In Ontario, a hit and run or an uninsured driver does not end your claim. The uninsured automobile coverage built into your own policy responds first, the OPCF 44R family protection endorsement adds a further layer if it was purchased, and the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund is the payer of last resort for people with no policy to claim under. Accident benefits still flow. Report the collision to police promptly, because unidentified driver claims depend on it.
The first place to look is your own policy
Every Ontario auto policy includes uninsured automobile coverage. It responds when the at-fault driver had no insurance, or cannot be identified at all.
In practice your insurer stands in for the missing driver's insurer. You claim under your own policy instead of chasing a person who cannot pay or cannot be found.
The OPCF 44R family protection endorsement
The OPCF 44R is an optional endorsement many Ontario drivers carry without knowing it. It adds protection when the at-fault driver is uninsured, underinsured or unidentified.
Whether it was purchased, and on whose policy, matters. It can respond through your own policy or through a policy held by a spouse, or a dependent relative in the same household.
Pull your certificate of insurance and look for it. If it is there, the claim can reach further than the basic uninsured coverage alone.
No policy anywhere? The Fund is the payer of last resort
Some people have no auto policy to claim under at all. A pedestrian or cyclist with no vehicle in the household, struck by an uninsured or unidentified driver, is the classic example.
Ontario maintains the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund for exactly this situation. It pays only when every other possible policy has been ruled out, and it has its own notice requirements, which are strict.
Report it to police, and do it promptly
Unidentified driver claims rise or fall on credibility. Your insurer will look hard at whether the collision was reported to police quickly, and at anything that corroborates your account.
The reporting window for an unidentified driver claim is short and strict. Call police from the scene if you can, and tell your own insurer right away.
Accident benefits do not depend on finding the driver
Accident benefits flow from your own insurer whether or not the other driver is ever identified. If you have no insurer of your own, they can flow through another policy connected to the collision or, failing everything else, through the Fund.
Since Ontario's recent reform, medical, rehabilitation and attendant care benefits remain mandatory on every policy, while income replacement and certain other benefits are optional coverages. What you can claim depends partly on what was purchased before the collision.
Deadlines that apply to you
These are the dates that end claims. Check them first.
In most Ontario claims you have two years from the day you knew, or ought to have known, that you had a claim.
Limitations Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 24, Sched. B, s. 4
Tell your own auto insurer about the collision as soon as you reasonably can, and no later than seven days.
Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule, O. Reg. 34/10, s. 32(1)
Once the insurer sends you the application package, the completed application for accident benefits (the OCF-1) is due back within 30 days.
Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule, O. Reg. 34/10, s. 32(5)
Ontario changed its auto accident benefits on July 1, 2026.
Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario, changes to Statutory Accident Benefits coverage effective July 1, 2026 · in force 2026-07-01
Questions we get every week
Yes. Unidentified driver claims run through your own policy's uninsured automobile coverage. Prompt police reporting is one of the strict requirements that keeps that claim alive, alongside formal notice to your own insurer.
You may be able to claim under a policy held by a spouse or spouse or dependent relative in the same household. If there is truly no policy anywhere, the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Fund is the payer of last resort.
It is an optional endorsement, called family protection coverage, that adds protection when the at-fault driver is uninsured, underinsured or unidentified. Check your certificate of insurance to see whether it is on your policy.
Fault is assessed under Ontario's fault determination rules regardless of which insurer pays. A collision caused by an uninsured or fleeing driver is not treated as your fault simply because your own policy responds.
Where this applies
Car Accidents
After a car accident in Ontario you usually have two separate claims running at the same time: accident benefits from your own insurer regardless of who caused the crash, and a claim against the driver at fault.
Read moreAccident Benefits
Accident benefits are paid by your own auto insurer regardless of who caused the collision.
Read moreInsurance Disputes
Ontario insurers owe policyholders a duty of good faith in how they handle a claim.
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