Eves wants coordinated effort on auto insurance

As premiers meet in Charlottetown this week, Ontario’s Ernie Eves wants to see the provinces working together on the auto insurance issue.Eves listed auto insurance as his top priority, alongside federal disaster relief for the SARS outbreak.Eves says that his government will be releasing its white paper on auto insurance later this week, and that he will share its contents with fellow premiers in Charlottetown. The paper will ask Ontarians to comment on how the province should address rising claims costs and lawsuits, as well as access to benefits.Earlier this month Eves hinted that proposals in the white paper could include new dunderwriting rules and even a cap on rates, but also may cap health care costs and address tort reform.”Virtually every Canadian home is affected when insurance rates rise,” says Eves. “We believe it is in everyone’s best interest to maintain a healthy marketplace while ensuring that consumers benefit from stable rates.”The Premiers’ Conference runs July 9 to 11.