Insurance

No one tells insurance companies about a ticket you may have received.  The insurance only learns of your driving habits from either claims or accidents and your driving record.

In Ontario your driving record is called an “Abstract”.  Your driving record is a history of traffic tickets you have received in the previous three (3) years.

The record is available from the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) for a fee.

Upon renewal the insurance will obtain a copy of the abstract to see if there have been any accumulation of driving convictions, and then base your rates upon that.

Insurance companies base insurance rates upon their perceived risk factors and then the historical risk factors of types of drivers, e.g.

• younger drivers are involved in more accidents
• the risk is higher for the insurance company and
• therefore the cost for young drivers is higher

When a driver is charged with stunt driving the offence is an allegation, and the insurance will not be aware of the incident until after any court proceedings.

Where a driver is convicted of stunt driving insurance companies:

• perceive that the risk that the driver will be in an accident is very high
• they may cancel or refuse continued insurance coverage
• the driver will be put into “High Risk Insurance Rates”

When the officer issues a traffic ticket for stunt driving, they will impound the vehicle and suspend the drivers licence for 7 days.

The licence suspension is call an ADLS suspension.  ADLS suspension stands for Administrative Drivers Licence Suspension.

An Administrative Driver’s Licence Suspension (ADLS) is considered administrative because there is court hearing for the suspension and is not suppose to affect insurance rates.