B.C. government requiring ICBC to notify those injured in a crash of benefits under new system - Global News | Canada News Media
Connect with us

Business

B.C. government requiring ICBC to notify those injured in a crash of benefits under new system – Global News

Published

 on


The B.C. government has introduced legislation requiring ICBC to advise those who are injured in a crash of the benefits they will receive.

It is just part of the government’s shift to a no fault, or enhanced care model, which the province says will save British Columbians money, dramatically increase benefits, while also reducing the ability to sue for an injury settlement.

Attorney General David Eby says the legislation marks a dramatic shift for the public insurer.

“We are talking about a fundamental restructuring of ICBC’s culture and it’s something Manitoba and Saskatchewan went through,” Eby said.

“In reviewing the information from those provinces one of the biggest challenges they faced was the transition from an insurer that fought people in court to a care-based model. We put in the law that ICBC has an obligation to advise people of what benefits are available to them.”

Story continues below advertisement






3:15
B.C. attorney general David Eby introduces new auto insurance legislation


B.C. attorney general David Eby introduces new auto insurance legislation

The B.C. government announced the major changes to ICBC in February.

Since then the province has heard from critics warning a no-fault system will punish young people, will be a challenge for those without family doctors and will mean those with the worst injuries in crashes will not receive the benefits they need.

But Eby says the province has created a system where ICBC can be held accountable by the recently enhanced Fairness Office and the Civil Resolution Tribunal to deal with disputes around benefits.

“British Columbians deserve peace of mind that if they are injured in a crash, they’ll be looked after, instead of being fought for years in court,” Eby said.

“They deserve low and stable car insurance rates. This bill will achieve both goals, saving people an average of 20 per cent on their insurance and taking care of people if they are injured. It is long overdue.”






6:44
Dave Eby explains ICBC overhaul and move to no-fault system


Dave Eby explains ICBC overhaul and move to no-fault system

The changes are estimated to save the average driver about $400, stating in May 2021.

The no-fault model coverage will also significantly increase the amount of care and recovery benefits available to anyone injured in a crash, providing enough care for a lifetime for those who need it, to a maximum of at least $7.5 million, up from $300,000 today.

Story continues below advertisement

Currently drivers must go to court and win settlements to cover costs associated with crashes.

The most seriously injured will get even more care and recovery benefits, including a new permanent impairment benefit that will provide financial compensation of up to $250,000.






2:04
New government legislation protects ICBC revenues


New government legislation protects ICBC revenues

But economist Nicholas Coleman says the changes will severely restrict how much some British Columbians can receive in wage losses.

Coleman says the unemployed will have wage loss benefits be based on the average earnings of British Columbians, or about $50,000 per year. This means high earners currently out of a job will be hurt by the change.

Stay-at-home parents will not be entitled to wage-loss benefits.

Students and young people will be entitled to wage benefits based on salary at the time of the crash and not based on potential future earnings.

The highest earners can also be compensated for wage loss only up to about $93,000 per year. Those who earn more than this amount will be under-compensated.


READ MORE:
New bill aims to ban using ICBC profits to cover other government costs

“The effect of the proposed scheme will require the residents of and visitors to B.C. to maintain trust that ICBC will not short-change them, when it is much more likely to be the case that ICBC will short-change people, whether it is because of corporate culture, budget pressure, political reasons, or a predisposition to err on the side of awarding conservative losses,” Coleman said.

Story continues below advertisement

The government is continuing consultation with stake holders.

“It’s the goal of an occupational therapist to help clients to return to their daily activities as quickly as possible. But the reality is that it often takes a lengthy period of time to recover from an automobile accident,” Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists, B.C. Branch managing director Tanya Fawkes-Kirby said.

“These changes will provide our clients with better recovery support, for as long as they need it so they can return, as much as possible, to their pre-crash activities.”


READ MORE:
Near-billion-dollar lawsuit claims ICBC illegally paid victims’ accident benefits to province

The B.C. government is working on rebuilding the public’s trust in ICBC. There are concerns the public insurer will be responsible to both keep rates down while also advising those injured in a class on what benefits they have access to.

The system also reduces the use of personal injury lawyers who help clients navigate an often complicated system.

There is optimism from Disability Alliance BC the changes will provide care people need.

“If a person becomes catastrophically injured in a motor vehicle collision, we want to ensure that they will get the medical treatment and rehabilitative equipment they need,” Disability Alliance BC executive director Justina Loh said.

“Even in situations where a person caused the collision, or was involved in a single-vehicle crash, we are encouraged that severely injured people will be able to access the increased care and benefits for their lifetime.”

Story continues below advertisement

Let’s block ads! (Why?)



Source link

Business

Telus prioritizing ‘most important customers,’ avoiding ‘unprofitable’ offers: CFO

Published

 on

 

Telus Corp. says it is avoiding offering “unprofitable” discounts as fierce competition in the Canadian telecommunications sector shows no sign of slowing down.

The company said Friday it had fewer net new customers during its third quarter compared with the same time last year, as it copes with increasingly “aggressive marketing and promotional pricing” that is prompting more customers to switch providers.

Telus said it added 347,000 net new customers, down around 14.5 per cent compared with last year. The figure includes 130,000 mobile phone subscribers and 34,000 internet customers, down 30,000 and 3,000, respectively, year-over-year.

The company reported its mobile phone churn rate — a metric measuring subscribers who cancelled their services — was 1.09 per cent in the third quarter, up from 1.03 per cent in the third quarter of 2023. That included a postpaid mobile phone churn rate of 0.90 per cent in its latest quarter.

Telus said its focus is on customer retention through its “industry-leading service and network quality, along with successful promotions and bundled offerings.”

“The customers we have are the most important customers we can get,” said chief financial officer Doug French in an interview.

“We’ve, again, just continued to focus on what matters most to our customers, from a product and customer service perspective, while not loading unprofitable customers.”

Meanwhile, Telus reported its net income attributable to common shares more than doubled during its third quarter.

The telecommunications company said it earned $280 million, up 105.9 per cent from the same three-month period in 2023. Earnings per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 19 cents compared with nine cents a year earlier.

It reported adjusted net income was $413 million, up 10.7 per cent year-over-year from $373 million in the same quarter last year. Operating revenue and other income for the quarter was $5.1 billion, up 1.8 per cent from the previous year.

Mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.85 in the third quarter, a decrease of $2.09 or 3.4 per cent from a year ago. Telus said the drop was attributable to customers signing up for base rate plans with lower prices, along with a decline in overage and roaming revenues.

It said customers are increasingly adopting unlimited data and Canada-U.S. plans which provide higher and more stable ARPU on a monthly basis.

“In a tough operating environment and relative to peers, we view Q3 results that were in line to slightly better than forecast as the best of the bunch,” said RBC analyst Drew McReynolds in a note.

Scotiabank analyst Maher Yaghi added that “the telecom industry in Canada remains very challenging for all players, however, Telus has been able to face these pressures” and still deliver growth.

The Big 3 telecom providers — which also include Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. — have frequently stressed that the market has grown more competitive in recent years, especially after the closing of Quebecor Inc.’s purchase of Freedom Mobile in April 2023.

Hailed as a fourth national carrier, Quebecor has invested in enhancements to Freedom’s network while offering more affordable plans as part of a set of commitments it was mandated by Ottawa to agree to.

The cost of telephone services in September was down eight per cent compared with a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada’s most recent inflation report last month.

“I think competition has been and continues to be, I’d say, quite intense in Canada, and we’ve obviously had to just manage our business the way we see fit,” said French.

Asked how long that environment could last, he said that’s out of Telus’ hands.

“What I can control, though, is how we go to market and how we lead with our products,” he said.

“I think the conditions within the market will have to adjust accordingly over time. We’ve continued to focus on digitization, continued to bring our cost structure down to compete, irrespective of the price and the current market conditions.”

Still, Canada’s telecom regulator continues to warn providers about customers facing more charges on their cellphone and internet bills.

On Tuesday, CRTC vice-president of consumer, analytics and strategy Scott Hutton called on providers to ensure they clearly inform their customers of charges such as early cancellation fees.

That followed statements from the regulator in recent weeks cautioning against rising international roaming fees and “surprise” price increases being found on their bills.

Hutton said the CRTC plans to launch public consultations in the coming weeks that will focus “on ensuring that information is clear and consistent, making it easier to compare offers and switch services or providers.”

“The CRTC is concerned with recent trends, which suggest that Canadians may not be benefiting from the full protections of our codes,” he said.

“We will continue to monitor developments and will take further action if our codes are not being followed.”

French said any initiative to boost transparency is a step in the right direction.

“I can’t say we are perfect across the board, but what I can say is we are absolutely taking it under consideration and trying to be the best at communicating with our customers,” he said.

“I think everyone looking in the mirror would say there’s room for improvement.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:T)

Source link

Continue Reading

Business

TC Energy cuts cost estimate for Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico

Published

 on

 

CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.

It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.

The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.

TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:TRP)

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

Business

BCE reports Q3 loss on asset impairment charge, cuts revenue guidance

Published

 on

 

BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.

The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.

“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”

Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.

BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.

The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.

BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.

It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.

The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”

Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BCE)

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

Trending

Exit mobile version