Insurance News - Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Here are the leading auto insurance headlines from ONTARIO AUTO INSURANCE TOPICS ON TWITTER for Wednesday, January 27, 2016:

• Kathleen Wynne says pledge to cut auto insurance 15 per cent was a ‘stretch goal’ - classic govt speak!
• Ontario's finance minister is hard-pressed to explain why he continued to declare publicly that the government would meet an election pledge to cut auto insurance rates despite being aware that keeping the promise would be challenging.
• Canadians are wary of self-driving cars.  They would rather see technology make driving safer.
• Google's monthly report for its self-driving car project is in, and according to data recorded by onboard computers, the car's human drivers intervened 13 times between September 2014 and November 2015 to avoid an accident.
• Is State Farm preparing for the end of auto insurance?
• The biggest roadblock facing driverless cars is not government regulation but lawyers.
• Windsor wants to become test site for self-driving vehicles.

Insurance News - Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Here are the leading auto insurance headlines from ONTARIO AUTO INSURANCE TOPICS ON TWITTER for Tuesday, January 26, 2016:

• Town of Stratford has built connected infrastructure to attract self-driving cars for testing over the past decade.
• Uber's impact being felt as San Francisco's largest cab company Yellow Cab to file for bankruptcy.
• Why baby boomers embrace sensor-driven cars, but doubt self-driving cars.
• While claiming their self-driving cars have not caused an accident, Google also reports self-driving car mistakes: 272 failures and 13 near misses.
• Google wants to form more partnerships with automakers and suppliers in 2016 to accelerate work on self-driving cars.
• Obama boosts self-driving car development with $4 billion investment.

Ontario's Failed Rate Reduction Strategy

The promise to reduce auto insurance premiums by 15% is a failure.  

In August 2013 the Ontario government announced a two-year rate reduction strategy. What has ensued since that announcement has been a series of reforms to bring down the cost of insurance. Many of those reforms include no-fault accident benefit reductions.  

So how successful has the strategy been?  Last week FSCO posted the fourth quarter rate approvals for 2015. The FSCO post indicates that rates fell a minuscule 0.15% in the quarter. For the entire year, rates fell by just 1.0%.  Since August 2013, rates have only come down by 7.1%.  That's not even half of what the government has been trying to achieve.

Premier Kathleen Wynne now calls the 15% rate reduction strategy a "stretch goal".  That's as close as you're going to get a government to admit to failure.  

Another round of no-fault accident benefit cuts are to be introduced on June 1 of this year but don't expect them to bring down rates by a significant amount. The accident benefits portion of the Ontario in 2014 was only 33.5% of claim costs (see the chart below).  That would mean for a further 8% reduction in premiums, accident benefit costs would have to go down by about 24%.  Meanwhile, some of the accident benefit cuts will drift over to third party liability costs since not at-fault accident victims will be able to sue for benefits no longer available through no-fault.

It's time the government undertake a comprehensive review of the auto insurance system and resolve the systemic problems plaguing the system.  Half measures lead to "stretch goals" and chronically high insurance premiums.

Insurance News - Monday, January 11, 2016

Here are the leading auto insurance headlines from ONTARIO AUTO INSURANCE TOPICS ON TWITTER for Monday, January 11, 2016:

• Sidecar, the third-biggest U.S. ride-sharing service, has ceased operating as the company is squeezed out by better-known competitors Uber and Lyft.
• Plaintiff’s lawyers are encouraged at the prospects for big court awards from accidents self-driving cars. With no one behind the wheel, lawyers say they can go after almost anyone even remotely involved.
• General Motors and ride-sharing company Lyft are forming an unprecedented partnership that could help them beat their rivals to the self-driving future.
• The big data of bad driving, and how insurers plan to use technological to assess risk and set premiums.
• Aviva Insurance plans to support Uber drivers in Canada with special coverage, a move that could give comfort to users of the ride-sharing service, and one that will likely disrupt the taxi industry further.

Ontario Moves Forward with Regulating the Towing Industry

Ontario consumers and insurers have had many long-standing complaints about the practices of towing operators.  Back in 2012, the Auto Insurance Anti-FraudTask Force, created by the Minister of Finance, recommended a number of changes regarding the regulation of towing services.  Last year the Ontario Legislature passed Bill 15, a wide-ranging piece of legislation that will have a significant impact on the towing industry. 

Changes will be made to the Consumer Protection Act and its regulation, establishing tow and storage-specific consumer protection measures effective January 1, 2017. They will require tow and storage providers to:

• Get permission from a consumer or someone acting on their behalf before providing tow and storage services.
• Record the name and contact information of the consumer, along with the date and time of authorization.
• Disclose certain information to the in writing, such as the provider's business name, contact information and address where the vehicle will be towed.
• Accept credit card payments, in addition to cash, from consumers.
• Provide an itemized invoice, listing services provided, the cost for each service, and the total cost before demanding or receiving payment.
• Make available a current statement of rates at their place of business and on any existing website.
• Post other information, for example, the provider's name and telephone number on the side of a tow truck, at all business premises and on any website.
• Provide a consumer with access to the towed vehicle, at no charge, so that they may remove personal property from the vehicle.
• Prohibit tow and storage providers from recommending repair and storage facilities, legal service providers or health care service providers unless a consumer specifically asks, or the provider offers to make a recommendation and the consumer agrees.
• Disclose to a consumer whether the provider is getting a financial reward or incentive for providing a recommendation for towing a vehicle to a particular storage or repair shop.
• Establish minimum insurance coverage including general liability insurance of $2 million, customer vehicle insurance of $100,000 and $50,000 cargo insurance.
• Maintain authorization and disclosure records, invoices, copies of insurance policy, and current statement of rates for three years.                                         

There are some exemptions, such as, if services are provided under a prepaid agreement or membership in an association, such as the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) where the consumer is not being charged for the specific service being provided.  These exemptions will also apply when the tow and storage services are provided when a vehicle is purchased or leased and the consumer is not charged for the specific service being provided.

The Repair and Storage Liens Act deals with the rights of repairers and storers to claim a lien against vehicles they repaired and/or stored.  Most of the changes to the Repair and Storage Liens Act will take effect on July 1, 2016 The new regulations are designed to eliminate overcharging for vehicle storage and make it easier for vehicle lien holders to find out that the vehicle is in storage in the first place. 

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Changes to the Repair and Storage Liens Act and its regulation will:

• Reduce the notice period from 60 days to 15 days for vehicles registered in Ontario. The new rules are expected to improve storage practices and remove associated costs from the auto insurance system.
• If the notice is not provided, a lien is limited to the unpaid amount owing for the period of 15 days from the day of receiving the vehicle.
• Provide guidance to courts in determining the "fair value" of repair or storage where no amount has been agreed upon. A list of discretionary factors (e.g., fixed costs, variable costs, direct costs, indirect costs, profit and any other relevant factors) is set out for consideration.

 Finally, the government is adding regulations under the Highway Traffic Act that will bring tow trucks under the Commercial Vehicle Operator's Registration (CVOR) system. Tow trucks and other towing vehicles will require a CVOR certificate.  The CVOR system is used to track the safety of truck and bus operators in Ontario.  This new regulation will come into effect on January 1, 2017.

Under CVOR, tow operators will be responsible for all the drivers and vehicles in their operation. These responsibilities include:

• Monitoring the conduct and safety performance of drivers.
• Resolving driver safety issues when they are identified.
• Keeping vehicles in good, safe condition at all times.
• Ensuring load security. 

Tow trucks will continue to be exempt from some requirements faced by other classes of vehicle under the CVOR system, such as hours of service limits, daily inspection, detailed recordkeeping requirements and entering truck inspection stations, until the government has concluded consultations with the towing industry and other stakeholders on an effective regulatory regime for tow trucks.