Drivers in some Windsor neighbourhoods are reporting accidents at more than double the rate of others — and experts say where you live could be affecting what you pay for car insurance. New data from insurance comparison website MyChoice analyzed roughly 1,000 Windsor insurance quotes collected in 2025. South Windsor’s N8W postal code area recorded the highest rate of drivers reporting at least one accident on their record at 17.3 per cent. The result caught MyChoice off guard. “To us, that was quite interesting because my assumption was that it would be closer to the bridge,” said Vitalii Starov, vice-president of product at MyChoice. The highest reported accident rates were: At the other end of the spectrum, N9C (Ojibway) recorded the lowest rate at 7.5 per cent. Starov said traffic volume may be one explanation for the gap between neighbourhoods. “I think one of the biggest factors is how much driving happens in the area,” he said. The study is based on information drivers provide while seeking insurance quotes — not police collision data. “This is self-reported data,” said Starov. “That does not necessarily mean that the accident happened in the area. It’s just how many drivers with accidents live there.” Why your postal code matters Insurance Bureau of Canada says location is one of several factors insurers use when calculating premiums. Others include a driver’s age, vehicle, driving history, claims history, and how the vehicle is used. “Insurance is based on statistics,” said Anne Marie Thomas, director of consumer and industry relations at Insurance Bureau of Canada. “If you live in an area that has more loss and more collisions or more thefts, the likelihood that they’re going to have to pay out a claim for your vehicle is greater.” Thomas said insurers use actuarial data to identify where claims happen more frequently and where claims tend to be more costly. The result is that two drivers with similar records can sometimes pay different rates depending on where they live. “The trick is to kind of find the insurance company that has the lower rate for your profile,” she said, encouraging drivers to shop around for coverage. When it comes to lowering insurance costs, Thomas says honesty is also important. “You don’t want to use a false postal code to get a lower rate because that’s insurance fraud,” she said. “If you have to make a claim and the insurance company learns that you have used a postal code that is not your postal code, your claim might be denied.” She adds you’ll also be flagged as a high-risk driver for committing the crime. Police point to intersections While the MyChoice study focused on where drivers with accident histories live, Windsor police say their own data highlights a different trend. As of June 15, more than 65 per cent of collisions investigated by Windsor police this year were intersection related. “We’re talking like Lauzon, Tecumseh, Banwell Road, a lot of the corridors of E.C. Row,” said Const. Bianca Jackson. “A lot of this is contributed to whether it’s construction happening in the area, high volume of traffic, people who are not paying attention to the road.” Jackson said distraction, speeding, and following too closely continue to be major contributors to crashes. Don’t read too much into the rankings, expert says Anneke Smit, director of the Centre for Cities at the University of Windsor, said the findings are interesting but don’t tell the whole story. “In general, this is a really interesting data set but one that needs to be cross-referenced with other data,” she said. According to Smit, a number of important details are missing from the dataset. It doesn’t reveal where collisions occurred, whether they involved other vehicles, pedestrians, or cyclists, or what role factors such as road design, traffic patterns, and local demographics may have played. “More time would be needed with the data to see what the patterns suggest,” she said. Smit also takes issue with the word “accident.” “There are no accidents on our roads,” she said. “There are collisions based on many factors that include driver error and inattention, weather, road design, unsafe vehicle design, etc.” She said the findings also highlight something broader: Road safety decisions can have financial consequences for households. “Since there seems to be a correlation between ‘accident’ rates and insurance premiums, it may be a good reminder that safe road infrastructure and enforcement have economic impacts for people and households,” said Smit. “Not irrelevant during these challenging economic times.”
