B.C.’s vehicle insurance rates now among cheapest in nation: report

Bring Cash. It’s a common aphorism of British Columbia, and how expensive Canada’s westernmost province is compared to life on the Prairies.

While that adage certainly rings true for gas and housing, when it comes to vehicle insurance, a new, 42-page report says B.C. actually has among the nation’s best rates.

On Thursday, ICBC released the results of the report by Ernst and Young, which compared rates in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.

The report included comparisons of prices in various cities, along with age-related drivers, their vehicles, average daily commute and annual kilometres driven.

The first example listed was an 18-year-old male student with a Stage 2 learner’s license and a 2012 Honda Civic LX.

In B.C., there were four prices listed for the teen’s insurance rates:

• Abbotsford ($2,994)
• Nanaimo ($2,067)
• Prince George ($2,139)
• Vancouver’s West End ($3,044)
• West Kelowna ($2,311)

The rates in B.C. were considerably cheaper than the prices listed in Alberta, but still not as cheap as Saskatchewan:

• Calgary ($6,140)
• Edmonton ($6,471)
• Grande Prairie ($5,576)
• Red Deer ($5,557)
• Esterhazy ($1,130)
• Saskatoon ($1,128)

The same price differences were generally mirrored across 30 different driver profiles, with B.C. coming in with lower prices than Ontario and the Atlantic provinces.

Example: 30-year-old male, married, employed, 14 years driving experience with a 2019 Ford F350 SD XLT crew cab:

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• Abbotsford ($2,413)
• Nanaimo ($1,689)
• Prince George ($1,911)
• Vancouver’s West End ($2,385)
• West Kelowna ($1,928)
• Calgary ($5,042)
• Edmonton ($4,480)
• Grande Prairie ($4,701)
• Red Deer ($4,939)
• Esterhazy ($1,417)
• Saskatoon ($1,416)
• Winnipeg ($1,150)
• Toronto ($5,294)
• Saint John ($4,483)
• Charlottetown ($3,023)
• St. John’s ($6,828)

Example: 35-year-old female, single, employed, 19 years driving experience with a 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan:

• Abbotsford ($1,492)
• Nanaimo ($1,043)
• Prince George ($1,137)
• Vancouver’s West End ($1,495)
• West Kelowna ($1,178)
• Calgary ($2,639)
• Edmonton ($2,701)
• Grande Prairie ($2,264)
• Red Deer ($2,546)
• Esterhazy ($1,075)
• Saskatoon ($1,073)
• Winnipeg ($1,359)
• Toronto ($1,876)
• Saint John ($1,889)
• Charlottetown ($1,386)
• St. John’s ($2,255)

Example: 50-year-old female, married, employed, 34 years driving experience with a 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan SE:

• Abbotsford ($1,108)
• Nanaimo ($782)
• Prince George ($767)
• Vancouver’s West End ($1,163)
• West Kelowna ($847)
• Calgary ($1,497)
• Edmonton ($1,504)
• Grande Prairie ($1,164)
• Red Deer ($1,247)
• Esterhazy ($878)
• Saskatoon ($877)
• Winnipeg ($1,001)
• Toronto ($1,034)
• Saint John ($1,083)
• Charlottetown ($686)
• St. John’s ($1,346)

“(Ernst and Young) found that auto insurance in provinces with publicly owned care-based models is more affordable than in provinces with private insurance models,” ICBC said in its press release.

Notably, the report came approximately 16 months after the province changed its insurance model, with ICBC claiming that B.C. drivers saved an average of $490 when renewing their insurance for the first time.

That reduction in price, said ICBC, came from removing “the adversarial approach of suing drivers and the hundreds of millions that were being spent on legal fees under the previous litigation-based system.”

ICBC continued, saying “it’s a lower cost model that passes those savings onto customers through lower insurance rates and sees more money going directly towards the care and recovery of British Columbians injured in crashes.”

ICBC’s new model, called Enhanced Care, does have its critics, though, and Global News has covered several stories on that topic.

ICBC issued an enhanced care customer report last January touting its benefits. That report can be accessed on their website.

To view this week’s 42-page report, click on this link.