Bill 171 is a huge step in the right direction, which is why the Insurance Bureau of Canada is pushing hard for all-party support when it comes to a vote in the Legislature (“Little benefit for victims,” Alan Shanoff, March 16). It’s a solid attempt to fix the broken dispute resolution system and it would re-set the interest rates for pre-judgment interest. The current pre-judgment interest rate for “pain and suffering” damages was fixed at 5% more than 20 years ago when the floating rate for these damages was 13.9%. Now, of course, market rates have dropped well below 5%, making 5% a vast overpayment. Not everything about Bill 171 makes sense to us. While we support speedier resolution of disputes, the proposed timelines sound unrealistic. Overall, with Bill 171, the government has sets its sights on fixing a very longstanding and thorny regulatory mess — the auto insurance dispute resolution process. Moving the dispute resolution process to the License Appeal Tribunal is an excellent first step. We look forward to working together to help put the staged car accident business out of business. That’s the only way to stop those who are illegally or inappropriately sucking money out of the system at the expense of injured motorists.
Ralph Palumbo Vice-President, Ontario Insurance Bureau of Canada(We agree with Shanoff. We see nothing in this legislation that helps people who are injured in car accidents) – Sun Editor