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Upcoming rate changes by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) could lead to Lower Mainland drivers having the biggest premium hikes among all motorists in BC, if supporting documents are to be believed.
According to figures provided by ICBC, the so-called “territory and rate class factor” is set to increase for drivers in the Lower Mainland about 1% a year until 2028, CTV News reported. While the rate change is meant to be revenue neutral, ICBC could ask the BC Utilities Commission for a separate rate hike in December.
This means that, in 10 years, residents living in parts of Metro Vancouver could end up paying nearly 11% more for auto insurance. By comparison, drivers in other cities such as Kelowna or Prince George will see rate decreases similar to their rural neighbours following the changes.
Meanwhile, drivers in BC’s Interior and north will experience significant rate decreases. Motorists in the Okanagan, the Kootenays, the Cariboo, and in Peace River will see 13%, 27%, 38% and 40% decreases in their premiums, respectively.
“There shouldn’t be any favouritism in terms of country and city,” commented Consumers’ Association of Canada president Bruce Cran.
ICBC president Nicolas Jiminez explained that the insurer is looking to make high-risk drivers pay for their costs. He added that the number of crashes a driver gets into has a bigger impact on rates than the territory of a driver.
“There are many factors, and territory is only one of them. It’s not that big. The biggest is crashes,” Jiminez explained.
“Is there an opportunity to do more to fine-tune the territory structure? Absolutely. Do we have time to do that today? No. Will we get to that in the future? Yes, that’s something we will look at,” the president added.
ICBC had introduced revisions to its basic insurance product last week, with the goal of making the system fairer. Among the changes were additional costs for drivers who crash and awarding credit to drivers who have more experience and maintain a clean record.
