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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1987-04-22, Page 76Entertainment oFeGtur8 SECTION • • TOP t ARTIIC~°� ST 0 POLICE , '*^ �� ^ ' } a • • .^~ Lengthy court cases and expensive drain' settlements caused by ainornobile ac- " cideuts, like the above simulated crash staged by GIOCI's Student's Against Driving Drunk. (SAUD) program recently, are the main cause of sky -rocketing insurance premiums in Ontario, according to Insurance Industry representatives. A change to some form of `no-fault' Insurance would eliminate mueh of the cost of determining • BY PATRICK RAFT%8 ' Just about every asp,ect Of the automobile insurance industry •in Ontario has' come under scrutiny in the past several moths. • The provincial New. Democratic' Party is calling for tighter governm.ent" control of the' industry , cuStorners are demanding lower prernuirns. and. a yeduction in the rates charged to drivers, in "high-risk" classifications. Th-ose involved with the in- surance industry have also indicated some unhappiness with the current state 'of • Reform,' it seems, is inevitable. The main 'question now is,.What form will new nAurance 'regulations take? Basically, the government and the in surance industry are considering three dif ferent options foi% providing automobile liability' insurance to Ontario motoristS. . PRESENT SYSTEM . A random sampling of area insurance brokers indicates moSt. feel it is' unlikely Ontario will retain the current System of providing coverage and . determining premiums much longer. • • -This (insurance brokage) is a difficult business to be .•in right now. because it seeins'like the rates are going up twice a year. It's not the companies who take the heat for that, it's us," Said Jean MacEwan, .of Peter S. MacEwan Insurance Brokers. '.-Forn that reason, I cerinly think some sort of reform is neceessary, although I don't neccessarily mean 'no fault."' "1 .expect there will be some sort of change, although I cari't say exactly what kind," said Jim Mulhern, -of Lyons and Mulhern Insurance Brokers. "They seem to. think that going to be some sart of 'no fault,' as the answer. If the situation. settlements and premiums ) is going to continue. to escalate, then the government is going to have to take a look at it". Len Theedom„ of Clinton, Public Rela tions Committee Chairman' for the In surance Brokers ASso,ciation of Ontario, says reform in the system of determining premiums will probably occur because the present Method, based on sek, age and marital status' of the driver iS "socially -Right now - with this so-called 'adver sarial system' - the way premium8 are collected at the present time, for the given conditions, the current method of doing it is the fairest; looking at driver experience, and distance travelled and other factors. ' 'But, once premiums start getting high, it doesn't become socially acceptable to use our present methods ( of determining premiums)," he said. However, he warned, a change may not benefit all drivers equally. I f itsomes down to itthat we n't use sex. age. and marital status, then the premiums payed by young drivers are go- ing to drop, while the premiums of older, more experienced drivers will go up," he pointed out. The present system of determining liability and damage awards, says Thmx|om, has so many built in legal costs that it results invariably, in high premiums. '`Th present system that we have is based on the Common Law system. It's an' adversarial system and it says that the driver in an accident is responsible for damages to the extent that he was negligent. Likewise, the victim is compen- xuted to the extent that he was non- negligent. on'negURcnL "The problem with the adversarial system is that the actual decision about who is to b\amom, and for how much, can take years and yearsThere is a great deal of legal cost involved in deciding who's at fau|t." TOTAL NO FAULT' Tota no fault automobile insurane is a fundamentally different method of com- pensation, according to information pro- vided by the Insurance Brokers Associa- tion of Ontario, which establishes for all in- ourudn the right to recover losses from their own insurer. It takes away the right of an injured party to sue another driver for recovery of damags. There is no need for the iniured driver to prove negligence blame and compensation in injury and property damage cases and would almost cer- tainly result in lower insurance premiums for all drivers, according to Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario representative Len Theedorn. While change seems" in- evitable, the exact form a new system would take is yet to be determined. (photo by Patrick Raftis) insur.....ce� � � �� J� �� -�0 �-��L�� r��J� � � NK � � N| �� U �� so�n , �~ �� Most area brokers believe ~~ ' some form of 'no-fault' no-fault' liability insurance nsurance will t le the place of currentnt adversarial claims system m due to excess settlements ��w�� Only time ill tell how insurance reform will affect the miums of most drivers. However, under any of the prOposed systems, drivers involved. in impaired driving ac- cidents, like this simulated crash staged by the local chapter of SADD, will continue to pay higher rates than other drivers, according to Insuranee Brokers of Ontario Public Relations Chairman Len Theedom. A random sampling of area insurance brokers indicates most beleive the current system of resolving claims and determining premiums is on the way out. (photo by Patrick Raft's) No fault insurance does not automatical- ly mean a govenment insurance monopoly. The only true no-fault .automobile in- surance plan in Canada is in Quebec, where lawsuits based on automobile acciL dent injuries are prohibited. Instead, peo- ple schedule of fixed benefits. In Quebec, auto liability' insurance is sold only by a govern - 'Merit agency. Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia have government insurance monopolies. Bovvever, they all permit lawsuits for personal injuries. In those provinces, as in the rest of Canado, people injured in auto accidents are entitled to certain no-fault henefits, as are their dependants. However, there is no restriction on the right to go to court. Neither the idea of either government run nor total no fault insurance is the ideal �� m�uu�un in Up e�eu_of thp-bzsuron,e ' «�� ,nx,n n / / Jean K�ucBwunsaid iniboUnKugovern- ment would be a "gross er- ror," things a lot better than the governmenLY Thoedon�nbid taking auto liability away from private companies would reduce their activity and have a detrimental im- pact m' poctontheenUreecononoy. "The loss is in the investment that com- panies mookeinreal estate, bonds, school bondo, municipalbonds and eventuoUyn loss of taxoUnnbecause alot ofcon�paniex. especially i¢B.C. have pulled out.'' he said. • As far as total no-fault is concerned, vvbile(tvvou\dcut down Areadyonlegal ex- penses,"it still takes 'uwa�non�*/6your rights," namely the right to sue, said Mulhern. �uo��y °"� that ' in a whee chair ndcan t .~' HY WILLIAM THOMAS v werk for the rest of my life; that can't get same kind of settlement," throUgh the courtS, said John Banter, of Banter and 1VtacEWan Insurance Brokers, another #- • MODIFIED SYSTEM. .1 "We rather opeif they are going to ^ do anything, it wouId be in the direction of ; a modified no-fault system,'! uai¢ Theedom. , Theedom was referring ,to the' so-called "smart no-fault" insurance system being , advocated by the Insurance Bureau . of Canada in a national television advertising I, campaign. However,' he admits, even that 1 type of system could not be implirnented by the ,^ ave to be he said: • . pensate victims for two types of loSses, eConomic ( lost wages,' damage to vehicles, I etc": and non -economic (-pain and suffer- I ing," bereavement, etc. Modified no-fault be "settled speedily and on what they con- sider to be a fair basis," ,while victims would retain the right tO sue for compensa- • tion for non -economic, thus more discre- tionary, claims, said Theedom. . • ile he said. it is toe soon to offer . specific figures hd formulas for deter: mining under. a no-fault or Modified did say they would result in a general reduc- tion of rates for all types of drivers "It isa concept and 1 don'tthink anyone in the insurance, business would be red to sa'we've got the'rate's work- ed out and guetto8o,`"heoaid` goirg'tohave to take the present nituobon that we have and relate that to potential contu of no-fault ,paynoen1u and take an educated Aueaamotowhat would happen on the compensation puckoAoo." he added. ~ wever, even under any form of no- fault *fao\t inourmnce, driver premiums would mtiD.vacy somevvhut, based on the type of driver involved. ' "There would 'have to be determining factors," Theedom explained. Criterion would also have to be deve\o'~ed to determine when avjetim's losses go beyond the scope of basic o-fau1t cuvora- e/and mUovvfor iibgation.VVheco that liis drawn, will have an imupoptunt effect on how fair a new system would be in special cases. SPECIAL SITUATIONS "That's where it (no-fault) becorness ine- quitab1 in cia| situations. l mean a person could hav,e an impairment for life and it might not be considered a serious in- jury,"cautionedQ8ulborn. / Also yet to be "fine-tuned," said Theedom, is the policy for determining premiums for drivers frequently involved in accidents. Most likely an individual ac- cident, involving strictly economic losses, would have no immediate effect on the premiums of the drivers involved. Premiums would only be raised if it was found rates for the entire cate.gory,.a driver lossspelsaced in were insufficient to cover . However, when a driver-ar ged with an offence such as impaired driving or dangerous driving as a result of the mo dent, that driver might find hiniself moved to a different cateQory, resulting in o' h|gUerpremuum. In addition to changing to a form of no- fault, Theedom believes a change inAhe Family Law Reform Act, which now allows members of u°perxon'u extended family /grundparento. etc.) to sue for \oaaem, would also improve the insurance situation. As a first move, we need to change the Family Law Reform Act (a process Theedom believes is at least two years away), then bring in modified no-fault. [ think that would be more or less our answer to the wholthing," Thd id . While the maintaining the present system, improved by tort reform," would be the insurance industries first choice, Theedom believes a switch to modified no- fault is the most ''nocioUyacceptaNe'' Uop- nn'mnd the one most �*l� to be irnTdimented in the nearfilture. - All things ` z �� D�/��N�� , »* � arid��y�� 1 It has been ht to my attention by 4 three letters from irate readers that I am a sion of proctology. , Allow me, as Tricky Dick Nixon used to saY with the plumbers flushing toilets and the secretaries erasing tapes in the background while sweat beaded up on his twitching upper lip glistening on the five o'.clock shadow that defied the act of shav- ing - alio* Me to make one thing perfectly clear. Regarding the last item name calling, I am not aboutta refute that label. There are ' too 'Many willing Witnesses who would be more than happy to testify to this characterization in a court lof law or even on a court of tennis. As they !say, if the shoe fits ... go ahead' ... kick me • 'there. , . . But I would like to correct a false albeit. . favorite saying often heard regarding this. I part of the anatomy. . t Two summers ago I was. sailing my hall lof a 16' Hobie Cat Which I owned with Mur- ray The Cop. At top speed we b.uried a pon- toon, and on the way to being propelled shorts caught On a mast hinge and were ripped off me. As I said, I am not denying the implied label I am only testifying'to the fact that sometimes, though very tem- porarily,'Oir ,a clear day over Lake Erie, - when the .wind is right the. sun does shine there. ' � . ' Now about those there inate readers. It was an h.editoroverwhelming. response given the fact that of swears that only five people read this column, More importatlynter." New The readers said I wrote about hating York, about hatins Florida, about hating .T.V. evangelists and about hating ." '/ And there's a wehl of wonderful things 1 ilike in this worldy were older. I --'kidsthink kids would beterrific if we kept them in youth camps until they're about 16 or so and admit them back into society when they're able to, support themselves. And please ' if you take exceptiOn to this remark, don't bother writing. Justice has been rendered. Every baby of every friend I have has thrown up on me at least once. I like politicians who are retired or �mceuoed I respect ' eat recently somewhere in the deep soUth • - of the United States. He was running for of-. ifice from within the walls of ihe' state 'penitentiary where he was serving five for fraud' If I could have moved to his constituencyand voted for him I would .have becausehe imprisoned • would-be senator's cam aign slogan was "I am a crook. Vote for a ' My like borders on love for the next Prime Minister of Canada, whoever she Xnay be. In the event we cannot glean the 'good sense to put a woman in that post at this point, I would welcome the election of n inanimate object. I ask ?ou, could an or- ate Eskimo carving do any worse? I like foreifilms, domestic beer and terhubonu\disurmuoenttuDm.ltbbdkif e combined massive amounts of all three in an eight-day, don't -come -out- till you've - got -something marathon - we could have .111 eace. I like farmer's markets, butcher's locks and shoe repair shops. I like eterinarians but not vegetarians, I like dertakers but not undertows and I think overachievers should never be truste. I like playing tennis, and [ think baseball is the greatest game man ever created after mating. I like drifting aimlessly with little hought to the past undeven less to the uture and' that's why'l like living in i ainfleet and still miss growing up in Dain 'City. And I don't even mind irate l�ttero as ong'ay. they are signed. Open househouse�� MacKay K C tr f--- seniors The MacKay Centre for Seniors wihl be holding an Open House on Wednesday, April nth from 4 p.m. Beatrice Sparling, President of MacKay Centre, will welcome members and guests to the Open House and introduce the pro- gram. Members of the shuffleboard group will demonstrate the game and invite members of the audience to participate. Susan Hrovat and the Keep Fit group will give a short presentation from their "Mov- ing to Music" exercise program. The "Hap- py Gang Dancers" led by Jack Scaman and Herb Bridle will demonstrate a couple of square dances. Refreshments, prepared by MacKay Cen- tre's catering committee, will be served and guests are welcome to tour the building and socialize. At 3:00 p.m. the MacKay Choristers led by Irla Stewart will be show- ing us what happens at a choir practice. The Art Club and Crafts Group will be displaying examples of their work downstairs. Card players and pool players will be downstairs. Board members and the co-ordinator' will be available to answer and discuss programs offered at MacKay Cem • 17,4t.�� • /] / /