An Ontario court has upheld an insurance coverage exclusion, ruling that a fleet policy did not cover a specific vehicle involved in an accident because it was never properly scheduled prior to the crash. The decision in West York Sales and Leasing Inc. v. Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company centers on a 2017 Honda Civic leased to Platinum Car and Truck Rental. The vehicle was not on the insurance policy’s schedule at the start of the term, and the rental company failed to disclose the accident for nearly three years.
The fleet policy and the missing vehicle
West York Sales and Leasing Inc. owned the Honda Civic, which was leased to Platinum Car and Truck Rental, operating as 8182485 Canada Inc. The rental company held a fleet policy with The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, operating as Travelers Canada. The policy ran from September 15, 2019, to September 15, 2020. The 2017 Honda Civic was not listed on the Schedule of insured vehicles when the policy began.
West York claimed the car was out of service due to engine failure. On August 25, 2020, the vehicle was involved in an accident. Neither West York nor Platinum reported the incident to Dominion. The parties remained silent about the crash for almost three years. The accident only came to light in July 2023, when both companies were named as defendants in a lawsuit.
The insurance coverage exclusion comes from the Ontario Policy Change Form Monthly Reporting Basis Fleet Endorsement (OPCF 21A), section (c). This clause states that no coverage applies to any vehicle owned or leased before the policy’s effective date that was not on the Schedule, until a request for coverage is filed. The court found this exclusion decisive in blocking the claim.
Interpreting the OPCF 21A fleet endorsement
The OPCF 21A endorsement creates three categories of vehicles, each with a different coverage trigger. Category 1 includes vehicles listed on the Schedule at policy inception, which are covered from day one. Category 2 includes vehicles added to the fleet after the policy starts, which are covered upon monthly reporting. Category 3 covers vehicles owned or leased before the policy term, not listed at inception, and not covered until a formal request is filed with the insurer.
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The Honda Civic fell into Category 3. Platinum’s monthly report listed the vehicle but did not include an express request for coverage or a disclosure that it was a pre-policy vehicle. This report was filed on September 29, 2020, which is 14 days late and a month after the accident. The court held that the word “until” in OPCF 21A (c) is unambiguous. No coverage exists before a request is made, and the application judge’s conclusion that the limiting words were “not relevant” was rejected outright.
It is unusual for a company to operate a vehicle for over a year without the insurer’s knowledge, especially when the vehicle is involved in a collision. This case highlights how strictly fleet policies must be managed, as missing details on a schedule can render the protection void when a claim is finally made.
Why the monthly report was not enough
The court also rejected relief from forfeiture, which the application judge had granted under section 129 of the Insurance Act. The court cited Kestenberg Siegal Lipkus v. Royal Sun Alliance Insurance Company of Canada to confirm that relief from forfeiture requires coverage to have been triggered first. If the coverage was never activated, the remedy is unavailable.
The court drew a clear line between OPCF 21A (f), which governs premium calculation for vehicles already covered, and OPCF 21A (c), which determines coverage itself. For personal injury lawyers, identifying whether a fleet vehicle falls into Category 3, and whether a valid coverage request predates the accident, should be an early step on any fleet-related injury file. Fleet policies often face challenges similar to those seen in broader records management projects where administrative errors can invalidate protections.
