The way Saskatchewan drivers insure themselves and their vehicles is different from many other Canadian provinces and places around the world.

When you register your vehicle in Saskatchewan through the SGI Auto Fund (a Government of Saskatchewan Crown Corporation), you receive basic auto insurance with your licence plate. This basic insurance includes:

• Coverage for physical damage to your vehicle, subject to a $700 deductible on most vehicles;
• Standard injury insurance, should you or your passengers be injured in a collision; and
• Liability insurance of up to $200,000 for damage your vehicle causes to another person or their property.

There are many situations, however, where this basic insurance may not be enough. Below is a summary of the types of coverages that are included with your licence plate, and the coverages that are only available through extended auto insurance — also known as a package policy:

Third Party Liability

What it is: If your actions cause or contribute to a collision, you may have to pay for property damage, injury, and income loss for victims. And if the cost of all that is more than the coverage limit of your insurance, you must pay those expenses personally, even if it takes you many years.

What's included with your plates: Only $200,000 total limit for property damage, injury, and death, regardless of the number of people injured in the accident.  

What's available in a package policy: Protection between $1 million and $5 million.

Physical Damage

What it is: This type of coverage refers to the cost to repair or replace your vehicle as a result of damage sustained in an accident.

What's included with your plates: Your basic insurance includes this protection, but you must first pay a $700 deductible. That means you must pay the first $700 in damage before your insurance will cover the rest.

What's available in a package policy: You can reduce or eliminate your deductible altogether. This includes zero deductible for loss due to fire, theft of the vehicle, or lightning. This protection in your package policy will usually extend to auto rentals, so you don’t need to purchase costly insurance when you rent a vehicle.

Family Security

What it is: This insurance provides coverage if you, your passengers, or your family members are injured by a driver who does not have enough third-party liability insurance to pay for your damages, injuries, and lost income — including if they are impaired or not licensed to be on the road. In many cases, the at-fault driver will not have money to compensate you, which can result in receiving nothing after years' worth of delays, legal actions, and suffering.

What's included with your plates: None.

What's available in a package policy: Family protection between $1 million and $2 million.​

Loss of Vehicle Use

What it is: If your vehicle is damaged or stolen, you may need replacement transportation until it is repaired or replaced. This coverage pays for car rental, taxi, ride share, or public transportation expenses.

What's included with your plates: None.

What's available in a package policy: Automatic loss of use coverage if your car is stolen, plus options up to $2,000 in coverage for other causes of loss. Most package policies extend loss of use coverage to auto rentals, so if your rental vehicle is damaged, your package policy will pay what you owe the rental company for the income lost from the vehicle being unusable.

Road Hazard Glass

What it is: This insurance covers the cost to fix or repair your windshield or other windows if damaged by an object while driving, such as a stone.

What's included with your plates: Amounts over the basic plate coverage's $700 deductible.

What's available in a package policy: Choices to reduce your deductible for replacing glass to as low as $50, with some policies offering free stone chip repair.

Replacement and Repair Value

What it is: Vehicles depreciate, and basic auto insurance pays depreciated value on repairs or total losses. Replacement protection for newer vehicles, however, covers the difference between new value and depreciated value.

What's included with your plates: None.

What's available in a package policy: You can protect your new vehicle from depreciation for up to five years— meaning if your vehicle is a total loss, your policy covers the value of a comparable new car. If your vehicle was leased, your policy will pay up to the new price shown on the lease agreement so you don’t end up owing money on a totaled vehicle.

Vehicles in Storage

What it is: Many people store vehicles seasonally, such as motorcycles, snowmobiles, convertibles, and classic automobiles. If the licence plates on these vehicles are expired or cancelled, they no longer have any insurance and are not covered on house or farm insurance. Many package policies offer protection for damage or theft to these vehicles in storage.

What's included with your plates: None.

What's available in a package policy: Coverage options for fair market value or appraised value with deductibles from $0 to $700.

Injuries to you and your passengers

What it is: If you, your passengers, or your dependents are injured by a vehicle (including as pedestrians or bicyclists) regardless of who is at fault, you or your loved ones may be entitled to compensation for death, income replacement, funeral expenses, and education allowance.

What's included with your plates: Statutory amounts, set by the Government of Saskatchewan.

What's available in a package policy: Compensation up to $2 million with a top-up of 10% to 50% over and above the statutory plate amounts, plus a top-up for net earnings beyond the annual limits set by SGI.

Automobile insurance is a complex, highly customizable product. The coverage that best suits your individual needs may vary greatly from that of another driver, depending on a wide variety of factors, including your family situation, type of vehicle, driving habits (such as how and where you use your vehicle), personal finances, and more.

Get free, professional advice by speaking with a licensed insurance broker in your community. We're here to help!

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