FAQ’s

Q: My son was listed as an occasional driver on my policy. He is now 18 and has moved out on his own. I called my insurer to delete him as an occasional driver and was told that, once I removed him, he can never drive my vehicle again as the policy would not cover him. Is this the case?

A: This is not correct, as there is no exclusion in the SPF 1 under “Prohibited Use by Others” in such a case. But once he is removed he will not be building up any insurance history and once he has one 2 yrs without being listed on a policy he will have to start over again building this history back up.
 
 
Q: I live at home with my mother and I have a “suspended license”. My mother’s insurer wants me to sign a paper deleting me as a driver and I don’t want to sign it.

A: The reasons behind the insurer’s request are that you are an added risk that the insurer does not want to insure and it is within the insurance company’s rights to request it. You may want to have your mother speak with her insurance broker to better understand the reasoning and sign the papers accordingly.
 
 
Q: In December 2011, I bumped another vehicle while in slow moving traffic. There was no damage whatsoever to either vehicle, and the other driver was not injured. A few weeks later, the other driver filed a police report saying she was injured. I notified my insurance company and they have opened a file. I advised them that I believe the other driver is fraudulently claiming injury. They told me they would be investigating any claims she had and confirming if they were indeed valid.

My question is, when my insurance renewed, my rates substantially increased, even though the insurance company’s investigation has not been completed. Is this a normal occurrence?

A: Once an accident is reported a claim is opened and the Insurance Company must set up a dollar amount reserve just in case of a legitimate claim. They will certainly use all their investigation powers to make sure no fraud is involved. As a loss has been reported it is assessed to your policy as a claim. A bodily injury claim could be open for at least 2 years before a law suit is commenced. This is common practice.
 
 
Q: Is my trailer and ATV covered when I am towing these back and forth to my cottage.

A: The only coverage that extends to the trailer and ATV would be Liability. The Trailer and ATV would need to have their own polices for any other type of peril that might happen. ( ie theft , collision etc ) the best thing would be to review all your coverage with your broker.
 
 
Q: Will my rates be impacted if I report an at fault accident to my broker , but then decide to pay for the damages out of my pocket.

A: If no claim has been paid out by your Insurance company you can’t be rated for this accident.