ICBC improves road safety across B.C. — February 21

Approximately $8.9 million spent in 2007 helps prevent crashes and reduce claims costs

ICBC has been helping improve road safety at high-crash locations in B.C. communities since its Road Improvement Program was launched in 1989. In 2007, ICBC invested approximately $8.9 million in funding for safety improvements to roads across the province.

ICBC's Road Improvement Program works in partnership with municipalities and the provincial government to make roads safer. In 2007, ICBC helped fund approximately 300 projects and engineering studies in 73 communities across the province.

"Road improvements are recognized worldwide as one of the most effective ways to improve safety for drivers and pedestrians," said John Les, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. "By making intersections and other high-crash locations safer, we are reducing crashes, preventing injuries, and saving lives," said Les.

Projects earmarked for road improvement investments are assessed to ensure they make B.C. roads safer for all drivers and translate into lower claims costs for ICBC and its customers. The most recent independent evaluation of ICBC-funded road improvements found a four-to-one return on investment over two years following a project's completion.

ICBC road safety investment concentrates on the systemic causes of crashes- drivers, roads and vehicles- and supports programs that are proven to prevent crashes and deliver the most significant claim savings benefits to its customers.

"The reality is, many of our roads were designed to standards existing in the 1950s or '60s," notes ICBC's Nicolas Jimenez, director of Road Safety. "New engineering standards such as dedicated left-turn bays, anti-skid treatments, roundabouts and traffic signal upgrades give us an opportunity to reduce crashes significantly. All ICBC-funded road improvement projects must achieve a return on investment. These savings are then passed onto our customers through low and stable insurance rates."

To find out more about projects in your community, go to www.icbc.com/road_safety/roadsafety_support_improve.asp

Media Contact:
Kate Best
604-982-2480

ICBC investigates sales of write-offs — February 13

Investigation focuses on vehicles repaired at ICBC's training facility

ICBC today announced that it has launched an investigation into the sale of all vehicles that have been repaired at the company's research facility in Burnaby over the last 10 years.

The investigation is focused on whether the previous damage history of vehicles repaired and sold from ICBC's Material Damage Research and Training (MDR&T) facility were properly documented and disclosed to customers. The investigation will also look at employee conduct in the course of these transactions.

MDR&T is a state-of-the-art facility that focuses on vehicle repair research and training. The facility employs 12 ICBC staff. Approximately 20 vehicles are repaired at the Burnaby facility in a typical year.

There are a maximum of 174 vehicles where the repairs may not have been properly documented and disclosed. ICBC is in the process of contacting the owners of these vehicles.

ICBC has no reason to believe that any of these vehicles are unsafe or that there are any issues with the quality of the repairs. To provide full assurance to our customers, ICBC will have these vehicles inspected.

As a company that is committed to earning and maintaining the confidence of our customers in all of its dealings, ICBC takes any allegations of potentially inappropriate or improper disclosure very seriously.

ICBC has temporarily shut down its MDR&T facility to permit a thorough investigation. The company is working to conclude the investigation in a comprehensive, yet expeditious manner.

With the investigation underway, ICBC is unable to provide further details at this time. The company will share the outcome of the investigation when it is complete.

Media Contact:
Doug McClelland
604-982-2476

Doug Henderson
604-982-1332

New vehicle owners protected — February 4

ICBC introduces its best protection for new vehicle owners

Every new vehicle owner wants the best insurance possible to protect their investment. With this is mind, ICBC has introduced New Vehicle Replacement Plus, a unique insurance option that provides customers with ICBC’s best coverage for new vehicles.

With New Vehicle Replacement Plus, a vehicle will be written off when the damage exceeds 50 percent of its market value, and the owner gets to replace it with a brand-new version of their vehicle or receives the cash equivalent. Under a standard insurance policy a vehicle is written off when the damage is much closer to market value.

“Many new car owners don’t want a vehicle back that has had major repairs, so we are providing these customers with another option,” said Kellee Irwin, vice-president of Underwriting. “We’ve lowered the threshold for New Vehicle Replacement Plus customers to give them the peace of mind in knowing that if they get in a major crash they are still going to have a brand new vehicle.”

The other benefits of New Vehicle Replacement Plus are that there is no deductible for written-off vehicles and when a vehicle is repairable all repairs will be completed using new parts from the manufacturer. The customer also gets to choose the repair shop and all repairs are fully guaranteed when using an ICBC c.a.r.shop Accredited Collision Repairs facility as long as the customer owns the vehicle.

New Vehicle Replacement Plus is available to customers with a brand new vehicle (current or future model years only), and who currently have ICBC optional coverage with a minimum discount of 20 percent.

New Vehicle Replacement Plus represents another choice for ICBC customers wanting to protect their new vehicle. For customers with a vehicle that is three years old or newer, ICBC also offers Replacement Cost Coverage or Limited Depreciation coverage.

Replacement Cost Coverage offers many of the same benefits of New Vehicle Replacement Plus, including having a written-off vehicle replaced with a brand-new vehicle and having repairs completed using new parts from the manufacturer. The added benefits for New Vehicle Replacement Plus are the 50 percent write-off threshold and no deductible for written-off vehicles. Limited Depreciation coverage provides customers with compensation for the depreciation of their vehicle.

Customers are encouraged to visit an Autoplan broker to find the coverage that’s right for them or visit http://www.icbc.com/insurance/insura_nv_replacement.asp for more information.

Media Contact:
Doug Henderson
604-982-1332

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