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‘Boilerplate’ reasons for denying auto claims don’t cut it: Court

September 25, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Ontario’s Divisional Court ruled this week against Aviva Canada, which wants to challenge a Licence Appeal Tribunal ruling in favour of an auto accident benefits claimant. The case involves how Aviva denied the claim, which was to check a box

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Ontario auto changes could be ‘slow to implement’

September 12, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Ontario may have a new auto insurance regulator, but don’t expect conditions in that market to improve overnight, A.M. Best Company Inc. suggested in a report released Thursday. “Measures to improve market and competitive conditions will likely be slow to

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Insurers spar after passenger grabs steering wheel, causing accident

August 22, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Should a motorist be liable if a front-seat passenger deliberately grabbed the wheel and took control, causing an accident? Insurers debate this, but judges say a client in this situation should not be liable. In McKay v. Park, released Monday,

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Why urban drivers may actually be better risks than rural drivers

August 2, 2019 by Adam Malik

Drivers in the heavily populated Greater Toronto Area are less likely to have a ticket, a collision or both on their record compared to those in more rural communities in Ontario. The counter-intuitive result came from a recent study by

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How old Ontario auto cat claims affect Intact’s bottom line

July 31, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Canada’s largest P&C insurer has been taken by surprise by the number of old Ontario auto claims in which accident victims are trying to get benefits for catastrophic impairment. Ontario changed its catastrophic impairment definition for accidents occurring on or

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Allstate ponders appeal in $700,000 lawsuit over Brampton auto insurance allegations

July 30, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Allstate officials are considering appealing last week’s Ontario court judgement that rejected the company’s $700,000 counter-suit against a former employee. “Our legal counsel is reviewing the decision and we will decide whether to appeal in the next few weeks,” Angie

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Top court cuts down “apples” approach to tort award reduction

July 11, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Adjusters and insurance defence lawyers who think the “apples-to-apples” approach to deducting future no-fault benefits from tort awards is rotten will likely find relief in a Supreme Court of Canada ruling released Thursday. Canada’s top court announced July 11 it

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Optional benefits priority ruling could create “administrative nightmare” for auto insurers

July 9, 2019 by David Gambrill

An insurance defence lawyer is warning of a potential “administrative nightmare” for insurers in light of a recent Court of Appeal for Ontario decision on priority disputes involving optional benefits. Continental Casualty Company v. Chubb in Ontario is now becoming

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Does anyone still believe that $200,000 is enough auto liability coverage?

July 8, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Although Ontario motorists can legally put their vehicles on the road with as little as $200,000 in liability coverage, brokers likely wouldn’t want one of those motorists for a client. “There is no way you can justify why you sold

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What cabinet upheaval means for auto reform progress

June 24, 2019 by Adam Malik

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has made drastic changes to his cabinet just months after including auto reforms in its first budget. Taking over as finance minister – and in effect, the auto insurance file – will be Rod Phillips. The

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Spring flooding not sinking cottage markets in Ontario, Quebec: report

June 7, 2019 Ross Marowits - THE CANADIAN PRESS

TORONTO – Spring flooding has failed to sink Ontario and Quebec’s cottage real estate markets, according to Royal LePage’s annual recreational property report. Parts of Quebec cottage country were inaccessible for weeks because of road closures and some Ontario properties

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How budget cuts will affect flood risk mitigation

June 5, 2019 by Greg Meckbach

Flood risk mitigation in Ontario could start to depend a lot more on the willingness of corporations and individuals to donate money to the conservation authorities. “The conservation authorities are going to have to make a better case for outreach