Auto Insurance in Canada

What's in an Auto Insurance Policy

An auto insurance policy is made up of different coverage types that pay out different claim costs associated with an automobile accident or incident. They may include paying for damages to your vehicle in the event of an accident, healthcare costs resulting from an accident, or payments for when your vehicle catches fire, is stolen, or suffers damages from nature and weather. Auto insurance policies can very depending on the level of coverage for every coverage type, the types of coverages, as well as payment rules like deductible amounts. Provinces also mandate different levels of insurance, so the minimal amount of auto insurance needed in Ontario will be different from what is needed in Alberta, PEI, or Saskatchewan. Below I outline the different coverage types that may make up an auto insurance policy. 

Coverage

Description of Coverage

Accident Benefits
Covers costs for supplementary medical expenses, rehabilitation, caregiver, and income replacement. Payments are not made on the basis of fault.
All Perils
Combines collision and comprehensive coverage.
Bodily Injury*
Injury to a person involved in a collision.
Collision
Combines collision and comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive
Costs of repairing a vehicle from an accident that was deemed the fault of the policy holder.
Direct Compensation*
Costs of repairing or replacing a vehicle after non-collision events such as fire, severe weather, falling objects, or theft.
Property Damage*
Covers damage to another vehicle, or a residential or commercial building.
Specified Perils
Covers one or more elements found within comprehensive coverage.
Underinsured Automobile
Covers claims from an accident that involved a vehicle with insufficient insurance to cover the costs of the incident, or the vehicle was not insured.
Underinsured Motorist
Covers costs if an accident was the fault of a motorist whose third-party liability limits were lower than the injured’s coverage, a motorist left the scene of an accident (termed a ‘hit and run’), or a motorist who did not have insurance.

*Combined, these three coverage types are generally referred to as “Third Party Liability”

Auto Insurance Regulatory Frameworks

Click on the images or titles below to learn more about specific regulatory auto insurance frameworks in Canada.

Public Auto Insurance
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Private Auto Insurance
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Joint Private Public Auto Insurance
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