“No Insurance Ticket”

I'm in huge trouble and really appreciate your help and opinion. So I bought a car without safety and etest. Being very handy with cars I fixed everything myself (in an underground apartment building using a couple of jack stands, not fun) and then on a nice clear day I decided to take it for a quick test drive. I used an old plate that I had on another car a few years ago which had expired. I got pulled over exactly 500 meters away from my apartment for the plates being expired and then the officer checked that they didn't belong to the car I was driving and finally asked for insurance which I forgot to buy. The car was not registered under my name. The two tickets were Drive Motor vehicle no insurance and use plate not in accordance with the act 12(1)(F).

I had no clue that I could get insurance for a car that is not registered under my name and I had no clue that I could register it temporarily without having the safety and etest done. The officer knew I had no idea what was going on so he kindly took the time to explain what I should have done and what I should do next and explained what the consequences are if I got into an accident without insurance so I apologized and thanked him of course. The whole thing went so calmly that I didn't even get a hint of the seriousness of that ticket. I was not raised here and insurance back home is a hoax that nobody cares about and everybody around me including my parents are good drivers so I had very little information about insurance except that everybody just has it. I think the officer figured that out because of my accent (and being clueless) especially that he explained everything in detail in sub -10 degrees. The officer didn't take my plates and told me that he won't be so anal to wait for me to get it towed even though I didn't ask if I can drive it back but I did tow it anyway (easy cash for the towing company) . I realize that I made a HUGE mistake after I did my homework when I got home. I'm hoping there is some way that I can talk to the judge about my particular case. I am an engineering student looking to pursue a career in the automotive industry. I'm also a die hard car enthusiast since the day I was born. Going for a drive is what pulls me back up when I'm down. This ticket has the potential to flip my entire life upside down and I really think it is unfair in my specific case because I have paid thousands of dollars on insuring my cars and they never had to pay anything back. I am honestly the perfect citizen, never had any traffic or any kind offence, I never even talked to an officer before, I don't drink and drive ever, I never smoked anything, I pay my taxes, hell I don't even drink coffee. I know all of that doesn't matter but other than the fact that I don't have the money to pay half the minimum ticket, my main concern is the insurance hike. I read that my insurance will be 10 times greater. I've been insured for 5 years with no record at all which is a miracle for someone with a passion for sports cars and for someone that drives as much as I do. Knowing that I couldn't afford the small insurance hike if I get a ticket made me make sure I follow the rules real closely. I have sold that car and my other classic car(which was insured at the time in case that helps) just so I don't go bankrupt. My other concern is that I will be unemployable to any of the summer jobs at car dealerships I used to have since the first question they always ask was if I have a clean driving record and if I own a car. I won't be able to afford to buy and more importantly insure a car because of this mistake so my life is completely over. The only way out is moving to Europe the day I graduate and until then I guess it's back to the good old days of playing car video games on a PC keyboard. I did not hire a lawyer for obvious reasons, is there a possibility that the crown will consider my specific case and forgive me this time? I mean now I understand the reason behind the big fine and big consequences is to prevent some people that apparently cheap out on insurance (which I never did) and I have definitely learned my lesson not to even start the engine of any car if it doesn't have insurance but ruining the life of a good citizen for $5000 and loosing a potential skilled professional seems a bit illogical which is why I still have a small hope. I have very little knowledge in the court system so if you can please give me baby steps of what should I do at the summons day to maybe talk to the crown.

You are not going to be able to talk your way out of this. You either did or did not have insurance.

In some jurisdictions it is the person who is insured so if you had insurance on one vehicle you might be insured 3rd party only on another (but generally not one you own). In Ontario you insure the vehicle.

You say you follow the rules really closely but unfortunately on this occasion you didn't and got caught. It's going to be an expensive lesson. You will be able to ask the JP for time to pay however but your insurance is going to become very expensive for the next few years.

My insurance company covers any new cars I buy without specifically having to inform them. Do you have another car with insurance on it? If yes, check with your provider to see if it covers new cars you purchase. If no, then get a good lawyer.

argyll wrote:You are not going to be able to talk your way out of this. You either did or did not have insurance.

In some jurisdictions it is the person who is insured so if you had insurance on one vehicle you might be insured 3rd party only on another (but generally not one you own). In Ontario you insure the vehicle.

You say you follow the rules really closely but unfortunately on this occasion you didn't and got caught. It's going to be an expensive lesson. You will be able to ask the JP for time to pay however but your insurance is going to become very expensive for the next few years.

I won't be driving then, doing some quick search it will be around $700/month which is more than I make in a part time job. I guess I'm moving to Europe then. Do you know how long till my record is clean again?

jsherk wrote:My insurance company covers any new cars I buy without specifically having to inform them. Do you have another car with insurance on it? If yes, check with your provider to see if it covers new cars you purchase. If no, then get a good lawyer.

A lawyer is out of question, I can't afford it. I did have insurance on another car when this happened, I'll ask my insurance tomorrow. What is your insurance? Maybe it's the same

Aviva/Traders General ... I would suggest not giving too many details. Don't lie to your insurance company, but be as vague as possible.

jsherk wrote:Aviva/Traders General ... I would suggest not giving too many details. Don't lie to your insurance company, but be as vague as possible.

I just checked the O.A.P 1, it says that If I buy a car it is insured the same way my other car is insured. So I guess I was covered. Hopefully this helps.

If you can get a letter from your insurance company saying that you were covered for that car during the time period when you got the ticket then you should be able to have the no insurance charge withdrawn. That will still leave you with the Use plate not in accordance with Act charge, however if nothing else the fine for that one is a lot lower.

Get a letter from your insurance company stating that the car in question (make, model, year, vin) was covered on the day of the ticket, and this should be sufficient to get the charge thrown out. Driving with no insurance is something huge like a $5,000 fine so you definitely want to avoid this if possible.

As for the other ticket, it says this:

Best case is only a $100 fine... worst case is $1000 fine, 30 days in prison and 6 month license suspension.

jsherk wrote:Get a letter from your insurance company stating that the car in question (make, model, year, vin) was covered on the day of the ticket, and this should be sufficient to get the charge thrown out. Driving with no insurance is something huge like a $5,000 fine so you definitely want to avoid this if possible.

As for the other ticket, it says this:

on conviction is liable to a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000 or to imprisonment for not more than thirty days, or to both, and in addition the persons licence or permit may be suspended for not more than six months

Best case is only a $100 fine... worst case is $1000 fine, 30 days in prison and 6 month license suspension.

Thanks for your help. Never thought I would have the risk of going to prison. Anyway, Do you know if that second charge would cause any hike in my insurance?

I would assume yes, but you would have to ask your insurance company to confirm.

There is a zero% chance of you going to jail...

Court date tomorrow. Got a letter from insurance company hopefully I'm good. For the second ticket, will it affect my insurance premium? If so by how much? Paying $80-$90 now.

Good luck. Let us know how it goes.

Almost all tickets can be used by insurance to increase your rates, and each insurance company is different so there is no way to guess... need to ask them directly. Hopefully it is just considered MINOR and will not cause much of an increase.

Let us know what happens tomorrow!