The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Their other bills continue to rise, but most Flin Flonners could be paying less for vehicle insurance next year. Manitoba Public Insurance is seeking permission to lower rates for the vast majority (85.6 per cent) of customers in the Flin Flon-The Pas region. If approval is granted, the average MPI rate in this region will have dropped 21.6 per cent, or $176, over the past four years. This includes past rate cuts. MPI is also hoping to trim rates for nearly all drivers in what it calls the 'far north,' a region that includes Thompson, Lynn Lake and Churchill. In the rest of the province, MPI is planning a 1.8 per cent rate hike for 2014-15. For all Manitoba motorcyclists, MPI has applied for an average rate decrease of 7.6 per cent, or $83 per bike. No rates can change without the approval of the Public Utilities Board, which will rule on the proposal after public hearings this September and October. MPI defended its plan to raise rates for most Manitobans, saying it has either held the line or reduced rates for 14 of the past 15 years. But reaction to the proposal has been rather negative in light of continued hydro hikes and the province's plan to boost the PST to eight per cent. If approved, the new MPI rates would take effect March 1, 2014. Due to staggered renewals, some Manitobans would not start paying the new rates until Feb. 28, 2015.
