Owning a car in the past few years has become increasingly expensive, not only in the US but in other Western countries. Canadians know this all too well, but they like most of us aren’t anywhere nearly out of the woods yet as a new report indicates car insurance costs in the country will increase even more this year.
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That’s not the kind of news Canadians want to hear, and we doubt Americans, the British, or others aren’t facing a similar situation, but a Ratesdotca report notes that Ontario has already cleared the way for rates increases for Q1 of this year and more likely will be coming.
Speaking with the CBC, Ratedotca’s insurance expert Daniel Ivans said some Canadians are seeing their car premiums increase as much as 25%. That’s enough to put someone who already is feeling the squeeze from inflated housing, food, and utility costs into a financial tailspin.
Inflation is being blamed as one of the main drivers of higher insurance rates. It makes sense since the cost of repairing damaged vehicles or replacing those stolen/totaled goes up with inflation. But another big force at play is the fact cars have become more technological and thus more expensive to repair.
Then there’s rampant car theft, causing more total loss claims. As the CBC notes, Canadian insurance companies paid out more than $1,000,000,000 CAD in 2022 with half of that amount attributed to theft alone. In other words, you don’t need to have your ride stolen to fall victim to the car theft spree.
Ivans did admit not all providers are hiking their rates, or at least not as much as others. He noted it all depends on “how last year played out for each individual provider.” In other words, it pays to shop around and see who can give you the best deal. You can get a better deal if you have a clean driving record, installing anti-theft devices in your car, and bundling with other types of insurance.
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