Your Guide to B.C.'s 2024 Car Insurance Rates
If you’re a B.C. driver, there will be no increase to ICBC basic insurance rates until 2025.
British Columbia is among the provinces with the lowest car insurance rates in Canada, while rates in Alberta and Ontario were the most expensive. Mandatory basic car insurance rates in B.C. have held steady since 2021.
Western Financial Group is authorized to sell ICBC mandatory basic auto insurance and optional car insurance such as collision, comprehensive, guaranteed asset protection (GAP), and replacement cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is SKIP THE LINE Fast Path ICBC form?
With the SKIP THE LINE Fast Path ICBC form, you can easily renew your auto insurance fully online. Your Western insurance experts are ready to process your SKIP THE LINE Fast Path ICBC form.
It’s offered to drivers who use their cars or trucks for pleasure, to and from work, and to and from work with transit and business use. It is not currently available for delivery use.
An ICBC online renewal is available for vehicles owned by only one owner. If you have a jointly owned vehicle, your Western insurance expert can help you renew your insurance in person.
Important: Even if you renew ICBC online, you will need to keep a paper copy of your insurance renewal in your vehicle.
2. What If I don’t renew my ICBC insurance online?
You can still renew your ICBC insurance in person or over the phone with your Western car insurance expert.
3. What is the basic Autoplan insurance for ICBC?
Basic autoplan insurance includes $200,000 in Third Party Liability coverage. Third-party liability continues to be important in certain circumstances, such as non-vehicle property damage or driving out of province and can protect you in situations where the law permits the other driver to sue.
If you make a third-party liability claim against the person who's responsible for an auto crash and they don't have enough insurance to pay for your claim, Underinsured Motorist Protection (UMP) covers you. Basic underinsured motorist protection covers you and members of your household for claims of up to $1 million per insured person.
If you want to increase the amount of coverage you have in the event that you're responsible for a crash, you may want to consider Extended Third Party Liability coverage, an optional Autoplan coverage.
4. What about ICBC discounts?
Discounts – will you get them all?
Discount for Advanced Safety Technology: Vehicles equipped with factory-installed autonomous emergency braking (AEB) are eligible for a 10% discount as AEB has been statistically shown to help prevent crashes.
Experienced driver discount
Generally, drivers with more years of driving experience will see greater savings. You will be able to receive basic insurance savings for up to 40 years of driving experience, up from the current nine years of crash-free driving.
Basic insurance premiums are currently discounted for inexperienced drivers. ICBC continues to offer discounted premiums but, however, these discounts will be reduced with one at-fault crash and eliminated with a second crash in the same scan period.
Low-kilometre and distance-based discounts: Don’t drive often? You may be eligible for a new discount next year. Bring a photo of your current odometer reading when you buy or renew your insurance
Yes! A 10 per cent discount for vehicles that are driven less than 5,000 km in a year. The discount applies to Basic, Extended Third-Party Liability and Collision premiums.
The discount is based on the mileage driven over the last 12 months. This is determined by an odometer reading from the previous policy term, and another at the policy’s renewal a year later.
Note: There are certain rate classes that are not eligible, such as motorcycles and collector vehicles because their rate classes already reflect low kilometres travelled because most of these vehicles are not used year-round. This discount is meant for those who are in rate classes where the majority of the vehicles are driven longer distances.
Is there a discount for seniors?
The Senior Driver Factor reduces the IDF for eligible drivers aged 65 or older. The potential savings of the Senior Driver Factor decrease if there is a chargeable claim within the scan period.
How chargeable claims affect the Senior Driver Factor: If the eligible driver has a chargeable claim in the 10-year scan period, the potential savings from the Senior Driver Factor are decreased by half. If the driver has two or more chargeable claims in the 10-year scan period, the Senior Driver Factor will be neutral and no longer reduce the driver's IDF.
