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Submitted by admin on Sat, 12/01/2007 - 11:43.
Neal Hall, Vancouver Sun High-risk drivers who get two 24-hour roadside suspensions within three years will have to pay an extra $370 a year in premiums under a program announced Thursday by the Insurance Corp. of B.C. It will be the first time ICBC has charged extra for roadside suspensions, said ICBC spokesman Doug McClelland. John Banovich of the Greater Vancouver Mothers Against Drunk Driving praised ICBC's decision to impose extra penalties on those who get caught drinking and driving. "We're happy to see they've recognized it, but we don't feel they've gone far enough," Banovich said. "We'd like to see stronger fines." The measure is part of a new ICBC program targeting bad drivers and making them pay more. As of Jan. 1, those convicted of excessive speeding, impaired driving, running red lights and other forms of dangerous driving face paying additional insurance premiums ranging from $320 to $905 a year for three years. The new Driver Risk Premium won't be charged until January 2009, but any driving infraction deemed a high-risk offence after Jan. 1, 2008 will be recorded on a driver's record. ICBC estimates the average high-risk premium will be $500 on top of the regular cost of insurance, but bad drivers with several convictions could pay thousands more. A driver who receives a Criminal Code conviction for impaired driving or dangerous driving will incur an annual extra premium of $905, which adds up to $2,715 over three years. About 120,000 drivers -- roughly five per cent of B.C.'s licensed drivers -- will soon receive warning letters from the Insurance Corp. of B.C. The recipients are those whose past driving records would result in additional high-risk premiums under the new policy. "High-risk drivers are currently not paying enough, given the risk they pose on the roads," Paul Taylor, ICBC's president and CEO, said in a statement. "Charging bad drivers more is one way that ICBC is working to keep rates low and stable for safer drivers," he said. High-risk drivers have a crash rate more than twice as high as those of other B.C. drivers, ICBC says. The new premium will be tied to driver's licences, not insurance, and will have to be paid whether or not the driver owns or insures a vehicle. About a month before the driver's birthday, a bill will be mailed to those with high-risk convictions. There will be a three-year transition period to replace the current Driver Penalty Points program. The two programs will run parallel during the transition. Drivers with high-risk offences will pay the higher of the two premiums, on top of the annual cost of their auto insurance. Previously, under the penalty points system, each ticket for excessive speeding -- defined as going more than 40 km/h over the posted speed limit -- would carry three points. One ticket would not result in any extra expense for annual auto insurance. But if a driver received four points, that person would have to pay ICBC an additional $175. The penalty points program affected only 1.2 per cent of B.C. drivers, but the new program is expected to affect five per cent of drivers, bringing in an estimated $40 million to $60 million a year in revenue, McClelland said. "The whole package is designed to be revenue-neutral," he said. "It's the cost of the additional risk they bring to the road." Here are the minimum Driver Risk Premiums by offence: - $905 for one Criminal Code conviction for impaired driving or dangerous driving. - $320 for one excessive-speeding conviction. - $370 for two 24-hour roadside suspensions within a three-year period. - $350 for three motor-vehicle-related offences (speeding, disobeying a signal) within a three-year period. Source: ICBC |
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