ICBC - overcharged customers

[Hassel99]

Every state (and province is different)

In California, I believe you have 90 dayss before you have to register a new vehicle and get your plate. I was told (and can not verify) that Steve jobs never once had a license plate on his cars, he would get a new one every 90 days lol.

Found the article

So it turns out, if you are incredibly wealthy, live in California, and are somewhat paranoid, you can find a way to drive around town without those pesky license plates cluttering up your car.

At least, that's what Steve Jobs did. Thanks to a seemingly endless supply of money, IT Wire reports he found a way around having a license plate: By treating his Mercedes SL55 AMG cars as if they were disposable.

Turns out, in California, you can drive a brand-new car for six months without getting a license plate. So that's what Jobs would do. He'd lease a silver SL55 (starting price: $103,000) for almost six months, then turn it in and get an identical one when it was time to get a new one.

The New York Times has identified the statute as California Vehicle Code No. 4456, which says that a new vehicle can be driven for up to six months without license plates. (Although the newspaper goes on to explain that the law is changing to shorten that period to three months in July 2012.)

So Jobs' grand act of defiance was made possible by simply leasing a new car every six months.

But before we close the books on the license plate issue, we'd like to perhaps see some more evidence. If Jobs indeed acquired a new car every six months, we'd have to assume that sometime in 2009 he started driving something other than an SL55 AMG. It went out of production in 2008, and was replaced by the 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG. Yet we've seen photos of what is said to be Jobs' 2007 SL55, reportedly with over 21,000 miles on the odo in summer 2010.

Perhaps this is just another case of Steve's "reality distortion field," persisting even after his death.

http://autos.aol.com/article/loophole-l ... nse-plate/






Here is the link to ICBC's site to see if you are one of the 5% that got overcharged $20 a year.

http://checkmyvehicle.icbc.com/

How we're making it right
We're looking back over the last six years to make sure customers paid the correct amount for their optional insurance. This includes all vehicles that you currently insure as well as any vehicles you insured during this timeframe.
We will refund customers who paid too much for their optional insurance. If you paid too little, you will not be charged the difference for prior years.
In 90 days, letters will be sent to financially impacted customers. Cheques with interest will be sent along with letters to customers who paid too much for their optional insurance.
We're going as far back as our insurance system is able to accurately recalculate historical premiums for our customers.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this has caused our customers.

[matai]

In 90 days, letters will be sent to financially impacted customers. Cheques with interest will be sent along with letters to customers who paid too much for their optional insurance.

3 months? What a joke! Speed kills?

We're going as far back as our insurance system is able to accurately recalculate historical premiums for our customers.

So you might have been overpaying for decades but will be refunded for up to 6 years.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this has caused our customers.

Sure... sure... we believe you

http://checkmyvehicle.icbc.com/

[Bsuds]

Sure... sure... we believe you

So were you overcharged?

[Smurf]

Hassel99, I bought a motorhome in Arizona, purchased the proper insurance and put a temporary 90 day licence/permit on it for approx. $45.00, don't remember exact amount. I could have purchased another 30 day extension for next to nothing. I drove it around down there and all the way home into Canada legally on that licence/permit. I was however required to register it in Canada ASAP. after returning home.

I think we're a bit off topic here.

[Hassel99]

Scariest part about USA auto insurance is the low required min levels of coverage. IN bc to be on the road you need to buy at least $200,000 in liability from ICBC. IN Arizona for example you only need carry $30,000 in liability and in some states its $10,000.

A $10,000 insurance policy is a huge waste of money lol. The most litigious country in the world has some of the lowest auto insurance limit requirements. Our min is $200,000 but I don't know a single person who only buys that. I know I carry $5mm myself, I am risk adverse.

[John500]

Government hands of ICBC. Privatize ICBC. That's the only solution. Let them compete. If they are that good most of us will stay with them. Simple!

[matai]

Sure... sure... we believe you

So were you overcharged?

What will it change in your life if I was to tell you?

[Bsuds]

What will it change in your life if I was to tell you?

It would change nothing but it would explain why you are complaining so much.

Apparently only about 5% of ICBC full coverage customers were affected on certain vehicles. So I doubt anyone was overcharged for decades and decades as you suggest.

[matai]

It would change nothing but it would explain why you are complaining so much.

Good. Because I wasn't to tell you either LOL.

And where did you see me complaining?

[Dizzy1]

2 Vehicles and we save over $200 ea compared to ICBC

Saved quite a bit of change on my car as well ... not nearly as cheap as I've paid elsewhere, but at least its something.

Oh well, looking forward to the rate increase coming up to pay for this boo boo :)

[Bsuds]

We were talking to a friends daughter from Calgary a few days ago. She was saying her car insurance is more in Alberta than it was in BC. I always thought it was the other way around.

[Dizzy1]

We were talking to a friends daughter from Calgary a few days ago. She was saying her car insurance is more in Alberta than it was in BC. I always thought it was the other way around.

I would think it depends on your eligible discount, years driving, accident risk, etc.

[matai]

The "no fault" system would benefit everyone. No more lawsuits.

Otherwise, I guess we will see more outrageously moronic ones like this:

http://www.castanet.net/news/Canada/113 ... she-killed

[GordonH]

The "no fault" system would benefit everyone. No more lawsuits.

Otherwise, I guess we will see more outrageously moronic ones like this:

http://www.castanet.net/news/Canada/113 ... she-killed

This one is from Ontario not BC, which has private insurance not public/Government.

Added later: I suspect no insurance company is at all involved with this lawsuit.

[Bsuds]

We were talking to a friends daughter from Calgary a few days ago. She was saying her car insurance is more in Alberta than it was in BC. I always thought it was the other way around.

I would think it depends on your eligible discount, years driving, accident risk, etc.

Yabutt the way everyone posts on here the consensus seems to be it's cheaper in Alberta.
When I actually talk to someone who is originally from BC and now in Alberta and they claim it's cheaper here.