Claims
If your vehicle is not repairable
Sometimes, it may not be economical to repair a vehicle. We call this a total loss (you might also hear it called a write-off). When this happens, we pay you an amount based on its value at the time of the incident.
What happens when your vehicle isn't repairable
When you make a claim, we might ask you to sign a Vehicle Ownership Transfer Agreement if it's likely your vehicle won't be repairable. Signing and submitting the agreement at the beginning helps us process your claim more quickly.
After you submit your claim, an estimator determines whether the vehicle is economical to repair. To do so, the estimator assesses the damages, estimates the repair costs and then calculates the vehicle's value at the time of the incident, while considering salvage value.
A vehicle is considered not repairable when repairing it would cost more than the vehicle's value at the time of the incident - what your vehicle would have sold for just before the damage happened.
In this case, an ICBC estimator will contact you to discuss the assessment and next steps. You'll need to sign a Vehicle Ownership Transfer Agreement (if you haven't already) and will then receive a payment based on the vehicle's determined value.
Set up direct deposit
Sign up for direct deposit to receive payments more quickly.
How we determine a vehicle's value
To help with determining the vehicle's value, we use Mitchell International, a third-party company.
Mitchell researches the market area to find comparable vehicles either sold or listed for sale. They review advertisements from online sources as well as dealer quotes, where appropriate.
The criteria used to determine market value includes the vehicle's:
Year, make and model
Average mileage and odometer reading
Vehicle condition (interior, exterior, tires and features)
Vehicle features (including options, trim levels and packages)
Your deductible
If your vehicle is determined to be not repairable, you may still need to pay the deductible that applies to your coverage. If the claim was for a collision and you're not responsible, the deductible may be reimbursed or waived.
As a general rule, we don't allow you to keep your vehicle if it's not economical to repair. If there are extenuating circumstances, you may wish to discuss owner retention with a material damage estimator.
Cancelling or transferring your insurance
When your vehicle is not repairable, you need to either cancel your insurance policy or transfer your insurance policy to another vehicle.
If you are transferring your existing insurance to a new vehicle, bring your vehicle valuation report from the total loss package as proof of odometer reading. If you were already receiving a usage-based discount on a policy effective on or after June 1, 2024, you will continue to do so. However, to maintain eligibility at your next policy renewal, you must provide the odometer reading for the total-loss vehicle, as well as odometer readings for the new vehicle.
Please contact your Autoplan broker for more information.
