Winter - the season of unpredictable weather and winter driving is upon us, and by now you should have had your tires (all four of them) changed to snow tires or winter tires as they are also known. No - not all-season tires, which some (non-expert) people claim are good enough. For winter driving in some places, sure... but this is Canada!

It is recommended by many driving experts that you get purpose-built winter tires which have special compounds and tread designs to maintain your vehicle’s grip in snow, ice, slush or wet. A Consumers Report study, by driving engineers, found that winter tires helped front-drive cars reach 20 mph nearly 28 feet sooner than all-season tires did.

Regardless of the evidence, only 31% of Ontarians use snow tires, according to a recent study, falling behind Quebec with 98% (it’s been law there to use winter tires since 2008), 60% in New Brunswick, 56% in Nova Scotia, and 44% in Newfoundland and Labrador. We’re slightly better with the winter tires than Alberta at 31%, PEI at 27%, BC and Saskatchewan at 23% each, and Manitoba at 17%.

Auto insurance claims by Canadians nearly double in winter, and it is worth noting that if you get in a crash where winter tires might have helped prevent, or mitigate, the damage done, the lack of snow tires could be a deciding factor in determining whether or how much you are at-fault, in a court of law.

Do you get snow tires put on your vehicles? Do you think they are essential for winter driving? If not, why not?

Snowmobiling is a popular winter recreational activity in Ontario; in some northern communities, people use the snowmobile for the vital transport of supplies. However, higher insurance premiums may be causing many riders to park their snowmobiles, or cut back on their riding, especially over the past five years.

Another insurance obstacle that can face snowmobile drivers is the fact that some insurance companies refuse to issue policies for snowmobiles that have engines larger than 700ccs, as they are deemed to be prone to more serious accidents.

You must have liability insurance if you are riding your snowmobile off your own property, and your snowmobile must be registered with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation whether it is on or off your property. The motorized snow vehicle operator's licence (MSVOL)

Be sure to carry your registration permit and insurance card with you when riding, or you could get dinged by a fine of up by $1,000 by a police or conservation officer.

If you use snowmobile trails, you’ll want to investigate getting a trail pass (through the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs) since it might yield you up to 10% discount on insurance. Talk to your insurance broker about whether your insurance company offers this discount.

If you are a year-round recreational vehicle fan, check into getting an off-road vehicle insurance policy to cover your snowmobile as well as ATVs, dune buggies and golf carts.

Happy Trails! Oh, and avoid driving your snowmobile on frozen lakes or rivers; not only is it unsafe, you’re not likely insured for any environmental damage you cause the body of water from leaking gasoline, oils and other toxic fluids from your snowmobile if it ends up in the water.

Are insurance premiums keeping you from enjoying your winter sport of snowmobiling as much as you used to? Leave your comment here.

You might be shocked to learn that both the average cost and the rate of increase in the costs of auto insurance claims is dramatically higher in our province than the rest of Canada.

The average cost of automobile accident injury claims in Ontario is about five times higher - $56,000 - than the average injury claim in other provinces. And even though the actual number of injury claims rose only 30% between 2005 and 2010, the total cost of auto insurance injury claims in Ontario rose by 150% in the same period. The discrepancy was most likely caused by the high level of auto insurance fraud.

“Auto insurance fraud is a big problem in Ontario”, the Auditor General Jim McCarter noted in his 2011 annual report. An estimated 20% to 15% of all claims paid in Ontario during 2010 (as much as $1.3 billion) are fraudulent.

Unlike many other jurisdictions in North America, Ontario has not historically had significant integrated measures in place to combat fraud, and is waiting for the recommendations of a government-appointed Anti-Fraud task force expected in the fall of 2012 - a development promised as part of the September 2010 auto reforms by the Ontario government.

Other findings of the recent Auditor General’s report include the following information about the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO), an agency of the Ministry of Finance:
•    About half of all injury claims in Ontario end up in mediation services offered by FSCO for drivers who disagree with settlement offers from insurers. However, since mediation is so backlogged, dispute resolution takes 10 to 12 months (rather than the legislated 60 days).

•    FSCO does not routinely obtain assurances from insurance companies that they had paid the proper amounts for claims - resulting in an increased risk of unnecessarily high payouts.

What do you think about Ontario drivers having five times higher car accident injury claims payout than the rest of Canada? Have you ever had an experience with auto insurance fraud? Leave your comment here: