The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA; french: Association canadienne des automobilistes) is a federation of eight regional not-for-profit automobile associations in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, founded in 1913. The constituent associations (also called "clubs") are responsible for providing

roadside assistance Roadside assistance, also known as breakdown coverage, is a service that assists motorists, motorcyclists, or bicyclists whose vehicles have suffered a mechanical failure that either cannot be resolved by the motorist, or has prevented them from ...

, auto touring and leisure travel services, insurance services, and member discount programs within their service territories. The CAA National Office in Ottawa coordinates relations between the clubs, oversees joint initiatives, and lobbies the federal government. In 2020 and 2021, the Gustavson Brand Trust Index named CAA the most trusted brand in Canada. CAA is not affiliated with the London-based Dominion Automobile Association (c. 1948) or consumer groups such as the Automobile Protection Agency.

Lobbying

The CAA considers itself to be an advocate for Canada's

motorist Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to fol ...

s and travellers. CAA is an active political

lobby Lobby may refer to: * Lobby (room), an entranceway or foyer in a building * Lobbying, the action or the group used to influence a viewpoint to politicians :* Lobbying in the United States, specific to the United States * Lobby (food), a thick stew ...

for Canadian consumers, pursuing the interests of drivers and travellers in public consultations over

urban planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

and

public transit Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typic ...

. CAA lobbied to put in place stronger consumer protection laws for air passengers. CAA commented in Support of Bill C-49 before the House Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in 2017.

Clubs

Drunk driving simulator, Montreal by CAA of Quebec

, CAA consists of eight clubs.

Alberta Motor Association (AMA)

The Alberta Motor Association (AMA) is a non-profit membership organization serving

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and the Northwest Territories. The organization was founded in 1926 with 1400 members; original dues were $6.50. It is headquartered in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

and is affiliated with the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) and the American Automobile Association (AAA) and has more than 980,000 members as of November 2021. The Alberta Motor Association provides its members with

service, a range of auto touring and leisure travel services, insurance services, and member discounts with partners. AMA Financial has also begun offering a variety of

mortgage A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any ...

and Guaranteed Investment Certificate products to members. The Association is one of the largest CAA/AAA affiliates in North America. AMA operates Western Canada’s largest travel agency, AMA Travel. AMA publishes its member's Magazine AMA Insider from its Edmonton Headquarters. The association also owns Bridgewater Bank, a Calgary-based chartered bank. On August 8, 2016, the AMA announced that an executive was dismissed for cause related to "fraudulent activity". The

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

reported the AMA had commenced a lawsuit against the former vice-president of information technology seeking recovery of $8.2 million CAD related to fraudulent invoices.

CAA Manitoba

CAA Manitoba can trace its origins to the creation of the Winnipeg Auto Club in 1904, the first club of its kind in Canada. The organization later evolved into the Manitoba Motor League, becoming an integral part of motoring history in the province – from developing the first road map, to marking highways, to implementing road safety programs. The MML was renamed CAA Manitoba in 1993. Today CAA Manitoba represents more than 190,000 members and has expanded beyond emergency road service to include a full service travel agency, home and property insurance and travel products. CAA Manitoba is actively engaged in advocacy issues, most recently with its 'Move Over Manitoba' campaign to convince the provincial government to extend to tow truck operators the same protective measures that cover emergency roadside personnel.

CAA Saskatchewan

CAA Saskatchewan is a non-profit membership organization serving

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

affiliated with the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) and the AAA (formerly American Automobile Association). The organization's headquarters are located in

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina () is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 census, Regina had a city populatio ...

, and it has over 184,000 members as of May 2010 and provides them with

service, a range of auto touring and leisure travel services, insurance services, vehicle repair and sales services, and member discounts with preferred companies. CAA Saskatchewan is also an advocate for motoring and related consumer issues and a supplier of automotive and other travel services. CAA Saskatchewan, formerly the Saskatchewan Motor League, has been in operation since 1917 and was organized by Frederick E. Betts. The association includes automotive sales and service facilities, a travel agency and an insurance agency. Besides providing a full range of travel services and packages, CAA Saskatchewan also owns and operates its own motorcoach company, WestWorld Tours, which offers fully escorted tours to a variety of North American destinations. CAA Saskatchewan's insurance agency offers a wide range of insurance products, from basic coverage to all-risk comprehensive policies, for home and property, auto, health & dental, travel and life insurance, with added benefits and savings for CAA Saskatchewan Members. The Show Your Card & Save program also provides Members savings at thousands of attractions, retailers and merchants throughout the world, with point-of-sale discounts and the opportunity to earn CAA Dollars which can be redeemed on CAA merchandise and services.

CAA Club Group (CCG)

CAA Club Group, formed by the merger of CAA South Central Ontario with CAA Manitoba, is an affiliated club of the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) in the Canadian provinces and territories of Manitoba, Nunavut, and parts of Ontario. It is a

not for profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organization with its head offices located in

Thornhill, Ontario Thornhill is a suburban district in the Regional Municipality of York in Ontario, Canada, split between the City of Vaughan (its western portion) and the City of Markham (its eastern portion), with Yonge Street forming the municipal boundary. T ...

and

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

. CAA Club Group primarily provides

, auto, property & travel insurance services, as well as leisure travel services to its members.The Toronto Automobile Club was founded on May 4, 1903. By this time like-minded motorists were forming their own clubs throughout Ontario to exchange and share information about their vehicles. In 1907 the Toronto Automobile Club and clubs representing Hamilton, Ottawa and Kingston formed the Ontario Motor League (OML) with the purpose of helping automobile owners to lobby governments, as opposition to the automobile was extensive at the time. It had a paid membership from the various clubs of 170 active, and 56 associate, individual members. In Ontario, the CAA was formerly the 'Ontario Motor League'. It facilitates Ontario's Drive Clean program from the CAA locations that double as Ministry of Transport licence renewal and vehicle registration offices. The Ontario Motor League originally was not affiliated with the CAA or AAA. The OML set up various committees such as the Legislative and Good Roads Committee and also started a Touring Bureau which informed members where they could drive without getting mired in mud, and which hotels would provide gas and water. New automobile clubs sprang up across Ontario, amalgamating in time with others, but still using the OML as a unifying organization to represent motorists to the government of Ontario. Over time, the names of both the individual clubs and the OML changed. By 1996, the old Toronto Automobile Club was known as CAA Central Ontario, and the OML as CAA Ontario which still exists as a formal organization to help represent the remaining clubs to the

Government of Ontario The government of Ontario (french: Gouvernement de l'Ontario) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown—represented in the province by the lieutenant governor� ...

Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) tow truck

In 2005, after mergers with CAA Eastern Ontario, CAA Peterborough, CAA Windsor, CAA Mid-western Ontario and the former CAA South Central Ontario (Hamilton and region), CAA Central Ontario took the name CAA South Central Ontario. It has over 2 million members and covers the entire province except for the Niagara Region (CAA Niagara) and the far north and eastern (including Ottawa) regions of the province (CAA North and East Ontario). CAA South Central Ontario covers the City of Toronto, and the following areas in Ontario: Districts of Algoma and Muskoka, Counties of Bruce, Dufferin, Elgin, Essex, Frontenac, Grey, Haliburton, Hastings, Huron, Lambton, Leeds and Grenville, Lennox and Addington, Middlesex, Northumberland, Oxford, Perth, Peterborough, Prince Edward, Simcoe, Wellington and City of Kawartha Lakes, Regional Municipalities of Brant County, Chatham-Kent, Durham, Haldimand-Norfolk, Halton, Hamilton-Wentworth, Peel, Waterloo and York.

References

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External links

CAA National
1913 establishments in Canada Non-profit organizations based in Ottawa Lobbying organizations in Canada Organizations established in 1913 Emergency road services