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BC  

ICBC gouging drivers?

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation has added their voice to growing outrage over a study that shows B.C. drivers are paying hundreds of dollars more for auto insurance than Alberta drivers.

“It’s totally unfair that B.C. drivers are paying way more than our cousins in Alberta, why should we keep getting ripped off like this?” said Kris Sims, B.C. Director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. “Because ICBC is a government-controlled monopoly, it can gouge drivers every year without losing any of its trapped customers – this has to change. B.C. drivers need the choice to shop around for car insurance.”

The study which sparked the outrage was conducted for the Insurance Bureau of Canada and it compared insurance costs for B.C. drivers to those in Alberta.

The study shows a middle-aged male driver in B.C. pays $2,058 to insure a Ford F-150 while the same driver in Alberta pays $1,399 for the same coverage; $659 less per year.

The study shows that premiums for recreational vehicles are up to three times higher in B.C. than Alberta and motorcycle premiums are as much as 11 times higher.

According to data from ICBC and the General Insurance Statistical Agency (a statistical agency created and overseen by provincial insurance regulators), B.C. drivers pay the highest auto insurance prices in Canada, with annual premiums averaging $1,680.

Current reforms in B.C. are not expected to reduce prices. In fact, ICBC is forecast to increase prices by nearly 25% over the next three years, beginning with the 6.3% basic rate increase on April 1, 2019.



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