Driving without insurance is against the law, and it will result in a charge for driving without insurance in Ontario.
The “driving without insurance” charge in Ontario exists because it puts you, your passengers, and other drivers on the road in danger. People who aren’t insured can’t be covered in an accident, and that’s exactly when they need help the most.
If you’re looking for quality car insurance in Ontario, you can visit https://www.surex.com/Insurance/auto-car/toronto to get top-notch quotes from experienced insurance advisors.
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Why should I get a car insurance policy?
Insurance isn’t often the most enjoyable aspect of owning a car (we get it!), but having it in place should give you more confidence on the road.
If a secondary driver or you get charged with driving without insurance by the police, now is a good time to start thinking about your insurance choices to help protect yourself in the future.
What is the fine for driving without insurance in Ontario
In Ontario, you can be charged with two different fines for driving without insurance in Ontario:
- Failure to produce your insurance card when asked by a police officer.
- Operating or enabling the use of a motor vehicle without insurance.
Even if you have insurance and forgot to put your pink slip in your car or misplaced it, you could be ticketed and punished for failing to surrender your insurance card. In this instance, proving you have insurance in court would certainly result in the charges being withdrawn.
Other insurance providers may provide a comparable service for viewing your proof of insurance paperwork. If you must pay a fine for failing to surrender your insurance information, it will be noted on your driver’s abstract for three years and may affect how much you pay for insurance during that time.
Insurance companies examine driving histories to determine if clients are safe or hazardous drivers, and driving without insurance will not lower your future costs.
What if you don’t have ownership of the vehicle?
Because the owner is the person responsible for ensuring that the vehicle is properly insured, only the vehicle owner can be charged with driving without car insurance.
If you’re driving a car you don’t own, though, you should still make sure the insurance card is in the car because you may face a penalty for driving without insurance in Ontario for failure to surrender proof of insurance.
Furthermore, suppose a police officer decides to examine whether you insured the vehicle when you were stopped over. In that case, the automobile owner could still be charged with enabling a motor vehicle to be operated without insurance.
The police have three years to conduct a car insurance coverage investigation. If you wish to research a ticket further, you may look at a more thorough list of Ontario’s traffic penalties and fines.
How much is the penalty for driving without insurance in Ontario?
Because driving without insurance is not a criminal offence, you will not be arrested, but Ontario takes it extremely seriously and places a strict penalty for driving without insurance in Ontario. Other penalties, such as having your automobile seized, will be imposed.
The Provincial Offence Act adds a 25% surcharge to your fee, and you could have your automobile confiscated for up to three months (depending on the severity of the violation).
If you can’t show an officer your insurance card during a car inspection and you’re the owner of the vehicle you’re driving, you might face a fine of $50 to $500 plus additional taxes.
You can be fined $65.00 if you don’t present the police proof of insurance and don’t own the vehicle you’re driving. Otherwise, fines for driving without insurance in Ontario can range from $500 to $5,000 plus a surcharge tax.
However, if you are found driving without insurance more than once, the fines will increase. Second and third offences can result in fines ranging from $10,000 to $50,000, as well as a year’s suspension of a driver’s licence.
Even if the accusations cannot be dropped, it may be feasible to dispute the fine in court. If you pay any of the fines without going to court or going to court and the fines aren’t dismissed, the charges will appear on your MTO driver’s abstract for three years. Your insurance premiums may increase the next time your insurance provider assesses your policy as a result.
The minimum amount of third-party liability coverage necessary for auto insurance in Ontario is $200,000, but you can always get more. If you need auto insurance to avoid a citation for driving without insurance in Ontario, you can receive a price online in less than three minutes right here.
Information about fine for driving without insurance in Ontario
Most people believe that driving without insurance is extremely dangerous, and they are accurate. However, what are the ramifications of driving without car insurance?
If you are caught driving a car without insurance on purpose, you may be penalised and may face further consequences. For your first offence, you could penalise a punishment of $5,000 to $25,000, depending on the severity of the offence. Driving without car insurance is a bad decision for a variety of reasons.
If you cause an accident and are sued, you will not be covered by an insurance provider and responsible for any damages alone.
If you are involved in a car accident, even if it is not your fault, you will not be eligible for the benefits provided by the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule. You will not be eligible for Income Replacement Benefits in particular. These could be substantial if you cannot work for an extended period.
However, the law isn’t always clear, and there are a variety of situations in which you might get these advantages, such as if you didn’t know and couldn’t have known that the vehicle was uninsured.
These can happen in various situations, so visit a brokerage to see what choices you have if you have car insurance coverage.
Why are there such high penalties for driving without insurance?
The extraordinarily large fines for driving without insurance’ conviction reflect the gravity of the offence. And it’s not until you’re in the middle of a collision that you realise how serious the ramifications are.
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of a car accident is damage to the automobiles involved and other property. Personal injury, on the other hand, has the most catastrophic repercussions.
They include injuries to anyone and you in your car, as well as anyone in any other vehicles engaged, as well as pedestrian injuries. The cost of repairing a vehicle could be in the tens of thousands of dollars or more.
However, the expense of rehabilitation, lost wages, and pain and suffering resulting from injuries sustained in a car accident can be far higher and last a lifetime. Of course, if a person is killed, the incalculable cost extends far beyond money.
Is it worth the risk to face a penalty for driving without insurance Ontario?
If you are involved in a car accident without insurance, you may be liable for vehicle damage, continued medical and physiotherapy treatments, and even lawsuits, especially if someone is killed.
You may also be classified as a high-risk driver by insurance providers, resulting in far higher insurance prices at fault than you had hoped to avoid. In many circumstances, insurers refuse to cover drivers who they consider too dangerous. As a result of this fact, you might not be able to drive.