New Enhanced Care coverage starts May 2021

VICTORIA – ICBC will embark on a new way of doing auto insurance in British Columbia, the largest transformation in its 40-year history.

The Enhanced Care coverage bill, expected to receive royal assent on Friday, Aug. 14, 2020, will save British Columbians on average 20% or about $400 on their auto insurance. It will also provide increased care and recovery benefits for people. It will increase from the current limit of $300,000 to a maximum of at least $7.5 million, providing the care people need for as long as they need it, should they be injured in a crash.

This is what experts from the medical, brain injury, spinal cord injury, physiotherapy, mental health, occupational therapy and insurance industries are saying about Enhanced Care coverage, which starts in May 2021:

Reaction:

Chuck Byrne, executive director and COO, Insurance Brokers Association of BC

“B.C.’s insurance brokers welcome the significant savings of about $400 on average that customers will see with Enhanced Care coverage, a much-needed reduction in auto-insurance premiums in the province. Those savings, coupled with the increased care benefits that people will receive, make Enhanced Care coverage a tremendous upgrade to auto insurance in B.C.”

Benjamin Graham, president and CEO, Manitoba Public Insurance

“In Manitoba, we’ve demonstrated how this type of no-fault insurance model offers strong benefits at premiums drivers can afford. At a time when many drivers across Canada are seeing their insurance bills increase, we’re planning to reduce our already low rates by an average of more than 10%, our largest reduction in three decades.”