Car Insurance Yellowknife

At Surex, our three-step process will ensure that you end up with the best car insurance in Yellowknife. Here’s how it works:

1. Personalized insurance quotes: Surex will capture some of your basic information — either by phone or online — and then shop the market for you. In under ten minutes, you’ll have up to ten personalized insurance offers to choose from.
2. Customize your offers: Once you receive the initial automobile insurance quote, you can edit your information, compare insurance companies and compare quotes to find the best overall value.
3. Purchase and manage 24/7: Once you’ve selected an online car insurance quote & reviewed the insurance policy with the best insurance broker, you can electronically sign documents to receive instant proof of insurance. If you’d rather speak with someone we will connect you with a dedicated insurance broker to walk you through all the options and answer any questions you might have. Once you get insurance online through Surex, your documents will arrive in the mail and you can manage your policy 24/7 with our ‘My Surex’ login feature.

• Be a winter driving expert: It goes without saying that winters in Yellowknife are long, frigid, and unrelenting. If you’re a motorist in Yellowknife, you absolutely need to install approved winter tires, in addition to keeping a well-stocked emergency kit, blankets, flares and matches, non-perishable food items, a charged mobile phone, at least half a tank of gas, an extra container of winter-rated windshield washer fluid, a spare tire, a quality snow scraper, extra gloves and a toque, and a bag of de-icer in case your tires get stuck. Additionally, always drive with less speed and extra caution in Yellowknife’s wintery conditions.
• Plan your route in advance: Many of the roads surrounding Yellowknife are poorly lit and not regularly maintained. Some roads are added only during the winter months to service remote northern communities (ie. ‘snow roads’ or ‘winter roads’). If you’re planning a long road trip, be sure to seek advice on your route and plan everything out in advance. For instance, don’t plan on using a logging road if you don’t know that it will be open at the time of your trip. Wherever possible, try to stick to more traveled routes that pass through small towns, communities, or gas stations. Lastly, let your friends and family know of your travel plans prior to departure.
• Watch for wildlife: When driving in Yellowknife and throughout the Northwest Territories, watch out for wildlife! Collisions with bison are not uncommon, and there’s a chance you’ll happen upon black bears, grizzly bears, moose, caribou, foxes, lynxes, and wolves. Be mindful of our creature friends — Northwest Territories is their home, too.
• Obey the rules of the roads: The routes surrounding Yellowknife and throughout the Northwest Territories generally range from 70 km/hr to 100 km/hr, and many of them are radar-enforced. While many of the roads are paved, some are hard-packed gravel, which can create dangerous conditions — especially in rain and poor weather conditions. Be careful when navigating the challenging roads of Yellowknife and the Northwest Territories; always keep your vehicle serviced and carry a properly inflated spare tire (and jack) at all times.

• Shop around: Comparing car insurance rates online is one of the most effective ways of finding low cost auto insurance in Yellowknife. And thanks to rate comparison sites like Surex, it’s quick and easy to compare offers from among the top rated car insurance companies in Canada. As a rule of thumb, all drivers should get an updated auto insurance quote once per year, prior to the renewal of their current policy. This is because their personal driving situation may have changed, as may have the rules and regulations set by provincial and territorial governments that insurance companies must adhere to. Once you find a rate you’re happy with, you can speak to a qualified Dedicated Insurance Assistant about payment options, bundling, and discounts that can further save you money on your premium.
• Driver’s education: By completing a qualified safe driving program, new drivers will be qualified for savings of up to $1,500 per year, for their first three years on the road. Driver’s education is one of the most effective ways to lower your automobile insurance premium, and it’s one of the best ways to learn the rules of the road and avoid accidents. Speak to your Dedicated Insurance Assistant about which programs are recognized.
• Ask about discounts: Most drivers know there are discounts for using winter tires and bundling multiple policies, but those are just the tip of the iceberg. Yellowknife motorists may qualify for many more discounts, so always ask your Dedicated Insurance Assistant before closing your policy. Here are some of the auto insurance discounts that are available: Claims-Free Driving, Good Student, Electric Vehicle, Private Parking, Anti-Theft and Safety Technology, Low Kilometres, CAA Membership, Occupation or Association Discounts, and Early Renewal.
• Ask about telematics: Some of the top rated car insurance companies in Canada give policyholders the option to install a small digital device in their vehicle that monitors their driving behaviour. Also known as ‘Usage-Based Insurance’, telematics discounts of up to 30% are rewarded to drivers who display safe driving behaviours (and don’t worry — insurance companies typically won’t raise rates if the tracked driving behaviour doesn’t result in a safe driving discount). The telematics devices monitor factors such as speed, braking, smoothness, length of trips, and fuel consumption.

There are many ways for motorists to earn affordable car insurance premiums in Yellowknife, such as shopping around online for the best rates available and never missing a payment. Other strategies for lowering your rate include bundling multiple policies with the same auto insurance company, inquiring about what discounts you qualify for, raising your deductible, avoiding coverages you don’t need, paying your full premium at one time, keeping a clean driving record, and completing a safe driving course.

It depends. If you make repeat claims or an at-fault claim, the top rated car insurance companies in Canada may begin to see you as a high-risk driver — a customer that is likely to cost them money — and will therefore increase your rates. However if you rarely make claims, or occasionally file an unavoidable claim, you may not notice much of a rate change at all. It depends on your personal driving situation, the risk assessment of your vehicle and your neighbourhood, and the underwriting algorithms of your online auto insurance company in Yellowknife.

If you’re not planning on driving the vehicle (even from the dealership to your home), then you are allowed to simply ‘own’ it, without insuring it. However, as an uninsured vehicle, it must remain on private property, and therefore cannot be parked on a public street without having at least the provincial minimum required car insurance in Yellowknife. If your uninsured vehicle does end up on the road, you can be fined from $5,000 up to $50,000, your license could be suspended, and your car could be impounded.

Auto insurance policies can either be cancelled by the policyholder (meaning the policyholder will face cancellation penalties, if they cancel prior to the end of their policy term), or can be cancelled by auto insurance companies (if the policyholder missed a payment or breached the rules of the agreement). Typically, if a policyholder has been cancelled as a result of a missed payment, they have 15 days to pay the outstanding amount. If this payment window is missed, it’s up to the insurance company to either reinstate the driver (usually at a higher rate) or decline them from further auto insurance coverage. This is why it’s so critical to never miss a payment; and if you do, be honest about why and attempt to repair the relationship with your car insurance provider in Yellowknife.

In short, yes. But vehicle age isn’t the only factor. Insurance providers look at the make and model of your vehicle — in addition to your driving history, your demographic, the likelihood of your vehicle being stolen, the cost to repair or replace it, your neighbourhood crime rate, and more — in order to determine the likelihood of you making a claim. The less likely they feel you are to make a claim, the lower your auto insurance rates will be, and vice versa.