When 26-year-old Hameed Yousufzai came to Canada from Afghanistan two years ago, he quickly realized he needed a car to get around the city of St. Catharines, Ont., where he settled.
When he first bought a car, he paid about $450 a month for car insurance.
Yousufzai had been driving for seven years, but says no insurance company he checked with would take that history into account.
“This is not actually fair for us,” said Yousufzai, who needs a car to get to his job at nearby Niagara-on-the-Lake because public transit isn’t reliable.
“I am quite familiar with driving, with no accidents or with no tickets in my whole life.”
Yousufzai is among many new immigrants who say they’re paying higher car insurance costs because their previous driving experience isn’t factored into their monthly rates.
He wants insurance companies to change their policies, especially because the cost of living is already so high.
Yousufzai says he has to work to cover his expenses in Canada and support his whole family in Afghanistan, while also paying the high cost of car insurance.