• Brampton drivers pay, on average, $2,698 per year for coverage.
• The city is asking the province to act on previous promises to standardize auto rates across Ontario.
• Residents are encouraged to sign an online petition the city will forward to its Members of Provincial Parliament.

The City of Brampton is spearheading an online petition to pressure the Ontario government to take action to reduce the cost of car insurance for drivers who reside in the Greater Toronto Area suburb.

Citing information from a RATESDOTCA report that shows Brampton drivers pay, on average, $2,698 per year for coverage, which is 123% more than the provincial average of $1,616, more than 10,000 Brampton residents have signed the City of Brampton’s "Fair Deal for Brampton” campaign since it launched on April 26. The city is calling on the province to follow through on its pledge to remove postal codes from insurers’ calculations when determining premiums.

The city’s campaign page states, “we’re demanding a #FairDealForBrampton for auto insurance.” It encourages residents to sign the online petition, which will accompany a letter the city will send to the region’s local Members of Provincial Parliament. That letter asks the province to:

• Review auto insurance rates in Ontario and implement fair, consistent, and measurable qualifications to determining rates.
• Ask insurance companies to end the practice of using postal codes as a factor in determining rates.
• Act on previous promises to standardize rates across the province.

Ontario’s “Ending Discrimination in Automobile Insurance Act 2019” (known as Bill 42) has been under review by Ontario’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs since March 2019.

According to RATESDOTCA’s data, Brampton drivers pay the most for car insurance annually, followed by residents of Mississauga ($2,372), Vaughan ($2,334), Richmond Hill ($2,286) and Markham ($2,222). The average auto premium for Toronto residents is $2,201 per year.