Cheap Ontario Car Insurance Quotes

There is no doubt about it; Ontario car insurance is expensive. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), auto insurance rates in Ontario are 45 percent higher than in Alberta, and about twice as high as the Maritime provinces. One of the main culprits often blamed for the high rates Ontario drivers pay is the prevalence of insurance fraud that drives up claims costs and increases premiums for all drivers. Insurance fraud includes everything from exaggerating the extent of damages, faking collisions, to overbilling on services performed in the event of a claim. It comes from a wide cross-section of contributors, which makes it a complex issue for the province to deal with. 



Ontario is the capital of auto insurance fraud in Canada. The provincial government has long vowed to change this, but so far efforts have not reached the 15 percent reduction in auto insurance rates promised in previous elections. In December 2017, the province announced plans to make car insurance more affordable by introducing the Fair Auto Insurance plan, which includes reforms to address insurance fraud in Ontario. This includes the launch of the Serious Fraud Office to investigate fraud further. In April 2019, the government launched the Putting Drivers First proposal as part of the provincial budget, which included a number of additional changes to help combat the province's high car insurance rates.

As fraud drives up costs for all drivers, your best defense is to regularly shop around and compare rates to ensure you're still getting the best deal on your auto insurance. 

The town or city you live in does impact your insurance rates, with smaller, rural municipalities considered less of an insurance risk than urban centres. For this reason, drivers living in the GTA can expect to pay more than those in the country. However, your postal code is not the only factor to influence your insurance rates. Shop around on InsuranceHotline.com and we'll find the cheapest car insurance for your area.

Each year, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) assesses the safety features of hundreds of vehicles. They release a list of top safety picks, which insurers look to when evaluating car insurance rates. Generally, safer cars have cheaper premiums.

Based on internal data, the following cars are the cheapest to insure in Ontario:

1. Subaru Forester
2. Subaru Crosstrek
3. Subaru Outback
4. Tesla Model 3
5. Mazda CX-3
6. Mazda CX-5
7. Subaru Legacy
8. Honda Insight
9. Acrua RDX
10. Mazda CX-9

As expected, they are all IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award winners. Remember though, driving one of these models does not guarantee cheap insurance. To get the best rates, practice defensive driving and maintain a clean driving record.

For more information on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and our case study methodology, check out our recent article on the cheapest cars to insure in Ontario.

There's no one auto insurance company that offers everyone the best rates. Auto insurance premiums for the exact same coverage can vary substantially between insurance companies for a variety of reasons. It all depends on things like the insurer's claims experience and how they rate you as a driver. The only way to know which company offers you the best rate and coverage is to shop around and compare quotes. 

The average monthly car insurance cost in Ontario is approximately $120, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. However, this can vary greatly depending on your personal driving record and insurance history, the vehicle you drive, where you live, and a number of other factors. Drivers who live in urban areas tend to pay more than drivers who live in rural areas, for example.

Car insurance in Ontario varies significantly, and the best way to determine how much car insurance will cost you is to compare rates. Every driver’s situation is unique, and by comparing quotes customized specifically to you, you'll see not only the range of quotes available to you, but also how much you can save on your car insurance!

Yes, car insurance is mandatory in order to legally drive in Ontario. Vehicles must have insurance or else drivers risk serious fines starting at $5,000 upon a first conviction. Drivers must purchase coverage from a private insurance company. The same is true for drivers in Alberta, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador. 

Ontario is a no-fault insurance province, and while this might sound like it means no one will be found at fault in the event of a collision, it really means something altogether different. 

What no-fault actually means is if you are injured in an accident or your vehicle is damaged, then you deal with your own insurance company when making a claim. By going through your own insurer, you get the financial help you need right away—whether it’s for injuries you sustained or for fixing your damaged vehicle—instead of waiting for your insurer and the other drivers’ insurers to decide who was to blame for the incident before paying out benefits. 

For more information on this, please review our guide on The Truth About No-Fault Insurance.

Ontario Driver's Licence System and Your Auto Insurance

In Ontario, drivers must be 16-years-old to obtain a driver's licence. The province operates under a graduated system that has three levels of classification. The first is a G1 licence. This is a written test that drivers must pass. A driver with a G1 class license can operate a vehicle only when driving with a fully-licensed G driver in the passenger seat. A G1 is essentially a learner's permit. Typically people with a G1 license practice driving with someone else's vehicle and would typically be covered under that person's auto insurance policy. To learn more about G1 licence requirements and restrictions click here.

After one year, drivers can take a driving test to obtain their G2 licence. This licence allows drivers to operate a vehicle without accompaniment from a fully-licensed driver. However, there are conditions and restrictions to this licence as well. Depending on the situation, a G2 driver may be added as an occasional driver to an existing policy, or may have their own policy if they own a vehicle. To learn more about what's involved in a G2 licence in Ontario, click here.

Finally, drivers can take further testing to become a fully-licensed G class driver. The graduated licensing process takes about 20 months in total to complete. Whether you have a G2 or a G licence, if you have your own vehicle you must have an auto insurance policy as it is illegal to operate a vehicle in Ontario without valid car insurance. Hot tip: Drivers who take an accredited drivers training program may be eligible for significant savings on their auto insurance. Check the Ministry of Transportation to find out which programs qualify and start saving today!

The standard auto insurance policy in Ontario is comprised of four different types of car insurance that are mandatory coverages. Every Ontario auto insurance policy includes the following types of car insurance coverage: 

• Third-party liability - Covers costs associated with a lawsuit against you in the event that you're responsible for injury or death to, or damage the property of, a third party. 
  
• Statutory Accident Benefits - These benefits cover costs such as medical treatments, income replacement and attendant care in the event that you are injured in a car accident. 
  
• Direct Compensation-Property Damage - Covers damage to your vehicle or its contents, and for loss of use of your vehicle or its contents, if another person was at fault for the accident. 
  
• Uninsured Automobile - Protects you and your family in the event of a hit-and-run or an uninsured motorist injuring you or causing your death. 

There are also several optional coverages that you can add to enhance your auto insurance coverage. 

Collision and comprehensive are the two most common optional coverages drivers choose to add to their auto insurance policies. Both types cover costs associated with fixing your vehicle if damaged. Collision covers damages resulting from an accident, while comprehensive coverage covers damages caused by vandalism, theft, hail and similar named perils. 

Accident forgiveness is a type of car insurance coverage that allows drivers to have one at-fault accident (their first) without seeing an increase in their car insurance premiums. Typically, if a driver is found to be at-fault in a major accident it’s guaranteed they’ll see their premiums increase since they are now considered higher-risk. However, some insurance companies offer accident forgiveness as a way to acknowledge that sometimes good drivers make mistakes.

You are not automatically covered for accident forgiveness, and there are limitations to this type of coverage:

• Some companies in Ontario include accident forgiveness as part of their standard policy for eligible drivers, while others may offer it as an optional coverage at an additional charge. Some companies don’t offer it at all.
• Each company has its own rules and limitations as to the extent of the coverage.
• There will be eligibility criteria that you must meet in order to obtain accident forgiveness coverage, such as already being accident-free for a defined period of time (usually six years)
• Accident forgiveness may be honoured by the issuing insurance company, but if you switch to a new provider, that provider will see an at-fault accident on your record and charge you accordingly.
• Typically protects the primary driver only.
• Is void if you are convicted of a major driving offence.

In Ontario, insurers cannot increase your premiums for minor at-fault accidents where the following occurred. nobody was hurt there was less than $2,000 in damages to each vehicle, there was no insurance payout and any damages were paid for by the at fault driver. this is limited to one occurrence every three years. Thus, accident forgiveness coverage is meant more for first-time accidents that cause more significant damage.

Be sure you fully understand your accident forgiveness coverage and limitations, as you wouldn’t want any surprises in the event of an accident.

Learn more about accident forgiveness in our article, The Truth About Accident Forgiveness and Other Insurance Features.

When determining your auto insurance rate, insurance companies look at a number of variables, including:

• Where you live
• The type of vehicle you drive
• Your driving record
• Your insurance history
• The coverage options you choose to include in your policy
• Eligible discounts
• If you’re bundling with other insurance products, such as home insurance
• Your age and marital status
• The company’s own insurance claims history 

Ontario car insurance rates often change, and it usually boils down to the insurance company’s claims costs. When claims costs go up (or down), typically premiums will follow. There are other factors too, like the introduction of new discounts (e.g. Ontario’s winter tire discount) or when benefit coverages or options change, to name just a few recent examples. 

Ontario auto insurance companies cannot increase, or decrease, their rates on a whim. The Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO), a regulatory agency of the Ministry of Finance, must approve changes to auto insurance rates. Every three months, FSCO releases the rate changes they’ve approved, and while sometimes only a handful of insurers change their rate, other times many do. 

“Consumers are urged to shop around for auto insurance,” says FSCO every quarter in its report. “Ontario has a very competitive marketplace.”

Any time Ontario auto insurance rates change is an opportunity to save money on your premiums. Rates do not uniformly increase, or decrease, across the board. That’s why it’s important to compare rates regularly. Don’t wait until it’s time to renew to see if you could be saving money. Compare rates, at minimum on renewal, but also when your marital status changes, you move, or buy a new car. 

As part of the 2019 provincial budget, the Province of Ontario announced a number of changes to work towards auto insurance reform in Ontario. This included:

Putting Drivers First

The blueprint for auto insurance reform in Ontario, the provincial government included among its proposals:

• Introducing a Driver Care Card to help streamline care and the claims process
• Improving access to treatment for both physical and mental care
• Giving drivers more choice in the outcome of insurance claims
• Reforming the medical assessments process.

Additionally, the government seeks to decrease auto insurance costs and enhance the competitiveness of the market by:

• Enabling insurance companies to offer more discounts and launch new innovative products, such as pay-as-you-go programs
• Measurements to combat fraud
• Improving auto insurance regulation methods in the province
• Digitizing proof of insurance in Ontario to allow for a more competitive market
• Ending postal code discrimination so rates are based more on personal driving history than location

Learn more about Ontario auto insurance reform in our article, Ontario Auto Insurance Proposals in Budget to Reduce Costs, Regulations.

If you are involved in an accident resulting in injury or damage, you must report it to your insurance representative within seven days, no matter who is at fault. Failure to do so could result in your insurance company not honouring your claim. As a best practice, you should report your accident as soon as possible, though final cut off times may vary by provider.

Once you report the accident to your insurance company and file a claim, an insurance claims adjuster will be assigned to your case to determine fault. In the insurance world, someone is always partially or fully at fault. This is so that insurance companies can determine who pays what damages, and that the at-fault driver’s premiums are reflected accordingly. Insurance companies base this decision on the Fault Determination Rules, a legal insurance act governed by the Province of Ontario.

Once fault is determined, payouts will be processed. If you are found to be at fault, your rates may increase upon renewal. If you disagree with the outcome of an insurance investigation you can contact the claims manager or the insurance company ombudsperson to help you resolve the issue. The name of insurance company ombudsperson is usually listed on the company website as well as with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). This is the governing body that oversees auto insurance in Ontario.

Rates often change. In Ontario, changes to car insurance rates are approved every three months. Depending on the quarter, just a few insurers might increase or decrease their rates. Sometimes dozens do!

Most car insurance policies default to a $500 deductible, which is the amount you pay in the event of a claim. Increase yours to $1,000 and you're looking at saving five to 10 percent on your car insurance.

Paying your premiums all at once instead of once a month can avoid those pesky administrative fees that typically accompany monthly payments.

Bundle your home insurance and car insurance policies together under one insurance provider to save five to 15 percent.

More cars under the same policy equals more savings on each policy. If you have more than one set of wheels, save up to 10 to 20 percent by insuring them on the same policy.

In Ontario, if you have (and install) winter tires, you will qualify for a discount of up to five percent.

Double check your coverages every year. If you no longer need certain protection, removing it from your policy is one way to reduce costs.

Install a telematics device in your vehicle to save money with good driving habits. Ask your insurer for more information.

In Ontario, union members and university alumni are often eligible for insurance discounts. Ask your provider about discounts they offer and see what you may qualify for. 

Are you a young or new driver, or are you adding one to your policy? Encourage them to enroll in an accredited driver's training school. The money you'll save on insurance typically offsets the cost of the training within in the first year.