Do Parking Tickets Affect Your Insurance?

With auto insurance rates increasing across Ontario, it’s normal to be curious about what factors into calculating your premium. Several details, including your driving history, driving violations, accidents, and vehicle type, will all impact how much you pay for insurance. However, a very common question that policyholders ask their brokers is, "Do parking tickets affect your insurance?". If this is something you’ve found yourself wondering in the past, this blog will help you learn more!

What type of parking tickets are there?

Parking tickets are not considered traffic violations as they are not moving violations. There are several types of parking infractions. The most common of these are:

• Parking in a no stopping zone
• Parking in a no-parking zone
• Parking near a fire hydrant
• Parking in a disabled parking zone
• Parking in a snow route or fire route zone

Do parking tickets affect your insurance?

So, how do parking tickets affect insurance rates? The simple answer is no. Parking tickets themselves will not affect your insurance. They are not moving violations, so they will not go on your insurance history record or driving record. No matter how many parking tickets you receive, they will not increase your insurance rates.

However, failing to pay them could result in a licence suspension, which can end up on your driving record, creating an indirect pathway through which parking tickets affect insurance rates. Most parking tickets in Ontario allow 15 days to pay your ticket. You should then receive a reminder in the mail before it is provided to the Ministry of Transportation. If you fail to pay your parking tickets, you will be unable to renew your licence plate, which will suspend your licence. So, while most driving violations will affect your insurance rate, parking tickets will not increase your insurance rates unless you do not pay them.

Demerit points and other traffic violations may impact your rates differently. Click here to learn more.

How Do Demerit Points Affect Your Car Insurance?

Even the most vigilant and experienced drivers across Canada can experience a traffic violation. Whether it's accidentally overlooking a speed limit sign or running a red light, you might end up with an unexpected ticket. It might not immediately occur to you how a fine for a moving violation can affect your insurance rates. However, the realization often comes as an unwelcome surprise when you're faced with significantly higher premiums at the time of policy renewal. It's crucial to understand that while demerit points and insurance premiums aren't directly correlated, having points on your driver's licence and a conviction for a driving offence can raise your rates.

Demerit points act as penalties for drivers who violate traffic laws, with minor infractions adding as few as two points and more severe violations amassing up to 15 points. This system promotes safer driving practices and guarantees compliance with traffic regulations.

However, the demerit point system primarily gauges a driver's eligibility to hold their driver's licence rather than directly affecting insurance premiums in Canada. In determining your premiums, insurers consider the nature and severity of any minor, major, or criminal convictions.  The specific characteristics of the conviction, rather than the number of demerit points, play a crucial role in impacting your insurance costs. For example:

• Minor driving convictions result in zero to three demerit points for behaviours such as speeding or failure to obey a stop sign.
• Major driving convictions accrue six or more points for offences like driving the wrong way on a one-way street.
• Criminal driving convictions for violations like leaving the scene of an accident or stunt driving can lead to six or more points.

Additionally, outstanding parking fines and non-moving violations can also play a role in your driving record. In these situations, parking tickets affect insurance indirectly.

FAQs

Do parking tickets affect insurance in Ontario?

No, there is no direct correlation between parking tickets and insurance premium adjustments in Ontario. Insurance companies are primarily concerned with moving violations and claims history when determining premiums. However, unpaid parking tickets can lead to licence suspension, negatively affecting your insurance.

Does a parking ticket affect insurance rates if you have other unpaid parking tickets?

Having multiple unpaid parking tickets can lead to administrative consequences. If you cannot renew a vehicle registration or receive a licence suspension due to parking tickets, insurance premiums are sure to go up.

Do parking tickets affect demerit points?

No, parking tickets do not result in demerit points on your driving record. Demerit points are only given for a moving violation in an effort to minimize future risky or outright dangerous driving behaviour.

Will a parking ticket affect my insurance if it's my first ticket?

A single ticket—or even multiple parking tickets—will not affect your car insurance rates. Insurance companies do not consider parking tickets when calculating premiums.

Does a parking ticket affect your insurance if it's disputed and later dismissed?

You can fight a parking ticket to avoid a fine. However, since parking tickets don't affect your insurance rates anyway, even if you get one dismissed, it wouldn't affect your insurance.

Contact a BIG broker to learn more

Hopefully, this blog has provided useful insight regarding parking tickets and car insurance. If you are curious about other factors that affect your rate, contact a BIG broker or request a quote for car insurance today.