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. 2. It provides for the same automatic suspension until financial responsibility is proved, in the case of a person who fails to satisfy any final judgment, rendered against him by any Canadian | Court, involving more than $109 arising [out of a motor vehicle accident occur-- 'ring after the law comes into force: it 'further provides that in such a case the judgment must also be paid (unless 'authority is obtained from the Court to pay it in instalments) before the sus-- pension is lifted. 3. It authorizes the Registrar to re-- quire proof of financial responsibility from any person, who, in his opinion, | is responsible in whole or in part torf any motor vehicle accident, or who is | under 21 years or over 65 years of ago. | 4. It permits residents and non--resi-- dents to volunteer proof of financial | responsibility in advance of any con-- | viction or accident, in order to avoidl suspension Of license or permit, or withdrawal of drivirig privileges, andl This provision also applies to con-- victions in any other Province or State. for the offense, if committed in On-- tario, would have required the offender to prove his financial responsibility. It also appliecs to non--residents. except that, there being no licenses or permits to suspend, the privilege of operating any motor vehicle in Ontario or of op-- eration of any motor vehicle owned by the offender, is withdrawn until proof of financial responsibliity is furnished. Final Judgment. 1. It provides for the automatic sus. pension of the driver's license and own-- er's permit, if any, of any person con-- victed of a major offense undeor the Highway Traffic Act. or of any crimina} offense involving the use of a motor, vehicle, until provf of financial re-- sponsibility or legal liability arising out of future mcotor vehicle accidents. is given to the Registrar of Motor Ve-- hi--les. wi any plan capable of comparisons be-- tween the rosults of the businesses of the various companies. "The only solution to the difficulty appeared to be to order the companies to go back over their old policy copies and original records and extract th» information necessary to compile proper records of their loss cost experience in recent years. I so ordered. This nec-- essary action not only caus>d the com-- panies inconvenisnce and expense, but it delayed the investigation more than six months, and records of the character upon which the rate--making procedure .of the Association purported to be bas>d, and which should have bsen available to me at the opening of my investiga-- tion almost a year ago, have only coms into my hands within the past 30 days." _"~mancial Responsibility. The bill proposes that a new part to the Highway Traffc Act. entitled "Financial Resoonsibility of Owners and Drivers," which is based on the princi-- ples of the so--called financial or safety responsibility laws now in force in 15 States of the United States, in-- cluding New York and Connecticut, and already before the Manitoba Legisla-- ture, adapted to meet Ontario condi-- tions, and to harmonize with the ex-- isting Ontario moter vehicle and in« surance laws. Its provisions may be summarized as follows: ) quiry into the reasonableness of the 1920 automobile insurance premium rates in Ontario, I was confronted with the major difficulty that the majority of the insurance companies transact-- ing. in the three or four years im-- mediately prior to April, 1928, upward of 60 per cent. ¢f the business in the Province, had failed to establish any real system of cost accounting in their offices, and wore thus quite unabie to produce before me any reliable statis-- tical records showiny the costs of auto-- mobile insurance .-- Ontaricg. "I found that, #0 far as being able to examine the rates then in force in the light of any useful data, I had to deal with a condition in which more than 70 per cent. of the automobile insurancs in the Province was being written at rates fixe@®'by the Canadian Automobile Untlerwriters®' Association, and more than 90 per cont. at rates based dirsctly on the ratss of the Association; upon defective experience, and not the result a new part to Act, entitled of Owners and on the princi-- financial -- or 1. Every person in charge of a motor vehicle, who is directly or indirectly involved in an accident where personal injury or damage to property appar-- ently exceeding $25 results, must re-- port such accident forthwith to the ncearest Provincial or municipal police officer, and furnish him with such information or written statemen, coy-- 10. No motor vehicle liability policy, for which a certificate has been issued to the Registrar in proof of financial re-- sponsibility, may be cancelled except after at least ten days' notice bafore the effective date of cancellation to the Registrar of Motor Vehicles. The draft bill adds a new part to the Highway Traffic Act, entitled: "Ac-- cident Reporting, Statistics and Rat-- iIng." With respect to accident report-- ing and statistics, it provides, briefly, as follows: !__9. All motor vehicle liability policies must be approved by the Superintendent of Insurance, and are declared to be subject to provisions set out in the bill, the effect of which is that the liability of insurance companies to third party claimants is made absolute, notwith-- standing any misrepresentation by the insured on the application for the policy, and notwithstanding any breach by him of any term, provision or condition of the policy. The report strongly recommends eccmpulsion in adequate _ uniform methods of reporting accidents, the collection and analysis of accident and trafife statistics, and the study of ac-- cidents, causes and trends and of traf-- fic problems and regulations, by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles, and gen-- erally the acquisition of the knowledge that must be the basis of intelligent regulation. | 7. Court clerks are required to for-- | ward copics of all orders, convictions or | judgments to which the law applies to [thc Registrar of Motor Vchicles im-- | mediately after the date upon which i they become final, and in the case of | non--residents copies must be sent to | the Registrar of Motor Vehicles in the | Province or State where the non--resi-- | dent resides. 5. "Proof of financial responsibility" must be given in the following amounts: (a) For damages by reason of personal injury to or death of any one person, at \ least $5,000; for such injury to or the !dcath of two or more persons in any 'one accident, at least $10,000; and (b) ]fm' damage to property resulting from any one accident, at least $1,000. Proof may be given in one of the following alternative forms: (a) A cortificate of a licensed insurance company that it has issued for the benefit of the person named therein, a motor vehicle, Mability policy of approved form and coverags; (b) the bond of a liconsed guarantce insurance or surety company or a bond of personal surety of approved form and limits; or (c) a certificate of the Treas-- urer of Ontario that the person named therein has.deposited with him a sum of money or securities approved by him in the amount of at least $11,000. 6. Dus provision is made for judg-- ment creditors of persons who have given proof of financial responsibility by means of a bond, msney or secur-- ities, realizing on the security so furnishod. 8. Certificate of insurance, bond, | money or securitiecs given in proof of financial responsibility may be return-- ed at any time aftér three years from the date of the original deposit, pro-- vided the person has not during any three--year period immediately preced-- ing the request been convicted of any offense, and provided that no action for damages is pending and no judgment is outstanding and unsatisfied. Insurance certificate, etc., may also be returned under certain conditions when a motor vehicle is sold or a person moves his residence outside the Province. further authorizes the Registrar to issue to non--residents an official non--resi-- dent insurance identification card and to permit proof of financial responsibil-- ity being given to his representative at selected points along the Provincial border. aYC ' _ 2, A police officer receiving a report | of an accident, is required to secure ; such information as may be necessary ' to complete a written report concern-- _ing the accident to the Registrar of Motor Vehicles. 4. Coroners investigating fatal acci. | dents in which a motor vehicle is in. volved are required to secure such par-- | ticulars of the accident and other in-- | formation as may be necessary to com-- plete a written report to the Registrar | on the forms prescribed for that pur-- Classification is based upon the operating record of individual motorists. Persons responsible for minor accidents _or guilty of the less serious offenses, _are classified in class "A"; persons re-- sponsible for more serious accidents or guilty of more serious offenses, are classified in class "B"; and persons responsible for the most serious acci-- ldents and guilty of the major offenses, are classified in class "C." Class "A" lcarries a demerit rating of 10 per cent., Class "B" m demerit rating of 25 per cent., and class "C" a demerit rating of 5) per cent. This means that persons s0 classified must pay from 10 to 50 per cent. in excess of the standard rate for automobile insurance for at least a year after being so classified. A clear record for 12 months will automatically drop a classified person from a higher to x lower class, or, if in class "A" eliminate him from -- classificat 3. Written reports or statements so furnished are not open to public in-- spection nor admissible in evidence be-- fore any court. The Connecticut plan of classifying drivers so that those with bad records will be required to pay a demerit rating, or a surcharge on their insurance pre-- mium, is recommended for adoption in Ontario. The bill provides that the Lieutenant--Governor--in--Council may, upon the report of the Minister of High-- ways, make regulations for this pur-- pose.