Tom Masters

Does anyone know if you have to sit a driving test if you are on a student visa (Ontario)? I know you have to sit it within 3 months as a permanent resident but not sure whether this applies to students also?

Thanks,

Chris

ray1968

An international drivig permit allows you to drive 12 months in Canada. I think the AA issues it in the UK

http://www.theaa.com/getaway/idp/index.html

check this site

dingbat

No it doesn't - it is different in every province and the AA is way out of date on their information about Canadian provinces ( I phoned them the other day in Bromley as they gave me friend duff info!)

Ontario is expensive for young students or out of province drivers, but shop around and ask people who they insure with. My friend's son just moved to go to U of T and cannot get insurance as he has had an at fault accident and is under 25.

For BC see:
http://www.icbc.com/Insurance/insura_getsta_whofor.html

ray1968

according to the CAA Canada is a signatory to the IDP

http://www.caa.ca/e/travel/id/idp.shtml

My friend had the permit and was driving in Canada (ontario) ..I admit it was a few years back now. Although he ws never stopped by Police or whomever, he told me he believed it was ok to use here.

dingbat

Yes you are right the AA are signatories, but it means nothing. As with most things in Canada, the rules are different in every province and they can choose to abide by the codes they sign up to or not - not in most cases. The AA still sees Canada as one single country like the UK. It is more like 10 sharing the same land mass actually, but in BC at least, they take no notice of anything you qualified for or were told in the UK.

DaveExpat

I asked the other day at an RCMP police station in BC and was told I could drive for up to 6 months on a UK licence but any longer needs a Canadian one - an international permit wouldn't do.

My understanding in BC is that if you have a UK licence you have to take a driving test to get a Canadian one. This includes theory and road test. Certain other countries licences e.g. Japan and Austria (plus others) qualify for a new licence without a test.

Dave

DaveExpat

Bit sad replying to my own post

One thing I forgot to mention is I know people who have driven in Canada on a UK licence for >5 years. They forgot to convert!!

BUT just because they havn't been caught/told off doesn't make it legit. Plus I would be a bit concerned re insurance if one had an accident and was driving without a proper licence. I recon its a trip to the driving test center before long...

Dave

PS if anyone is interested in BC driving you might like to look at http://www.icbc.com/

dingbat

Six months if you are only visiting, 90 days if you become resident. The website is very clear and unfortunately people get confused between what they can do as visitors and what you can do when you become resident in BC. Either way the International Licence for an immigrant is not worth the paper it is written on here.

http://www.icbc.com/Licensing/lic_re...place_new.html

DaveExpat

Ah - thanks for clearing that up. I was visiting.

Cheers
Dave

dingbat

You are welcome.

Grizzlypaw

One thing worth considering is the insurance side of things. If you are driving on a IDP the cost is real high.

Still less than it was in the UK for a similar vehicle with 60% NCD!!!!

DaveExpat

Hey Grizzlypaw if you have found somewhere with cheaper car insurance than in the UK please point me in the right direction. In BC the quote I got was a nightmare and rumour has it ICBC will ignore my "proof" of no claims bonus from the UK in a few months time and ask for another $800

I had to pay $1600 for a RAV4 and in the UK was paying £500ish for virtually the same vehicle.

I've been told that there isn't much choice re car insurance in BC but if anyone knows differently I'd appreciate the info?

It might be interesting to compare the total cost of running a vehicle in the UK v's Canada to see which is cheaper or if its roughly the same - but I guess its a bit of a pointless activity!!

Dave

dingbat

Yes they will ignore your proof of no claims unless:

1 - You are prepared to deal with Head Office and only Head Office and speak to the same person. You will otherwise get 20 different replies to the same question on a good day.

2 - You have a letter from EVERY insurance company you have insured with in the last 9 years, detailing the start date and end date of your coverage (even if they obviously run from one to the other) PLUS a certificate letter (remembering to ask ICBC which version they want this week) confirming your name, age address and the fact there were no claims at all.

3 - If you had a claim under protected no claims in the UK, it is classed as an at fault claim here and you start all over again.

Cheaper insurance than the UK - ha - not here mate. I am one of the lucky ones who fought ICBC in 1996/7 and won the right to use my no claims based on a single letter from my last insurers, and I now even have their pathetic Road Star (like an ICBC good drivers club). ICBC tried to take that away in year 7, after they extended the time limit qualification to nine years no claims in BC from six - and kicked a load of people off!!! (I had to fight them all over again.) After 8 years of no claims in BC and nearly 20 years driving with no at fault accidents, I pay $105 a month commercial insurance (you have to have this if you regularly use your vehicle to drive to and from work believe it or not) with $3 million liability (that bit is my choice, I move people around as part of my job). I live in the Fraser Valley - in Vancouver it would be nearly double that. You can buy the liability and optional coverages bit from BCAA amongst others, but you save miniscule amounts and the claims on these outside policies take ages as they still have to be routed via ICBC during the process. In the UK I had fully comprehensive on a Rover 216 in Bromley, hire car etc etc for 221 quid a year through Frizzels. It chokes me to pay the insurance here!

DaveExpat

Your experiences sound the same as an expat I met the other day at a party in BC. I swapped insurance companies lots in the UK to get better premiums, so I haven't a chance of providing letters from all of them. Sounds like I need to get that extra $800 ready to send them then

Still on the plus side the car was a bit cheaper, the road tax is a bit less and gas is cheaper - so win some loose some I guess. At least it doesn't look like I got ripped off any more than everyone else which I was wondering about.

Spongebob

Like the other people say, Car insurance in canada is way more expensive than the UK and anyone saying otherwise is pretty much living in a dreamworld.

We managed to get our no claims excepted in BC but still pay 11000 bucks for a Toyota Echo and we have been driving here for 3 years now.

We where paying 230 pounds fully comp for a Peogot 405 back in the UK.