The legalization
of cannabis may
not immediately
impact auto
insurance rates,
but motorists
already face major
consequences
for driving while
impaired—by
alcohol, cannabis
or any other drug
“Driving records have
an impact on insurance
rates,” says CAA Manitoba
Insurance broker Matt
Hur. “That’s especially
true if there is a history
of traffic convictions and
licence suspensions.”
Like drunk driving,
consuming cannabis
before getting behind
the wheel is considered
impaired driving. An
infraction will be reflected
in the increased cost of
licence renewals and
insurance premiums.
Bear in mind, too, that
if reckless driving were
to increase overall,
insurance claims
may follow, which
could possibly impact
premium rates. It’s in
everyone’s best interest
to drive safe and sober.
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demand a breath sample from any
driver they lawfully stop—even if there’s
no reason to suspect the person behind
the wheel has consumed alcohol.
For cannabis and other drugs, the
bill also authorizes police to use special
testing devices to screen drivers at
roadside, provided they sus-
pect the driver has recently
used drugs. But test-
ing for cannabis isn’t
as straightforward as
testing for alcohol.
Testing challenges
The cannabis test
requires a sample of
saliva. Typically, an officer
will rub an oral swab over a
driver’s gums, tongue and inner cheeks.
The swab is inserted into a machine,
which then analyzes the saliva.
The feds are currently reviewing
two testing devices that, when used
together, ascertain the presence of a
drug in a person’s body. If approved,
they’ll be put into use when legalization
takes effect on October 17.
But once the machines are available,
they may not be used routinely—they’re
expensive and not yet 100-percent
reliable. They don’t measure the precise
blood-concentration level of the drug,
and the results they do produce are
sometimes inaccurate.
“Currently, when an officer
suspects a driver may be under the
influence of a drug, they can conduct
a standardized field sobriety test at
roadside,” Constable Fontaine explains.
“If the driver performs poorly, he or
she would be arrested for impaired
driving. A drug-influence evaluation
Next steps
We don’t yet know the true impact
of cannabis legalization on Manitoba
drivers and road safety. “But
it’s important that we are
prepared,” says CAA’s
Kulyk. “We need to
focus on education
and research, while
ensuring our police
services receive the
funding they need.”
The availability of
reliable oral-screening
devices and the capability to
conduct impaired driving
related blood tests within two-hours
will be equally crucial. CAA also hopes
researchers continue to study the link
between THC and impairment, so that
conclusive limits can be established.
As all levels of government prepare
for the impact of legalization, CAA
Manitoba continues to play a lead-
ership role. We will keep calling for
comprehensive public education relat-
ing to road safety in light of new drug
laws. “Awareness of impaired driving
is as important as ever,” Kulyk says.
“Drug-impaired driving is just as dan-
gerous as drunk driving—if not more
so—since there is still smuch to learn.”
In the meantime, it’s important
to dispel cannabis myths and mis-
conceptions, particularly as they relate
to impaired driving. “Road safety is our
first concern. We will continue to work
with government and non-government
stakeholders to ensure that everyone
stays safe on our roads.”
RISKY
BUSINESS
would then be conducted by a
specially trained Drug Recognition
Expert.”
Manitoba has been preparing to
protect the province’s roads from
drug-impaired drivers for a while.
“We’ve been training more WPS
officers to detect and process
drug-impaired drivers,” Fontaine
says. In the past year, they’ve been
trained to conduct field sobriety tests
and drug-influence evaluations.
Such efforts will continue over the
next few years to ensure that there
are enough properly trained officers
available to deal with the expected
influx of drug-impaired drivers.