from attending school or an education program, this benefit helps cover the costs you’ve lost.
  • Expenses of Visitors: Covers reasonable and necessary expenses of visitors if you or another covered person is injured in an accident.
  • Housekeeping & Home Maintenance: Helps cover costs if you or another covered person is unable to perform the housekeeping and home maintenance tasks normally done before the accident.
  • Damage to personal items: Covers the cost to repair or replace personal items (e.g., clothing, prescription eyewear, hearing aids, etc.) that were damaged in the accident.
  • Death benefits: Compensates some family members if you or a covered person dies due to an accident.
  • Funeral benefits: Helps cover some funeral costs.
FURTHERMORE, these now optional benefits will now only cover drivers named on the policy, their spouses, or their dependants. Passengers are NO LONGER covered if they do not have their own insurance policy.

These changes were all made in O. Reg 383/24 by Doug Ford's government, which became law back in October 2024(!!!) but I haven't heard anyone talk about them at all. I personally twigged onto this after seeing this CTV News article "New changes coming to insurance coverage for motorcycles as OPP report increase in related accidents" ... the headline implies that the author of the article themselves doesn't understand what is going to happen.

I think this is a significant loss for everyone. As bad as the loss of mandatory DCPD coverage was, it is easier to understand what you are opting out of. I DO occasionally see questions about people opting out of it on https://old.reddit.com/r/PersonalFinanceCanada/ which shows that it's not completely clear how bad of an idea at is. This is going to be much less clear about what the personal impact will be. So many people are going to hear brokers offer these benefits and think that they are being upsold on coverage they don't need or understand, and they're simply going to opt out of them. The decreasing take rate on these coverages is going to drive up the costs for everyone else that do still take them.

Keep in mind that that minimum payouts on most of these coverages were already kneecapped back in 2010 by Dalton McGuinty's government in O. Reg 34/10. That was being sold at the time as cracking down on insurance fraud.
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Remember when all he wanted was buck-a-beer ? Those were the days...
 
Great post. I can hear all the underwriters rubbing their 'DENIED' stamps together in glee at this. There is a 100% chance that the base rate will quickly evolve to be the same as now, and adding the above will bloat the cost further.

Equally worrying is the elimination of coverage for uninsured passengers. For example, my mother-in-law lives with us and will never have a license, let alone be named on a policy. Based on what you describe, she will be uninsured for these items whenever my wife drives her to the mall, etc.

It's kind of extraordinary that in a province with arguably the worst insurance system in the world (at minimum most expensive), any attempted 'fix' only serves to enrich the providers and limit their exposure, while drivers continue to get confused and screwed. Maybe if cutting rates is the goal, the province could start with the rampant price fixing for repairs that the insurance companies not only refuse to address, they actually seem to encourage.
 
I'm personally fine with the new changes in principle and actually look forward to them. I've been in a few accidents where it took a couple years to fully recover, and never had/wanted to use any of those benefits that are now optional. The only one that might be missed is the passenger one, but everyone in my family is insured. I do have a hard time believing that if there is an uproar over the uninsured passengers that they will make it mandatory to add that back in.

The best part is not depleting your existing benefits before the motor vehicle insurance kicks in - what a scam that was. I blew through thousands of dollars of my employers' benefits because of that, and then the auto insurer decided they didn't want to pay any more when it was their turn to foot the entire bill.

That said, this all has to come at a cost savings equal to adding back all of the optional benefits, otherwise this is just another scam. We'll have to wait and see, I guess.
 
This is typical government misrepresentation. People rant and rave about the high cost of car insurance. Doug and his like promise cheaper car insurance and greater "choice".

What actually happens is that insurance companies strip out benefits, lower cost marginally, and then make all of the removed benefits available as added cost options. Smoke and mirrors.

So, for me as a retired guy this would be the impact for me........................

Irrelevant Coverage
  • Income replacement: Helps replace income you lose because of an accident.
  • Non-earner: If you're a student or unemployed and an accident keeps you from leading a normal life, this provides financial support while you recover.
  • Caregiver benefits: Covers caregiving expenses if you or another covered person is injured and can no longer provide care for a household member such as a child or aging parent who needs it.
  • Lost educational expenses: If a car accident keeps you from attending school or an education program, this benefit helps cover the costs you’ve lost.
  • Expenses of Visitors: Covers reasonable and necessary expenses of visitors if you or another covered person is injured in an accident.

Maybe Relevant
  • Housekeeping & Home Maintenance: Helps cover costs if you or another covered person is unable to perform the housekeeping and home maintenance tasks normally done before the accident. WHAT DOES THIS REALLY COVER?
In Ontario, this benefit is available for catastrophic injuries, with a maximum of $100 per week for reasonable expenses. It can also be purchased as an optional benefit for non-catastrophic injuries.
  • Damage to personal items: Covers the cost to repair or replace personal items (e.g., clothing, prescription eyewear, hearing aids, etc.) that were damaged in the accident. I THINK MUCH OF THIS WOULD BE COVERED UNDER EXISTING HOMEOWNERS POLICY.

  • Death benefits: Compensates some family members if you or a covered person dies due to an accident.
  • Funeral benefits: Helps cover some funeral costs.
In Ontario, standard auto insurance death benefits include a $25,000 lump sum for an eligible spouse, $10,000 for each dependent, and a maximum of $6,000 for funeral expenses. If there is no spouse, the $25,000 is divided equally among the dependents, in addition to the $10,000 they each receive. You can also purchase optional coverage to increase these amounts.
 
I applaud the change. Accident benefits are among the most costly and abused (fraud) components of an insurance policy.

By eliminating the mandatory coverage policies will get cheaper for those who opt out, they should also get cheaper for those who want them.

Right now for you pay for these benefits on every vehicle. You pay for it if you have this type of insurance thru your employer. Now you can buy it once or use an existing plan to cover yourself on anything you drive.
 
TwistedKestrel said:
As of July 2026, most Statutory Accident Benefits that were previously mandatory will now become optional. I am going to list them directly off the FSRAO fact sheet, along with their descriptions of what they do:
  • Income replacement: Helps replace income you lose because of an accident.
  • Non-earner: If you're a student or unemployed and an accident keeps you from leading a normal life, this provides financial support while you recover.
  • Caregiver benefits: Covers caregiving expenses if you or another covered person is injured and can no longer provide care for a household member such as a child or aging parent who needs it.
  • Lost educational expenses: If a car accident keeps you from attending school or an education program, this benefit helps cover the costs you’ve lost.
  • Expenses of Visitors: Covers reasonable and necessary expenses of visitors if you or another covered person is injured in an accident.
  • Housekeeping & Home Maintenance: Helps cover costs if you or another covered person is unable to perform the housekeeping and home maintenance tasks normally done before the accident.
  • Damage to personal items: Covers the cost to repair or replace personal items (e.g., clothing, prescription eyewear, hearing aids, etc.) that were damaged in the accident.
  • Death benefits: Compensates some family members if you or a covered person dies due to an accident.
  • Funeral benefits: Helps cover some funeral costs.
FURTHERMORE, these now optional benefits will now only cover drivers named on the policy, their spouses, or their dependants. Passengers are NO LONGER covered if they do not have their own insurance policy.

These changes were all made in O. Reg 383/24 by Doug Ford's government, which became law back in October 2024(!!!) but I haven't heard anyone talk about them at all. I personally twigged onto this after seeing this CTV News article "New changes coming to insurance coverage for motorcycles as OPP report increase in related accidents" ... the headline implies that the author of the article themselves doesn't understand what is going to happen.

I think this is a significant loss for everyone. As bad as the loss of mandatory DCPD coverage was, it is easier to understand what you are opting out of. I DO occasionally see questions about people opting out of it on https://old.reddit.com/r/PersonalFinanceCanada/ which shows that it's not completely clear how bad of an idea at is. This is going to be much less clear about what the personal impact will be. So many people are going to hear brokers offer these benefits and think that they are being upsold on coverage they don't need or understand, and they're simply going to opt out of them. The decreasing take rate on these coverages is going to drive up the costs for everyone else that do still take them.
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I see this as a gain. Today, Insurance companies cost for accident benefits is 24% of their payouts. A lot of this is fraud and costs from people milking the system. Estimates are that 8% of insured drivers have made fraudulent accident benefits claims -- either no injury or exaggerated injuries. And the problem is getting worse as personal injury lawyers and rehab clinics are complicit in helping people extort the system.

a portion of every honest driver's premium funds fraud.

By making this optional, some of the cost and a lot of the fraud costs disappear - that benefits everyone.

As for costs, the cost to those looking for the coverage should go down marginally, as insurers and brokers look for add on sales, When things aren't mandatory, they tailor the products and prices to help the upsell. This places them into more competition compared to than 'mandatory' products.


TwistedKestrel said:
Keep in mind that that minimum payouts on most of these coverages were already kneecapped back in 2010 by Dalton McGuinty's government in O. Reg 34/10. That was being sold at the time as cracking down on insurance fraud.
Click to expand...
This is another problem. Income replacement insurance for $20k/year runs about $200. That covers you for all your vehicles as well as anything that would cause an injury or illness that stops you from earning income. That's generally less than the cost of one auto policy.
 
Mad Mike said:
Income replacement insurance for $20k/year runs about $200. That covers you for all your vehicles as well as anything that would cause an injury or illness that stops you from earning income. That's generally less than the cost of one auto policy.
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Are you referring to disability insurance, or something else?
 
Gary said:
When will we be able to own multiple motorcycles or cages, and be able to have 1 policy that insures the 1 vehicle that we are driving at any given time?
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That's why they should insure the person or the licence.
 
Mad Mike said:
I see this as a gain. Today, Insurance companies cost for accident benefits is 24% of their payouts. A lot of this is fraud and costs from people milking the system. Estimates are that 8% of insured drivers have made fraudulent accident benefits claims -- either no injury or exaggerated injuries. And the problem is getting worse as personal injury lawyers and rehab clinics are complicit in helping people extort the system.

a portion of every honest driver's premium funds fraud.

By making this optional, some of the cost and a lot of the fraud costs disappear - that benefits everyone.

As for costs, the cost to those looking for the coverage should go down marginally, as insurers and brokers look for add on sales, When things aren't mandatory, they tailor the products and prices to help the upsell. This places them into more competition compared to than 'mandatory' products.



This is another problem. Income replacement insurance for $20k/year runs about $200. That covers you for all your vehicles as well as anything that would cause an injury or illness that stops you from earning income. That's generally less than the cost of one auto policy.
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So if 24% of the costs are now in optional programs, I expect my rate to drop by ~24%. I'd be ok with that. I'll be shocked if rates drop more than a few percent.
 
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ToSlow said:
That's why they should insure the person or the licence.
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How are you going to calculate risk/payout for someone driving a civic then jumps into a ferrari and totals it?
 
And while we're at it, if you're the only registered driver and agree nobody else will operate the vehicle but you, then they should be able to do the same with the liability and vehicle coverage as well.

EDIT: Fire/theft/comprehensive - whatever coverage for when the vehicle is not being driven - shoudl be added to each vehicle to be fair.
 
Relax said:
Well, the idea is you have a policy for every vehicle, and your health benefits are based on the one with the highest risk.
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Seems like they were talking about a blanket policy.

Either way I was discussing driving someone else's vehicle. If you're insuring the license then insurance does not follow the vehicle.
 
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