United General Insurance Company received approval to insure larger motorcycles and drivers with substantially less experience under revised Nova Scotia underwriting rules. In United General Insurance Company, 2026 NSRAB 124, the Nova Scotia Regulatory and Appeals Board approved a package of commercial- and miscellaneous-vehicle changes on September 15, 2026.
The motorcycle changes reduce the minimum driving experience for all operators from 25 years to 10 and increase the maximum permitted engine size to 1,200 cc. The reasons describe the previous eligibility rule as covering motorcycles with engines smaller than 750 cc.
The board approved November 1, 2026 as the effective date for both new and renewal business. That is the approved effective date for the changes, not independent confirmation that every policy or broker system has since been updated.
Base rates stay put, but some pricing factors change
United General applied on July 2 under the board’s minor-filing process. Its annual premiums for each relevant vehicle type fell below the applicable threshold. The insurer proposed unchanged base rates for commercial vehicles, motorcycles, snow vehicles, all-terrain vehicles and trailers, including camper units.
For most vehicle types, the company provided actuarial indications and said the indicated changes for some coverages or classes were modest. It also considered stability, customer impact, competition and uncertainty. The board accepted maintaining base rates; the filing rules did not require supporting indications for the unchanged trailer rates in these circumstances.
Unchanged base rates do not mean every premium is frozen. The board also approved revised physical-damage pricing factors for all-terrain vehicles, primarily affecting higher-valued machines. The insurer relied on a New Brunswick analysis suggesting it had overpriced those vehicles, and the board found the revised factors appropriate. The reasons provide no single percentage reduction applicable to all customers.
More commercial coverage options, with separate high-value rules
For commercial vehicles, the approval adds a $2,500 per-occurrence coverage level to the loss-of-use endorsement, which pays for rental vehicles or other transportation after loss of use caused by an accident. It also extends the non-owned automobile endorsement to light commercial classes 33, 35 and 36 at vehicle-value limits of $50,000 and $75,000.
Limited waiver-of-depreciation endorsements will also become available for light commercial classes 35, 36 and 43 at a flat $60 premium. Class 33 already had that offering. United General said these changes would align its Nova Scotia offerings with New Brunswick.
A new $750 physical-damage deductible allows the insurer to lower the minimum from $1,000 for commercial vehicles in rate group 20 or higher. A separate rule applies to particularly valuable vehicles: the maximum allowed vehicle value rises to $150,000, but vehicles worth $125,000 or more require a minimum $5,000 deductible and referral to head office for underwriting.
The board also approved the April 2026 commercial rate-group table, with its pricing impact offset, and the addition of tractor information omitted from the existing manual. The company was already writing tractor coverage; that manual correction was not the creation of an entirely new line of insurance.
Approval carries filing obligations
The board found the rates and classification systems just and reasonable and compliant with the Insurance Act and regulations. It was also satisfied that the changes were unlikely to impair the insurer’s solvency, a statutory assessment rather than a guarantee of future financial performance.
The decision sets July 1, 2029 as the next mandatory filing date for these commercial and miscellaneous vehicle categories. It also requires an updated electronic automobile insurance manual within 30 days of issuance of the order. The reasons say a separate order will issue; that order and subsequent compliance were not independently verified for this report.
