B.C. to introduce auto insurance payout limits

VICTORIA — Years of reckless decisions by the previous British Columbia Liberal administration have thrown the public auto insurer into chaos and forced the government to place a cap of $5,500 on accident payouts for pain and suffering, Attorney General David Eby says.

Eby said Tuesday the Insurance Corporation of B.C. (ICBC) was created to provide affordable insurance to all drivers in the province, but decisions and inaction by the former Liberal government led the corporation to a projected net loss this fiscal year of $1.3 billion.

“Today we start making the tough decisions that will stem ICBC’S losses, keep insurance affordable and provide enhanced care for people injured in automobile accidents. We’re going to make ICBC work for people again.”

Eby said the settlement limit on injury claims will not take effect until April 2019, as part of legislation to be introduced by the NDP government.

“For too long, difficult decisions have been put off and growing financial problems at ICBC hidden from the public,” he said. “The changes we’re initiating today will reduce ICBC’S claims costs by more than $1 billion every year, helping make it sustainable for decades to come.” Immediate changes introduced Tuesday include doubling the amount of money available for care and recovery for accident victims to $300,000.

The government said the cost of pain and suffering claims has increased by 265 per cent since 2000 and B.C. is the last province in Canada to place a limit on such claims.