“This is the most important day of the year for IBAO Advocacy,” said IBAO CEO Colin Simpson. “In the recent election over 70 new MPPs were elected. This was a great opportunity to share who our members are, the value of our members’ expertise and what we believe will be best for consumers.”
“The MPPs were eager to hear what we had to say and they seemed very receptive to our message,” said Eric Gaudrault, President, JMHI Insurance Group. “And we were able to build on established relationships with long-standing representatives.”
Throughout the year we’ve been advocating for the Government to adopt reforms outlined in the Marshall Report. We’ve attended pre-budget consultations, organized grassroots broker advocacy during the election, sent welcome kits to new MPPs and held a letter-writing campaign to ensure that Ontario Auto is reshaped to serve the best interest of consumers. There have been many attempts at reforming the Ontario Auto product, including two recent Bills aimed at eliminating territorial rating.
“We’re pleased to see that Ontario legislators are prioritizing bringing down auto insurance rates,” said LIBA President MaryKate Townsend. “We’re glad to see that they’re open to our message that short-term solutions are not the answer. There are underlying systemic issues that need to be addressed and that will reduce costs for everyone.”
Throughout the day, IBAO representatives met with influential MPPs and Cabinet Ministers, including Finance Minister Vic Fedeli, Attorney General Caroline Mulroney and Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Brokers spotted a number of Bipper Blankets and copies of TOB Magazine from our welcome kits displayed in MPPs’ offices.
The night was capped off with a very well attended cocktail reception, allowing brokers to meet additional MPPs that weren’t available during the day. In all, IBAO representatives met with over 50 sitting legislators.
The following day, an IBAO staff member received an email from their MPP in response to a letter they’d sent through GetRatesRight.ca:
Hi Tahnee,
Thank you for taking the time to write me about your concerns with the auto insurance rates in Ontario.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet with a few members of the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario to learn about some of the issues you raised in this e-mail.
I would like to reassure you that I plan on working with my colleagues in ensuring that a system is put in place that creates fairer auto insurance rates for Ontarians.
Once again, thank you for reaching out to me.
Regards,
Marit Stiles
MPP for Davenport
