While raising rates and removing rights certainly is one road to travel, it’s a bumpy one that could lead the UCP right off an electoral cliff in 2027. Here’s the off-ramp, a 10-point plan to save good Alberta motorists premium dollars (an estimated $60/month on average) with reforms to our existing at-fault (tort law) auto insurance system: Read More
In a recent op-ed, a lobbyist for Alberta’s multibillion-dollar auto insurance industry admits that the UCP government’s so-called “Care-First” no-fault insurance scheme might not reduce our premiums. Ahead of the 2027 implementation date, the lobbyist offers a modest proposal: Lift the lid on the rates insurance companies can charge consumers, and eliminate all rights of innocent,
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In a recent op-ed, a lobbyist for Alberta’s multibillion-dollar auto insurance industry admits that the UCP government’s so-called “Care-First” no-fault insurance scheme might not reduce our premiums. Ahead of the 2027 implementation date, the lobbyist offers a modest proposal: Lift the lid on the rates insurance companies can charge consumers, and eliminate all rights of innocent, injured Albertans to compensation from reckless drivers’ insurers.
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While raising rates and removing rights certainly is one road to travel, it’s a bumpy one that could lead the UCP right off an electoral cliff in 2027. Here’s the off-ramp, a 10-point plan to save good Alberta motorists premium dollars (an estimated $60/month on average) with reforms to our existing at-fault (tort law) auto insurance system:
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1. De-index the Minor Injury Regulation compensation cap, reduce it by nearly 20 per cent to $5,000, take injuries covered by the MIR (about 80 per cent of claims) out of the tort system, and permit motorists who want compensation for those injuries the option of purchasing that coverage from their own insurer. $100/year savings.
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2. Eliminate the hidden four-per-cent insurance premium tax (as expert Alberta economist Dr. Jack Mintz has been urging for over two decades), and slash the health-cost recovery levy. $90/year savings.
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3. Modify the grid program, which forces good drivers to over-subsidize the rates of bad ones. $65/year savings.
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4. Allow optional collision/comprehensive coverage for repairs with basic or after-market parts. $40/year savings.
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5. Reduce compulsory Section B medical expense benefits from $50,000 to $10,000 and total disability benefits from 104 weeks to 26 weeks, and permit auto insurers to sell optional excess Section B coverage (just as insurers can sell excess Section A liability coverage over and above the mandatory minimum and can sell consumers optional Section C collision coverage). $30/year savings.
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6. Repeal the Direct Compensation Property Damage program, enacted by the UCP under then-premier Jason Kenney in 2022. Premier Danielle Smith herself has said the DCPD policy should be revisited. $30/year savings.