FSCO highlights amendments to Insurance Act concerning public transit auto claims

The Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) has released a bulletin highlighting recent amendments to the Insurance Act intended to help municipal transit systems control fraudulent claims.
These amendments include adding a definition of ‘public transit’ to the act, where previously it was not included; adding a section that clarifies the liability of a public transit vehicle owner or driver in a single-vehicle collision, where previously they were not liable in these types of crashes; and the addition of a section that states public transit passengers cannot claim statutory accident benefits if the vehicle did not collide with another vehicle or object.
Under the amendments, ‘public transit’ is now defined as:
•any service for which a fare is charged for transporting the public by automobiles operated by or on behalf of a municipality or a local board, but does not include special transportation facilities for persons with disabilities or transportation by special purpose facilities such as school buses or ambulances; and
•any service prescribed by regulation to be public transit.
A section (s. 267.5 (6.1)) was added to the Insurance Act that essentially says a driver or owner of a public transit vehicle can be found liable if the vehicle is involved in a single-vehicle collision.
“In respect of an incident that occurs on or after the date this subsection comes into force, subsections (1), (3) and (5) do not protect the owner or driver of a public transit vehicle if it did not collide with another automobile or any other object in the incident.”
A second section (s. 268(1.1)) was added that provides no statutory accident benefits are payable from any source to an occupant of a public transit vehicle if the public transit vehicle did not collide with another automobile or object.