How Millenials are helping stop distracted driving
October 7, 2018 by Jason ContantMillenials – the ever-connected, technologically savvy age group – are actually most likely to ask a driver to stop using their mobile device if they are a passenger, a new Travelers Canada survey has found. Distracted driving has been cited…
Over 80 collisions in one day after record Alberta snowstorm
October 3, 2018 Lauren Krugel - THE CANADIAN PRESSCALGARY – Streets and sidewalks were a slushy, slippery mess but the sun was shining brightly in Calgary on Wednesday after a record-breaking autumn snowstorm walloped parts of southern Alberta. The city’s director of roads, Troy McLeod, said more than…
A ‘lessee’ is not necessarily the person who paid for the rented vehicle
October 2, 2018 by David GambrillA “lessee” under Ontario’s Insurance Act is the person whom the rental company would sue to enforce the rental contract, a court reaffirmed Monday. In Aviva v. Wawanesa, the Ontario Superior Court decided a recent priority dispute between insurers. The…
How this auto claimant won additional pain and suffering damages
October 1, 2018 by Greg MeckbachThe controversial 2017 Saadati ruling from the Supreme Court of Canada was one reason an auto accident victim recently got an increase in pain and suffering damages. In Saadati’s lawsuit, a judge with the Supreme Court of B.C. awarded pain…
How driverless vehicles may make crash injuries worse
October 1, 2018 by Jason ContantThe severity of some accidents may increase as vehicles become driverless, in part because driver orientation will change, a crash reconstructionist told Canadian Underwriter in an interview last week. Currently, drivers are sitting in their seats, properly belted with their…
Air Canada pilots say near-collision a wake-up call on pilot fatigue
September 27, 2018 Ross Marowits - THE CANADIAN PRESSTORONTO – A near-collision of an Air Canada jet at San Francisco’s airport should be a wake-up call for the federal government to adequately address pilot fatigue for overnight flights, the union representing the airline’s pilots said Wednesday. “I don’t…
This vehicle accident ‘speaks for itself’
September 22, 2018 by Greg MeckbachThe Supreme Court of Canada will not hear an appeal from a motorist found to be liable for a single-vehicle collision. Brad Gaebel was a passenger in a vehicle driven by Gordon Lipka, who lost control after moving to the…
Mitchell data confirms increased Canadian collision costs
September 17, 2018 by Jason ContantRecent data from Mitchell International seems to confirm what Canadian insurers have been saying: collision repair costs and severity potential is increasing. On Sept. 11, Mitchell released its Canada Collision Summary: Q2 2018 report. It includes Canada-specific data from body…
Judges disagree on whether this collision was a ‘true accident’
September 11, 2018 by Greg MeckbachA motorist who is being sued by his passenger after a single-vehicle accident wants his case heard by the Supreme Court of Canada. The issue at hand is whether the single-vehicle crash was a “true accident,” in which nobody can…
Unpredictable sinkhole in Nova Scotia takes bite out of parking lot
September 5, 2018 The Canadian PressOXFORD, N.S. – A large sinkhole that has swallowed trees and picnic tables in a Nova Scotia park has now taken a bite out of a parking lot, as the natural phenomenon continues to capture the attention of geological experts…
Insurer CEO to personally visit FSCO asking for higher rates
August 30, 2018 by Greg MeckbachThe newly-elected Ontario government should let carriers change their rates without approval from the Financial Services Commission of Ontario, the president of a mutual that writes auto contends. It “makes sense” to require insurers to file rates with FSCO “but…
When parents give their kids permission to drive: the limit to ‘implied consent’
August 24, 2018 by Greg MeckbachAn Ontario auto insurer went too far in arguing that a motorist gave her son – whose license was suspended – implied permission to drive her vehicle because she left the keys on a hook while she was out of…