Lapse in insurance won’t result in higher rates, ruling says
Q: My wife and I are going on an extended trip outside of Canada. We own one vehicle, which we are both insured under. We have had auto insurance continuously in Canada for about 14 years, and our record is currently clean.
We plan on selling the car before our trip and do not plan on driving while abroad. After one year, we plan on returning to Canada and buying/driving a new vehicle.
How will our auto insurance be affected?
It doesn’t make sense to pay for auto insurance that we won’t need during our year abroad. However, I’ve heard that you’re never supposed to take yourself “off” insurance because they’ll treat you as a new driver when you reapply.
A: Pete Karageorgos, manager of media relations for the Insurance Bureau of Canada (www.ibc.com), replies:
The Financial Services Commission of Ontario, which regulates all insurance companies in Ontario, has issued a ruling that the lapse in insurance will not affect your future rating if, at the time of next placing insurance, you provide the name of your last insurance company, the policy number and the date that you cancelled it.
There is no time limit on the period without insurance in Ontario.
Eric Lai adds:
The key here is that it must be the insured driver(s) who cancelled the policy, rather than the insurance company, to avoid negative repercussions when purchasing auto insurance in future.
Q: I just bought a used 2001 Ford F-150 with automatic transmission. The tip of the shift lever always indicates that overdrive is off, unless I push a button. Why is this? Is there a reason why Ford provides overdrive but doesn’t want me to use it?.
A: Mike Arbeau, owner of Precise Transmission (www.precisetransmission.com) in Mississauga, replies:
On Ford vehicles, the default setting is actually with overdrive active. You can depress the button on the end of the shift lever to temporarily turn off the overdrive function when towing or in hilly terrain where the constant downshifting may be a nuisance, but the overdrive will revert to active status the next time the key is turned on.
As these vehicles age, its not uncommon for the fine wires within the shift lever to break or short-out, which likely accounts for your “overdrive off” light illuminating constantly.
If your F-150 is shifting through all four gears, then the transmission is operating properly. If not, the shift lever assembly will need to be replaced (about $70 plus labour).
In either case, It’s recommended that you have this relatively inexpensive repair done as the overdrive off light also signals trouble codes for the transmission, so a malfunctioning light could potentially fail to alert you to a minor fault before it turns into major transmission damage.
Q: On a transfer of car ownership between family members (father to son, or vice-versa) no tax is paid but is a safety certification required?
A: Ontario Transportation Ministry spokesperson Bob Nichols replies:
Transfers between parent and child and vice-versa require a safety standards certificate if the vehicle is to be registered as fit.
Eric Lai adds:
In other words, if the vehicle is to be driven on public roads, then a safety certificate and proof of insurance are needed to get plates.
If you’re using it for parts or on private property only, such as a farm, no safety certificate is needed. On transfer of ownership without a safety, the new permit will indicate the vehicle status as unfit.
You can send your non-mechanical questions to Eric Lai at wheels@thestar.ca. Include year, make, model and kilometres of autos cited, plus your name, address and telephone number. Personal replies cannot be handled due to volume.
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