DAStransport FILLING THE GAPS IN YOUR CLIENT S COMMERCIAL TRANSPORTATION INSURANCE PORTFOLIO IMPORTANT NOTE: This document is a discussion guide to provide a general comparison between DAStransport and commercial insurance policies. Coverage available under any insurance policy is subject to the policy s terms and conditions. An actual detailed comparison of DAStransport to specific types of commercial insurance coverage requires the reader to review and compare the wordings of each policy.
HOW DOES DAStransport FILL THE LEGAL EXPENSE GAPS? Many brokers ask us how legal expense insurance can complement their client s commercial insurance portfolio. To answer that question, we have prepared an overview of legal issues that keep fleet operators up at night and demonstrated how DAStransport and typical commercial insurance policies would respond to them. Specific claims examples are also provided to further illustrate the interconnection between coverages. This brochure, combined with consultation with your DAS Broker Consultant and careful review of commercial insurance coverage, will help you understand and explain how DAStransport will complete your commercial client s financial protection and insurance portfolio. CONTENTS HOW DOES DAStransport FILL THE LEGAL EXPENSE GAPS?...1 WHAT KEEPS FLEET OPERATORS UP AT NIGHT?...2 DAStransport LEGAL EXPENSE INSURANCE (LEI)...3 LEGAL DEFENCE CLAIM EXAMPLE...4 STATUTORY LICENCE PROTECTION CLAIM EXAMPLE...5 DRIVER S LICENCE PROTECTION CLAIM EXAMPLE...6 AUTO CONTRACT DISPUTE CLAIM EXAMPLE...7 NOTES...8 Page 1
WHAT KEEPS FLEET OPERATORS UP AT NIGHT? And how their commercial insurance portfolio protects them when Defence legal costs are covered Plaintiff legal costs are covered Loss and damages are covered A new and less experienced driver receives yet another speeding ticket that needs to be challenged in court to avoid a rate increase was pulled over and after a logbook review, charged for exceeding hours of service limits has their driver s licence suspended, and they need to appeal the suspension to return to work DAS DAS DAS A heavy truck dealership breaches their service contract and refuses to honour warranty work and rectify an ongoing drivetrain issue with one of the fleet vehicles DAS A client sues for breach of contract when drivers are late in arriving due to construction around the client s warehouse DASbusiness optional Someone steals the cargo... A driver unfortunately causes an accident that results in bodily injury or death to a 3 rd party property damage to a 3 rd party the write-off of the tractor and trailer the write-off of the cargo inside the trailer the Transport Ministry wanting to revoke the safety rating certificate CAL CAL DAS CRIME CAL CAL CAL MTC While on a long-haul delivery, a tractor trailer is... vandalized with graffiti while parked overnight robbed while parked overnight in a garage overnight due to a transmission failure, resulting in the fleet operator having to pay a substantial late delivery penalty PD PD PD When a contracted driver, using their own tractor trailer, causes an accident resulting in bodily injury or death to a 3 rd party property damage to a 3 rd party NOA NOA NOA NOA Obtain general advice... on any legal issue, whether it is covered or not DAS DAS = DAStransport Legal Expense Insurance, CAL = Commercial Auto Liability Insurance, PD = Physical Damage Insurance, MTC = Motor Truck Cargo Insurance, NOA = Non-Owned Auto Insurance, CRIME = Crime Insurance Page 2
DAStransport LEGAL EXPENSE INSURANCE (LEI) A DAStransport policy provides coverage to a company with a commercial vehicle registration or safety fitness certificate. The coverage is unique as it extends to the company s directors, officers, partners, managers, employees and independent contractor drivers. Depending on the insured event, DAStransport covers legal expenses to defend and / or pursue legal action against a third party. It does not cover financial settlements or judgments, but it will cover the other party s legal fees (adverse costs) if the DAS policyholder loses their case in court. WHAT S COVERED Defence of legal rights in relation to a prosecution for an offence related to the ownership, use, or operation of an insured vehicle (Optional Endorsement for cross-border companies extends the coverage to the USA and Mexico) Defence or pursuit of legal rights in relation to a breach of contract for the purchase, sale, rental, lease, service, repair, testing, or cleaning of an insured vehicle or its parts Legal costs to defend against the revocation or suspension of an insured s driver s licence Representation following an event which causes the cancellation, suspension, or alteration of a licence to conduct business WHAT S NOT COVERED Wilful or fraudulent acts Non business-related criminal acts Disputes with any governmental or public body Bodily injury or property damage claims brought against the insured business by a third party Fraudulent claims A DAStransport policy also gives your client unlimited access to legal advice, at any time, giving business owners and fleet managers peace of mind. Some key DAStransport differentiators relative to commercial insurance policies: 1. The basis of a DAStransport civil claim is reasonable prospects of success. This means we will cover a claim if it is judged by our claims lawyer that it has a reasonable chance of being successful in court. For Legal Defence and Statutory Licence claims, the reasonable prospects of success test does not apply. 2. Policy limits of indemnity are $100,000 per claim, with a $500,000 aggregate per policy period. For contract disputes, the amount in dispute must exceed $500. 3. Contract disputes: - For vehicles of up to and including 4,500 kg, the amount in dispute must exceed $1,000 - For vehicle exceeding 4,500 kg, the amount in dispute must exceed $5,000 4. General legal advice is available through a toll-free helpline. Calling does not impact the insured business premiums and general advice will be given for any legal issue, including those beyond the scope of coverage. Page 3
LEGAL DEFENCE CLAIM EXAMPLE CLAIM SCENARIO John is the owner of Big Truck Co., a medium-sized trucking company. Juan, one of his drivers, gets pulled over on the highway for a random inspection and weight check. Upon inspection, Juan gets fined for having an overweight load, violating the Canada Motor Vehicles Safety Standards. Several demerit points are also taken off his licence. Juan has been a driver for Big Truck Co. for over 5 years and this was his first violation of the Canada Motor Safety Standards, so John decided to extend the DAStransport coverage to defend him. If Big Truck Co. were your client, which commercial insurance policy could help? DAStransport: DAS helped John by appointing a lawyer who attended the court hearing. The lawyer was able to successfully argue for a reduction of the Canada Motor Vehicles Safety Standards fine and have the demerit points dropped. DAS automatically provided legal defence for John s company. Furthermore, DAS covered the legal costs from the first dollar spent. More examples of how DAStransport will help your client: One of the company s drivers receives a speeding ticket that he wishes to defend. DAS will assign a lawyer and cover legal costs to fight the ticket. Due to a highway closure, a driver is charged with driving over the maximum number of hours allowed in a 24-hour period. DAS will instruct a lawyer and pay legal costs to defend the charge. Other commercial policies would not help: Non-Owned Automobile Commercial Automobile Liability Crime Insurance No traditional commercial transportation policy would cover Big Truck Co., leaving John on the side of the road. Page 4
STATUTORY LICENCE PROTECTION CLAIM EXAMPLE CLAIM SCENARIO Ben owns a small cab company, RideOnTime. His fleet is made of 4 sedans and a mobility bus. Following a facility audit, RideOnTime is assigned a conditional safety rating, as the ramp on the mobility bus is not working properly. Ben gets the issue fixed right away. The Ministry of Transportation refuses to amend the conditional rating at renewal time. If RideOnTime were your client, which commercial insurance policy could help? DAStransport: DAS helped by appointing a lawyer to defend RideOnTime and appeal the decision made by the Ministry of Transportation. DAS paid legal costs from the first dollar spent. More examples of how DAStransport will help your client: Your client s business is refused a licence renewal by the governing provincial body for failure to provide a written record of inspections and tests of fire equipment. DAS will secure legal representation and appeal the decision. Following an accident, the Ministry threatens to revoke your client s business safety rating certificate. DAS will cover legal costs and provide legal representation to appeal the decision. Other commercial policies would not help: Commercial Automobile Liability Physical Damage No traditional commercial transportation policy would cover RideOnTime, leaving Ben on the side of the road. Page 5
DRIVER S LICENCE PROTECTION CLAIM EXAMPLE CLAIM SCENARIO Lina works for a small care home, ElderlyCare. The residents heavily rely on her as she drives them using the home s van to their appointments and recreational outings. On her way to work, Lina cuts a corner too close and ends up driving into a bike lane. She gets charged with Careless Driving by a policeman who was riding his bike on the lane, and witnessed the infraction. Lina s offence results in five CVOR points and six points on her driver s licence. Her driver s licence is suspended, pending a hearing. She reports the offence to her manager, the owner of ElderlyCare. As the residents count on Lina, who is a valuable asset to the care home, Lina s manager decides to put a claim in with DAS. If ElderlyCare were your client, which commercial insurance policy could help? DAStransport DAS helped by appointing a lawyer who attended the court hearing and was able to argue for a reduction in the charge. Lina s driver s licence was reinstated. DAS covered the legal costs from the first dollar. It could have cost over $1,000 in legal fees if Lina had tried to handle the case on her own. More examples of how DAStransport will help your client: One of your client s drivers receives a letter from the Ministry, advising them that their driver s licence may be suspended because of the demerit points accumulated over the last two years. Your client can choose to extend the coverage to the driver. DAS will assign a lawyer to the case. Other commercial policies would not help: Commercial Automobile Liability Crime Insurance Physical Damage No traditional commercial transportation policy would cover Lina, leaving her and all the residents of ElderlyCare on the side of the road. Page 6
AUTO CONTRACT DISPUTES CLAIM EXAMPLE CLAIM SCENARIO Susan, the owner of a small florist shop, BeautifulFlowers, takes her vehicle to the garage for transmission repairs. Following the repairs, Susan notices that the transmission issues have worsened. The vehicle is left stranded on the side of the road while she is making a major delivery for a wedding. The garage refuses to rectify the issue, claiming it was Susan s fault, as she should have been more gentle with the manual transmission right after the repairs. If BeautifulFlowers were your client, which commercial insurance policy could help? DAStransport: DAS helped by appointing a lawyer to deal with the garage and negotiate a repair or a refund. DAS covered legal costs from the first dollar spent. The issue could have cost Susan well over $1,500. More examples of how DAStransport will help: Your client purchases a vehicle for their company and later discovers that the vehicle had been involved in a previous accident. The information had not been disclosed to your client, and the dealer refuses to accept a return, DAS will assign a lawyer to pursue the dealer and negotiate a return. Other commercial policies would not help: Commercial Automobile Liability Physical Damage No traditional commercial transportation policy would cover BeautifulFlowers, leaving Susan on the side of the road. Page 7
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WE BELIEVE EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE ACCESS TO JUSTICE We empower your business clients when they are faced with unexpected legal issues. A DAStransport policy: Protects your clients from costly legal expenses Allows your clients to defend or pursue their legal rights Gives your clients unlimited access to legal advice at any time Traditional Commercial Auto Liability insurance (CAL), Physical Damage insurance (PD), Motor Truck Cargo insurance (MTC), Non-Own Auto insurance (NOA) and Crime insurance are important building blocks to providing financial protection for your transportation clients. This brochure will help you better understand how a DAStransport Legal Expense Insurance (LEI) policy fills the gaps in commercial insurance portfolios. By filling those gaps, you provide your clients with a more complete risk mitigation strategy and financial protection portfolio, from which they can build their business with confidence and peace of mind. To learn more, please contact your DAS Broker Consultant or visit www.das.ca/broker