ALBERTA ADMINISTRATIVE LICENCE SUSPENSION AND YOUR INSURANCE

Impaired driving convictions, including convictions for refusing to provide a breath sample, or blowing over the legal limit, come with severe consequences. Most people know them without even thinking about it – criminal conviction, high fine, driving prohibitions.

Along the same line, almost everyone knows that your insurance is going to double or even triple if you get an impaired driving conviction. It goes without saying that your insurance company is going to find out – and you will end up paying even more for your mistake.

However, what many people do not know is that now, in Alberta, your insurance company may not even wait for the conviction to arrive. With the new AALS suspensions, your insurance company (or employer) will be able to see that you were stopped for impaired driving right away– it will be written all over your driver’s abstract.

Even though the suspension is automatic, and the appeal process can take months to win, insurance companies are capitalizing on the AALS suspension being noted on your record. People who are waiting for their appeal or waiting for the court case are seeing increases as much as $8,000- $10,000 a year. And they have not been convicted of a single thing!

Even if you win your charges – or win your suspension appeal – and the suspension is removed from your record, there is no guarantee these premiums will decrease. What has been seen cannot be unseen and the insurance company will know that the suspension was there and they will continue to treat it as a ‘conviction’ of some manner.

At this time, there is no way to avoid the suspension being listed on your abstract. This occurs automatically once the Notice of Suspension is filed. Therefore, once you have been served, your next actions could be determinative of what’s to come.

Because of the profound impact this suspension can have on your insurance, particularly if you are a professional driver or use your vehicle for work purposes, it is critical for you to know the best way to handle not only your criminal charges, but also the suspension. Should you appeal? Should you strategically renew your insurance? Should you install the blow box or wait the 15 months?

Our DUI lawyers can help answer all of these questions in more. We are not just here to help with the trial and the suspension appeal; our team of experienced professionals want to make sure you save time and money while getting back on the road.

If you are facing criminal charges, or have been served with an Alberta Administrative Licence Suspension, contact Roadlawyers today.