Driver stopped on QEW in Hamilton, charged in insurance investigation
Published December 12, 2020 at 1:03 pm
OPP say a driver was charged today (Saturday, December 12) after their vehicle was stopped on the QEW in Hamilton.
The vehicle was stopped for an insurance investigation.
The 25 year old driver and owner of the vehicle claimed they thought their ex was still paying for the insurance, police say.
The driver was charged accordingly.
“Get your ducks in a row before operating your vehicle,” OPP said.
This could be a reason why Hamilton has one of the highest auto insurance rates in Ontario, according to a new report.
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The report by LowestRates.ca confirms that Hamilton is one of the most expensive places in the province for auto insurance. Rates are 36.2 per cent above Ontario’s average price.
LowestRates.ca is a Toronto-based rate comparison website for auto and home insurance, as well as credit cards, loans, and mortgage rates. To determine the ranking of Ontario’s most expensive cities, LowestRates.ca referred to data from its auto insurance quoter in September 2020.
The full list of most expensive Ontario cities for auto insurance is as follows:
- Brampton (123.5% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Scarborough (83.6% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- North York (77.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Etobicoke (67.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Mississauga (50% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- East York (48.1% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Markham (40.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Toronto (36.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Hamilton (36.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Richmond Hill (35.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Windsor (31.5% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Ajax (26.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Pickering (25.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Barrie (20.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
- Oshawa (20.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
A “good chunk” of Ontario’s most expensive cities for auto insurance are the suburbs of Toronto, LowestRates.ca found.
“Drivers in suburbs need a vehicle to get pretty much anywhere, and they drive on bigger highways and more congested roads, each of which would contribute to higher premiums since there’s more risk associated,” the insurance comparison service said in a blog post.
The report also found that many of the cities have a significant percentage of drivers with fewer than three years of driving experience. These types of drivers are likely to be classified as “new drivers” by insurers, and their lack of insurance and driving history means they are usually charged more for insurance.