Editor's note: This is an abbreviated version of a letter that was sent to ICBC. It was copied to The Chief for publication.
I recently moved from Vancouver to Squamish. While changing my address at ICBC, I was informed of a zone change, and had to pay more money for higher insurance rates in Squamish. To me, this seems backwards to the reality of driving in this rural area.
When I called, ICBC customer service speculated that the increase was due to the accidents on the Sea to Sky Highway. The detailed statistics on the ICBC website is absent of any information broken down by zone. There is also no information regarding zone boundaries or rate calculations, with no way to meaningfully compare these areas.
Since the vast improvements to Highway 99 in 2010, I've observed that traffic has significantly improved and I'm guessing the number of accidents has gone down. Perhaps the rates reflect the history of accidents, and do not reflect the current reality.
While it's true that residents of this small town (including Lions Bay and Britannia Beach) benefit from this new highway, and enjoy visits from our southern neighbours, in my opinion we should not be subsidizing the millions of Lower Mainland residents who migrate their poor driving habits into this zone. If this is a hidden toll, then it should apply to residents of the Lower Mainland as well.Regardless, the residents of Squamish should not be penalized by accidents caused by drivers from outside our zone who provide the bulk of traffic on this highway.
In the absence of factual information, I am asking for an explanation on what calculation or decision-making went into the rates for these two zones.
Francis DeGagne
Squamish
