Ontario’s most expensive cities for auto insurance revealed

Rate comparison site LowestRates.ca recently published its list of the top 15 most expensive cities in Ontario for auto insurance, with results suggesting that many of the Greater Toronto Area suburbs see the highest rates.

LowestRates.ca used data from its auto insurance quoter in September 2020 to determine the ranking of each Ontario city.

They found that Brampton is the most expensive city in the province for auto insurance with rates that are 123.5% above Ontario’s average price. LowestRates.ca mentioned that the high rates are partially due to the higher instances of insurance fraud in the area.

Scarborough places second, with insurance rates that are 83.6% more expensive than Ontario’s average, followed by North York, where drivers pay 77.8% more than the provincial average.

The full list of most expensive Ontario cities for auto insurance is as follows:

• Brampton (123.5% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Scarborough (83.6% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• North York (77.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Etobicoke (67.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Mississauga (50% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• East York (48.1% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Markham (40.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Toronto (36.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Hamilton (36.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Richmond Hill (35.8% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Windsor (31.5% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Ajax (26.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Pickering (25.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Barrie (20.7% more expensive than Ontario’s average)
• Oshawa (20.2% more expensive than Ontario’s average)

Several of the cities listed are the suburbs of Toronto, LowestRates.ca found.

“Drivers in suburbs need a vehicle to get pretty much anywhere, and they drive on bigger highways and more congested roads, each of which would contribute to higher premiums since there’s more risk associated,” the insurance comparison service said in a blog post.

The report also found that many of the cities have a high percentage of drivers with less than three years of driving experience. These types of drivers are likely to be classified as “new drivers” by insurers, and their lack of insurance and driving history means they are usually charged more for insurance.

Source: Revealed – Ontario’s most expensive cities for auto insurance