5~pi PAGE 15, HITBY FREE PR!ESS, WiEDNESDAY, APRILj 5,989 More about the new rating factors for car mnsurance Pages 18-19 C and C Motors moves to Whitby Page 20 by JiI Mclntosh When I first found out that I would be writing this column on a regular bass, I sent letters out te most of the car clubs in the Durham area, requesting that they send me information on their upcoming shows. Now most of these clubs were only addresses in my files; I bac! only ever spoken te one or two of them before and was a complete stranger te most of them. The response was fantastic! Within a week my mailbox was full and calîs were coming in regularly. Most clubs in Durham and nearby regions gladly welcome new members, andl invite the general public te attend their shows. I was even invited te attend several club meetings, and so far have sat in on a couple and have plans te visit more. My first stop was the Model A Owners of Canada. Despite their name, they are quick te say that you don't need te own a Model A Ford te join, just bave an interest in them. They can be reached at, Box 31, Station A, Scarborough MIK 5B9. The club is more of a social society for its members, andi at their picnics and tours you must be a member te enter your car. However, the general public is welcome to, come by any event and look at the gorgeous Fords on display there. On Father's Day, June 18, the club club will hold their annual picnic at the Pickering Village Museum in Greenwood, located just off Hwy 7, east of Broughamn. This will be a double treat for visiters, who oaeoythe cars alongside the fascnating displays and buildings at the museura. For yard-sale fanatics (Fmz one, I confess, and zny husband's a little nervous that I now have a pickup truck te baul everything home in), the club will hold a Iawn sale on Saturday, May 6 at 3 Peace Dr., in the MarkhamlBrimorton area of Scarborough. Haif of the proceeds go to the Canadian Electric Wheelchair Hockey Assciation; for information, oeil Roy Bebee at 438-5939. Prom the Model A Owners, my next stop was a little dloser to the present as I visited the Pine Ridge Corvette Club. Anyone owning a Corvette from any year is welcome to join, Iand can contact the club at Box 313, Whitby LIN 5R7. The club'a events, are generally closed affairs which are held in cordjunction with a national Corvette association, so you'll have te become a member if you want te, show your fiberglass beauty at their events. The exception is their Fun Ra]ly on Sunday, April 30, beginning at the Oshawa Centre (by the Golden Griddle) at 10 a.m. You can show up in any kind of automobile -- even a Corvette! -- and the cost is $12 per car, which includes food and drinks. Proceeds go te, Pine Ridge's favorite charity, t- he Spinal Bifida Association; f ,nation calI J. Ruiter at 576-8002. An "almost local" club in Durhamn is the Canadioen Street Roc! Association, which welcomes new members whether they own a car or not. I say "almost local" because while members range right across the country, association president Fred Bottcher lives in Oshawa. The CSRA's promotional trailer is kept in Whitby, and you should see it at several local events. For information calI Fred at 728-8437, or write Box 308,- cx The driving records of the people who use your car -- including their accidents, convictions and years behind the wheel - will be impotant factors deciding how much you pay for coverage under the new Ontario car insurance scheme. -Designed and Mgulated by the new Ontario Automobie minating collision mnsuranoe; - examine insurance rates on the.types of cars you consider buying - different makes make for different premiums; - a. change in driving habits may reduce rates (reduoe annual 'i: mq dst ncabstain from Changes in insurance rates. do not only ffct crivecs. It has already affect:d many insurance companies. At the very lest, it's creaIg a mass of paperwork for in- surance companies. «It's opened a can of worms, said Beyr Whale of Whale In- ,jurance Brokers Ltd. of Whitby. "It's a lot of paperwork without knowinq what the rates will be. I don't think it's necessary, the oIc! -structure was fair. 1 don't agree with it. "The few that are going te, benefit'from the change are not going.te offset the problems in doingit," he said.I Whale explained that initially the goverrnent wanted- all n- surance policies changed by June 1, but has settled for a year's transition period. The insurance will change when a driver's renewal policy would normaîly come due. «I look at it as a cross we have te bear,» said Ted Phls of E.A., Phillips Insurance. e aspect of competition is one we haven't worked out yet.» Phillips says 20 te, 30 comi- paniîes are not wrting any new business. Eatons is no longer in the auto business and Worker's [nsurance (run out of the UAW) is not; selling or renewing auto insurance.» uItV deflnitely going te create a lot of work,» said Peter DiLello of D.I.S. Insurance Brokers in Whitby. «Every auto policy owner needs te have a new appli- cation this year. "We have a ~o rapport with >ur clients. We ve kept in teuch. After the dust setties, a repu- tation for good service will realîy count to clients and referras,» says DiLello. >People with questions can cail the Ontario Automobile In- surance Board at 1 (800) 387- 2880 or pick up the pamphlet alled TYour Car Insurance: The ýew System Available' at many risurance companies and some Experience considered to rate rnsurance Insurance Board, a government agencythe programspels eout varieus rate levels insurance companies must charge motorias, including surcharges for recnt accident dlaims and- driving convictions. The plan, going into affect by June 1. eliminates drivers' age SEE PA G 1.9 The Isuzu Gemini Zero Door Concept car Page 20 A UTO INSURANCE The new factorsi Magnificent Monarch AL BARNlARD of the Motor City Car Motion 89 Custom Auto Show in Club of Oshawa had his 1947 Toronto. Moarhon display at the recent '%'n=c0hpredo.Free Premphoto By Trudie Zavadovics Who cares who y ou are? Cer. tainly not the Ontario Auto- mobil Insurance Board, at least, not anymore. It's where, what, when and how y ou drive that are alI factors in determiningl the new in- surance rates effective June 1. Speculation has! it that most rates will rise except for the young maIe driver Who, statisti- caly, has more açcidents. I n April, 1987, the Ontario Governnient announced it would be stricter in its regulation of the car insuranoe business. Premniums were frozen and the r overninent said it would no longer base insurance rates on age, sex, marital status, family status or handicap. The government then set up the Ontario Automobile In- surance Board to set rates to be <"just and reasonable, and not excessive or inadequate.» The two major changes in Ontario car insurance are the classification system, and deve- Iopment of a range of rates te, which insurance companies must adhere in setting their pre- miums. This wiII cut down the extent 9f competition allowed amongst insurance companies. The three majlor things that affect drivers under the new sys- tem are: classification; where your insurance company sets its rates in the range established by the OAIB; and where your pre- vious insurance premiums fer, in relation to, the îndustry average. In detail, the new classification system is based on: - how far you drive each year; - what kind of car you drive; - how you use your vehicle (for work, shopping, etc.); - where you live; - how long you've been driving; - driving convictions or offenses (speeding, impaired); - number of self-caused acci- dents resulting in insurance t claims (the driver is allowed one laim per year up to $700). Factrs hathelp reduce costs and premiums include:t - making sure ail drivers Ofs pour vehicle have taken an2 approved driver training course;c - increase the amount of your c leductible; i - for eider cars, consider eli-Q