MPI kicks off safe driving speaker campaign

Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) has launched its Friends for Life speaker series – with 2022 marking the 11th consecutive year for the insurer’s driver safety campaign aimed at students.

The campaign, which runs until November 25, will feature three speakers who will share with students their first-hand accounts of how high-risk driving decisions can lead of life-altering injuries and realities for years to come. MPI estimates that this year’s campaign will reach about 6,500 students in Grades 10 to 12 across 38 schools in Manitoba.

This year’s speakers are Ted Swan, a paramedic who has personally witnessed the devastating effects of crashes throughout his 34 years of experience; Sandra LaRose, who lost her 16-year-old daughter after her vehicle was hit by a train while she was distracted by her phone; and John Westhaver, who suffered severe burns to 75% of his body and lost his friends to an accident.

MPI has partnered with Teens Against Destructive Decisions (TADD) and the Manitoba School Boards Association for the campaign. This year’s Friends for Life speakers will also return to in-person programming after two years of virtual presentations, the insurer noted.

“MPI couldn’t be prouder of the impact that this important community outreach program has in creating safer roads for all Manitobans,” stated MPI vice president and chief customer officer Satvir Jatana. “Over more than a decade, we have consistently heard positive feedback on the series from both from students and educators alike and look forward to continuing to help encourage safe driving behaviours from the province’s newest drivers this year.”

Read more: MPI to adopt primary driver model after losing court battle

The campaign comes after it was revealed earlier this month that MPI will be switching to a primary driver model for pricing auto insurance. A Court of Appeal judge had rejected the insurer’s request to appeal the Manitoba Public Utilities Board’s mandate for MPI to develop a transition plan from the registered owner model to the primary driver model.