Direct Compensation Agreement, fault and deductible in Quebec
In Quebec, each insurer indemnifies its own insured according to the fault scale, and the deductible is proportional to your share of responsibility. What applies, and what does not.
In Quebec, each insurer indemnifies its own insured according to the fault scale, and the deductible is proportional to your share of responsibility. What applies, and what does not.
Each insurer indemnifies its own insured
The Direct Compensation Agreement is made under the Automobile Insurance Act and its regulation. Each insurer indemnifies its own insured according to the share of non-responsibility of the other drivers, using the fault scale annexed to the Agreement. Any admission of fault or private arrangement between drivers is void for the settlement.
The deductible follows responsibility
The collision deductible payable is the proportion of the damage to your vehicle for which you are responsible, multiplied by the deductible. A driver assessed at 0 % pays nothing and is indemnified even without collision coverage. A driver at 100 % is indemnified only with collision or all-perils coverage, and pays the full deductible. The liability deductible does not apply to damage covered by the Agreement.
What falls outside the Agreement
A collision outside Quebec, a hit-and-run, a single-vehicle crash into a tree or a pole, theft, vandalism, fire or a broken windshield: for these, the deductible of your own policy applies even if you are not at fault.
After the settlement
Insurers waive subrogation between them, so the other insurer will not pay you directly. If you are dissatisfied with the settlement, you can exercise your recourse against your own insurer under the general rules of law, after asking for the written fault assessment and the calculation. Disputes between insurers go to the industry arbitration board, not to you.