Manitoba Public Insurance pays toward a rental while your vehicle is in the body shop only in certain cases. Under Basic Autopac you may have a claim for replacement transportation expenses when the collision was the fault of another motorist insured with Autopac, and the optional Loss of Use coverage pays the reasonable costs of other transportation even if you were responsible for the collision. If you already have a claim number, book your estimate with our collision department in Portage la Prairie and ask our collision team about transportation in the same call.

Ask about transportation in your first call to MPI, not on drop off day. Our guide to how an MPI claim works after a collision walks through the rest of that call, the estimate and the repair.

Key Takeaways

• Basic Autopac helps in two cases. A theft, and a collision another motorist insured with Autopac caused, where MPI says you may have a claim for replacement transportation expenses.
• The other driver's fault comes with rules. MPI says you must choose the least expensive, most reasonable transportation option.
• Loss of Use is the optional coverage. MPI says it covers replacement transportation if your vehicle can't be driven, or is unsafe to drive, because it was stolen or damaged accidentally, regardless of fault.
• The repair sets the clock. On a damaged vehicle you can still drive, the optional coverage begins when you deliver it for repairs and ends when repairs are finished or you reach your coverage limit.

What Basic Autopac Pays for Other Transportation

Manitoba Public Insurance's Basic all perils coverage page opens the subject with this sentence: "With Basic Autopac, you automatically get some protection against loss of use if your vehicle is stolen or accidentally damaged."

A stolen vehicle. "Basic Autopac covers some of the costs of using other transportation when your vehicle has been stolen." The page prints the limit: "As of July 1, 2024, the limit is $56 per day to a maximum of $1,680, including all taxes."

A damaged vehicle. "If your vehicle has been damaged in a collision that is the fault of another Autopac-insured motorist, you may have a claim for replacement transportation expenses." The rules that come with it are two sections down.

For a collision you were responsible for, the same page points to the optional coverage: "If your vehicle is essential to your business or daily life, consider buying additional Loss of Use coverage."

What MPI's Loss of Use Coverage Provides

MPI's Increasing Loss of Use page describes the optional coverage in one sentence: "It covers the cost of replacement transportation if your vehicle can't be driven, or is unsafe to drive, because it was stolen or damaged accidentally, regardless of fault." The Basic page puts the fault point plainly: "This coverage pays for the reasonable costs of other transportation, even if you're responsible for the collision."

In MPI's description, the passenger vehicle option is meant for anyone who may need a replacement car, light truck or SUV.

• The limits. The page prints the passenger option at $50 a day plus tax, or $56 after tax, to a maximum of $1,500 plus tax, or $1,680 after tax. At the full daily limit, that maximum covers 30 days (our arithmetic).
• The vehicle. "It allows you to rent a vehicle comparable to your current vehicle, subject to availability."
• The rental company. "Coverage applies to rentals from a company whose business is renting vehicles." It adds: "It does not apply to rentals from friends, family or other private persons." MPI also notes that some rental companies set age, credit card or licensing requirements of their own.

Ask MPI or your Autopac broker whether your policy carries it and what it costs; the figures above are as we read them in October 2026.

When the Other Driver Is at Fault

MPI's Basic all perils coverage page attaches five lines to this case, quoted word for word because two of them say "must".

"You have to prove that you needed to pay for other transportation and that you did your best to minimize these costs."

"You must choose the least expensive, most reasonable transportation option."

"For example, you should use public transportation and vehicles for hire, unless renting a vehicle would be less costly."

"If you own a second vehicle, you should use it instead of your damaged one."

"You must keep your expenses to a minimum because the at-fault motorist is responsible only for your expenses that are strictly necessary."

Our advice: in Winnipeg, a bus or a vehicle for hire may well be the least expensive option. On a farm off a grid road north of Portage la Prairie, or for a six o'clock shift in MacGregor, there may be no bus at all. Tell your adjuster how far you travel, and keep every receipt.

Fault can also change what you pay toward the repair itself. Our post on the MPI deductible on a collision claim explains how fault decides whether you get your deductible back.

How the Rental Days Line Up With the Repair

MPI's Increasing Loss of Use page ties the optional coverage to the repair and to whether the vehicle can be driven.

• A damaged vehicle you can still drive. Coverage begins when you deliver your vehicle for repairs and ends when repairs are finished or you reach your coverage limit.
• A damaged vehicle that cannot be driven. Coverage begins immediately and ends when repairs are finished, your adjuster offers you a settlement for your vehicle, or you reach your coverage limit.

Our reading, not MPI's: on a driveable vehicle, the days at the shop are the days that count, so the length of the repair uses up the maximum. Our honest Manitoba timeline for collision repair walks through why that length depends on the damage and the parts. On a long repair, check in with your adjuster before you reach the 30 days above.

Planning for a One Vehicle Household in January

A body shop visit lands hardest on a farm with one family vehicle. When the SUV that does the school run, the parts run to town and the drive to the rink goes in for repairs, there is no second set of keys on the hook. The same goes for a Portage la Prairie commuter who drives Highway 1 to Winnipeg every weekday in the January dark.

A few things are worth doing before the snow stays.

• Read your policy now. Know whether you carry Loss of Use before a deer or a slide on black ice decides it for you.
• Ask the rental company the winter questions. Before you sign, ask whether the rental has winter tires and a block heater; a January start at minus 30 in a farmyard is no heated parkade.
• Plan around the repair date. If the vehicle is still safe to drive, keep it until it goes in, since the optional coverage on a driveable vehicle starts at drop off.

If the claim ends in a settlement instead of a repair, the coverage on a vehicle that cannot be driven ends with the settlement offer, so start looking for the next vehicle early. You can apply for financing online, and any approval, rate or term is on approved credit. If a second vehicle in the yard is ready to go as well, see what it is worth with our trade in value tool.

Book the Estimate and Ask About Transportation

If your claim is eligible, MPI's Direct Repair program lets you go straight to a participating repair shop for the estimate after reporting the claim to MPI. Our collision department is an MPI accredited repair shop; ask our collision team whether your claim can go through Direct Repair with us. MPI's Direct Repair page states the limit: "Only certain claims are eligible for Direct Repair, and not all repair shops are eligible to perform vehicle damage estimates." The page also says: "Call the shop to set up an appointment for an estimate." It goes on: "Let them know if you are participating in Direct Repair and provide them with your claim number and licence plate number."

When you call, say whether the vehicle can still be driven safely, and ask our collision team about a rental or a loaner rather than counting on either.

FAQs

Does MPI cover a rental car during repairs?

Only in certain cases. Under Basic Autopac, MPI says you may have a claim for replacement transportation expenses when your vehicle was damaged in a collision that was the fault of another motorist insured with Autopac. For other collisions, MPI points to its optional Loss of Use coverage, which it says pays the reasonable costs of other transportation even if you are responsible for the collision.

How much does MPI Loss of Use coverage pay?

MPI's Increasing Loss of Use page prints the passenger vehicle option at $50 a day plus tax, or $56 after tax, to a maximum of $1,500 plus tax, or $1,680 after tax. Ask MPI or your Autopac broker whether your policy carries it.

When do the rental days start and stop during a collision repair?

It depends on whether the vehicle can be driven. MPI's Increasing Loss of Use page says that for a damaged vehicle you can still drive, the optional coverage begins when you deliver it for repairs and ends when repairs are finished or you reach your coverage limit. For a vehicle that cannot be driven, it begins immediately.

Can I rent a vehicle from a friend or family member on Loss of Use?

No. Manitoba Public Insurance says the coverage applies to rentals from a company whose business is renting vehicles, and does not apply to rentals from friends, family or other private persons.

Who do I ask about a rental when Dunn Ram Trucks repairs my vehicle?

Ask MPI first, because your adjuster can tell you which transportation coverage applies to your claim. Our collision department at Dunn Ram Trucks in Portage la Prairie does collision repair and refinishing, and we are an MPI accredited repair shop. Whether we can help with a rental or a loaner is a question for our collision team, so ask when you book the estimate.

The Bottom Line

MPI pays toward a rental during a body shop repair in certain cases: under Basic, you may have a claim when another motorist insured with Autopac caused the collision, and Loss of Use covers other transportation regardless of fault if you carry it.

Have a claim number? Book your estimate with our collision department and ask about transportation when you call.

Tyler Dunn, Dunn Ram Trucks, Portage la Prairie