How to get car insurance in a new province

You don't need to dread changing your car insurance when you move to another province - it's not as difficult as you might think. Here are some simple tips you can follow to make finding insurance in a new province even easier.

Before you leave

Contact your current insurance company and get a letter of experience stating how long you've been insured and how many claims you have on record. It's also a good idea to get a copy of your driving record too. Your new insurance company may request this information and it is a lot easier to get it before you move.

Get settled first

You usually have some time after you move to change your driver's licence and your car's plates. The same goes for your insurance. In most cases, your existing company will cover you in the new province where you are living for up to 30 days. Contact your current insurer to find out how long they will continue to cover you after you've made the move.

• Each province will require that you exchange your licence within a certain time frame after moving. Check our list of provincial government websites for more information on exchanging your driver's licence.



• Change your car's provincial registration and licence plates. The rules for each province are different and you should check what's required in your new province of residence to register your vehicle (e.g. emissions test). Check our list of provincial government websites for more information on vehicle licensing.

Shop around for insurance

Unless you are moving to British Columbia, Saskatchewan or Manitoba where insurance is provided by government agencies, you have a long list of insurance companies to choose from.

The company who insured you where you lived previously may not provide insurance in the province where you are moving - and if they do, they might not have the cheapest rate for you. The best advice is to compare car insurance quotes.

Comparing quotes on Kanetix with an out-of-province driver's licence

You may want to get an idea of what you'll be paying for insurance before you move. If this is the case, you'll need to know what your equivalent driver's licence will be in your new province. Each province has it's own licensing structure. Some go by numbers, some by letters. Some will have graduated licensing and others won't. Here is a quick reference table that will tell you what type of licence you'll have when you transfer over to your new province's system.

If you are moving to British Columbia, Saskatchewan or Manitoba, your insurance choice is simple. You have to purchase insurance from the government insurance provider in that province. Currently, Kanetix does not provide insurance quotes for these government agencies. For more information, visit their websites:

British Columbia:
www.icbc.com

Saskatchewan:
www.sgi.sk.ca

Manitoba:
www.mpi.mb.ca