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Inexperienced and high-risk drivers would pay more for their vehicle insurance in British Columbia under proposed changes to modernize the province’s Crown auto insurance corporation.
The provincial government introduced the changes to the way premiums are calculated in a plan to shift more responsibility to those drivers who cause crashes.
The changes would include insurance discounts for drivers with up to 40 years of driving experience and moving to a driver-based model, so at-fault crashes are tied to the driver and not the vehicle owner.
Those drivers who have caused crashes in the last decade will pay more under the new system, but they can waive one at-fault crash if they have 20 years experience and are 10 years crash-free.
The government says the changes are revenue-neutral, while making insurance premiums more fair, and they will have no effect on the forecasted $1.3 billion deficit faced by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC).
It says changes introduced by Attorney General David Eby earlier this year were aimed at reducing the deficit, including a $5,500 payout cap on pain and suffering in minor injury claims.
