Insure a 2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 in Saskatchewan, and you’ll pay about $1,200, which seems a little high considering you can see a hazard coming from three days away.
But compare that to rates in the province next door, and you get a shock. Insure the same bike in Manitoba and you’ll get a bill for $3,132, according to the Winnipeg Sun, which has published an article blasting the Manitoba Public Insurance agency.
MPI’s insurance rates for motorcycles are "bloody extortion," Ted Hector, owner of Thunder Road Motorcycles in Winnipeg, told the Sun.
MPI and the New Democratic Party government are accused of making "a yearly hit on motorcyclists’ wallets," and charging unreasonable and baseless premiums. Insurance for a 2004 Suzuki 250 Maurader for instance, would cost $1,847, compared to Saskatchewan’s $304 premium.
The insurance fiasco is closing Manitoba motorcycle shops and driving people away from bikes, and MPI’s most recent insurance hike will bump premiums for motorized scooters by 25 per cent in 2009, if it’s approved by the Public Utilities Board this fall. Judging by current rates, the Public Utilities Board is likely to approve anything the insurance industry asks for.
See the Winnipeg Sun article at winnipegsun.com.
that’s nothing… my insurance is $4000 per year for a car that i paid $12000 for.
Am i really that likely to completely demolish my car every 3 years?
Restrictive motorcycle licensing and the mandatory payment to the government run insurance scheme in Manitoba is not insurance, it is a politcal attack aimed at eliminating motorcycle use. It is an elitist scheme that try to eliminate the young rider, and any rider who is the least bit practical. The folks on 25 thousand dollar Harleys are happy to pay 2500 a year I expect, It just adds to they’re superiority. The argument that there is some high cost to health care for moto riders cannot be true. Canada has a national health care system, not a Provincial one
🙁
Yeah, I just priced out a CBR125. It’s damnear a trail bike, for crying out loud. $2600 per year. why not reward people for reducing their footprint? How much damage can a 125 do on its own in the hands of an experienced rider? Seriously???
I can’t believe the dealerships haven’t been more vocal in this. This isn’t “public” insurance. It’s government endorsed corporatism.
2007 CBR125R (125cc) $2600 for the summer. How can you justify that?! It’s more than the bike costs! My lawnmower has a bigger engine!
1993 FZR600 $2900 for the summer. I can’t afford to put either on the road here. In alberta I was paying less than 1000 for both.
ok here’s something to think about as well…
I own a 1984 honda 125cc elite scooter, I was happy to pay the insurance of 800 bucks a year because I didn’t know any better and it was a wonderful piece of equipment and I loved the ride.
However this past weekend in Gimli I spotted a nice piaggio scooter 2 years old and was floored when they told me they pay only 400 dollars a year for insurance!! what the H###! my bike is insured for up to 1500.00 dollars his 8000.00 dollars, mine is 25 years old his 2 years, he can go 170 km’s I can only go 85km, mine is only 125 cc his is 500! WTF 🙁
I am currently paying 237/yr in Sask for my 1991 Bandit 400. Very reasonable indeed.Please everyone stay away from Sask. It has been our little secret for years how great of a place it is to live and all of a sudden people are moving back. Roads are getting busy, house prices are sky rocketing and I am sure that insurance rates are also going to go up.
Not to mention the cost to the province when farmer fred and his ten ton $hi7 spreader wobble down the road making it dangerous for other users…
And how much it costs the province when farmer fred takes the ‘city car’ and makes a left in front of the bike going the other way… Those bikers cost the province so much when they get hurt…
I remember reading something about the injury cost compared to the vehicles value being a reasonable explanation for the insurance increases for motorcyclists in MB.
And lets not forget that one can only comfortably ride for 6 months a year. That’s only $500 a month. What’s the big deal?
OK, so in 3 years you would have paid enough to buy another bike but so what?
insurance on a GS500 for a 16yr old with zero driving experience $2400/yr, paid in four easy payments 30 days apart
[Ontario]
Sounds about on par with Ontario rates as well.
My GS500 for a full year was almost in the same range if I recall. I was also forced into getting insurance for 12 months (in BC, I get insurance for only a part of the year)
Compared to provinces like Sask. and BC, it is extortion….