Re: AUTO INSURANCE INFO
messenger said:
Hi all
First I must ask you to excuse me if this message is out of topic but a well planned re establishment in Canada is a must for me
and maybe the info gathered here would help all of you at the end
In order as not to re write my query I copied my original email that I send yesterday to some insurance companies in Ontario.
If anyone has any opinion or answers about my query please input them here
Thank you all and wishing you all a Joyous Holiday season
Here is my letter but of course so far no one answered me yet and to just send a simple email to them it was also difficult because in some sites you have to declare a Canadian address in order to do so
"Greetings.
I am a Canadian citizen planning to reestablish my self in Canada and most likely in Ontario Scarborough in the following 6 months.
I moved out from Canada in 1990 and till then I was licensed in Ontario with all levels (up to A license) My driving record was spotless in Canada. Now since April 1990 to this day I am licensed here in my birth country of Greece also with the highest license classification and also with a spotless claim free record.
I understand that when I will come back to Canada next year, Ontario will not recognize my nearly 40 years of clean driving record (10 of those in Ontario as a professional driver) and I will have to be considered a new driver there again. But from the little research that I've done the rates of the premiums that I will be considered to pay in Canada will be forbidding for me to either think of purchasing a car to commute in Canada therefore to make my living ( drive to work or for entertainment)
Presently here in Greece I pay 180 euros per six months not including collision but even if I had selected to have collision the difference is approximately another 100 euros. (Total 280 per six months)
When I initially immigrated to Canada in 1980 and bought my first car, my then Canadian insurer asked me to produce a letter from the Greek insurance and my premium then was something next to nothing.
I wonder and forgive me if I take your time, is there any way to avoid such high premiums and to not be considered a new driver in Canada? I am not 17 years old teenager but a safe 57 yo experienced driver. Thank you very much for taking the time!"
I don't know if you will have any luck. Insurance rates are the highest in Ontario, especially the GTA. As you know, insurance depends on many factors, including sex, age, place of residence, type and age of car, etc. Even if you got a not so old but not so new car, you still are going to have to pay high rates.
That being said, I did luck out. I found a very good insurance broker. She was able to take my clean driving record from Germany, and a letter from my insurance company in Germany saying I had no claims against me....plus she was able to access my old driving records from my previous Ontario insurance company from when I got my first car. (I am a Canadian citizen, born and raised) And voila, my 4500 dollar quote for one year, turned into 500 dollars for one year.
My advice, find a good broker. Try also insurance from PC financial or TD or even RBC. Shop around. Even if it's only a little bit, sometimes even after that first year, your insurance rates will go down.
