Your Car Insurance in Canada

Q: Hello, I was wondering do you ha e to have full coverage insurance to drive thru Canada or can you have liability?? I heard you gotta have a thousand dollars on you to drive thru Canada is this true??

A: Well, not sure where you heard that you have to carry that much cash in Canada, but I am pretty sure that much is not true.  I have yet to be asked how much cash I have on me by the border guards as I am making my way across into Canada. I would be curious as to where you heard this and the rationale behind it.

As for your insurance, you have to have car insurance in Canada just like here in the U.S.. However, you DON’T have to have “full coverage”, you only need the required liability insurance.

In the past you used to need special car insurance cards to be able to drive in Canada, today all you need is your American car insurance cards. If you have any additional questions, best to ask your car insurance agent.

Now, if you were visiting our neighbors to the south (Mexico) that’s a different story. In Mexico, you have to have car insurance sold in Mexico. Your American car insurance will work for a certain number of miles in Mexico, but if anything happens it is really up to the Mexican authorities whether or not they are going to accept your car insurance, even if your car insurance company says they would cover you.

If they refuse to accept your car insurance, you could do jail time.