Daw: Auto insurance rates to rise before cost cutting measures Toronto Star
Ontario has approved stiff increases in auto insurance rates prior to changes aimed at cutting the cost of minor injury claims.
The most startling and puzzling increase — 27.3 per cent for money-losing TD General Insurance Co. — would come into effect Sept. 1, the same day standard accident benefit coverage is slated to be reduced.
The cumulative effect of all increases approved for TD in a 12-month period stands at 54 per cent.
This was far beyond any other insurer, although TD General lost $1.2 million in 2009.
Insurers representing most of the industry had increases averaging 5.37 per cent approved during the first quarter of 2010, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario announced late Thursday.
The increases came on top the 5.59 per cent approved in 2008 and 8.77 per cent in 2009, and brought the 12-month average to 12.3 per cent.
Leonard Sharman, a spokesman for COSECO Insurance Co., said the company’s cumulative increase of 20 per cent in the past year was due to its heavy concentration of business in the Greater Toronto Area.
The other issue is that, for privacy reasons, some jurisdictions prohibit personal information collected for a product such as mortgages to be used for products like home or auto insurance without formal consumer consent.
