Sep 11, 2018 in News Car Accident

Car Accident: B.C. auto insurer proposes premium changes

The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), Canada's only for-profit public auto insurer, proposed changes to the way it structures premiums last month, provoking mixed reactions from industry experts and auto insurance dispute lawyers across the country. The new model, if approved by the B.C. Utilities Commission, will reward safe drivers with lower premiums while asking high-risk drivers and drivers with fewer than 15 years of experience to pay more. "The model ICBC uses to determine these premiums is more than 30 years old and it's increasingly failed to ensure that drivers are held accountable for their driving habits and risk levels through their insurance rates," said B.C. Attorney General David Eby, the minister responsible for the ICBC, at a news conference in August. "A driver with no crashes could be paying the same premiums as a driver with three at-fault crashes in a year," he added. The province's NDP government believes two-thirds of B.C. drivers will enjoy reduced premiums under the new plan, while approximately 17 per cent would see immediate rate increases of up to $100. "I think it's incredibly responsible for ICBC to be taking these measures," one Vancouver tort lawyer told The Star Vancouver. "They're trying to reward good drivers more and punish bad drivers more as well." "The best way we can incentivize better behaviour on our roads is by rewarding good drivers and by pricing high risk drivers appropriately to give them that financial motivation to pay more attention, to make sure they aren't doing things like distracted driving," Aaron Sutherland, vice president of the Insurance Bureau of Canada's (IBC) Pacific region, told Canadian Underwriter. "My general thought is that this is long overdue." Under the new system, drivers without an at-fault accident will experience an annual premium reduction every year for up to 40 years. Drivers will also be rewarded for traveling less than 5,000 kilometres per year. Criticism Despite support from auto insurance dispute lawyers, critics believe the ICBC's proposed changes are unlikely to make premiums more affordable in the long term. Today, only Ontarians pay more for auto insurance than British Columbians; if the ICBC continues to hemorrhage money - it reported a $1.3-billion loss last year - those two provinces" positions may be reversed. Contact Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers If you have been injured in a car accident in Ontario, contact Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers today to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with one of our experienced auto insurance dispute lawyers.

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