THE majority of customers renewing their personal auto insurance under ICBC’s Enhanced Care model are saving more than the average of $400 or 20 per cent originally projected when the new system was first announced in February 2020, the ICBC said on Thursday.

ICBC customers renewed more than 1.3 million personal insurance policies under Enhanced Care between May 1 and August 31, saving an average of $496 or about 28 per cent compared to last year’s premiums.

While these savings reflect just the first four months of Enhanced Care and may vary over the coming months, ICBC anticipates the majority of customers will continue to save more than $400 on average when they renew their full ICBC coverage.

When B.C.’s auto insurance system transitioned to Enhanced Care, millions of customers also became eligible for a one-time, pro-rated refund for the portion of their existing policy that extended past May 1. ICBC has since processed 3.6 million Enhanced Care refunds averaging $150, for a total of approximately $594 million.

How much customers are saving under Enhanced Care depends on a variety of factors, including whether they purchase both basic and optional ICBC coverage, their driving experience and crash history, where they live and how they use their vehicle.

Enhanced Care is a new way of doing auto insurance in British Columbia, offering drivers some of the best care and recovery benefits available in Canada, regardless of fault, at a much more affordable rate.

In fact, a new comparison conducted by Ernst & Young shows the cost of auto insurance in B.C. as favourable compared to many other Canadian provinces.

For example, an 18-year-old male with a novice licence driving a 2014 Hyundai Elantra and living in West Kelowna could expect to pay $2,379 annually for basic and optional ICBC auto insurance under Enhanced Care.

In other Canadian cities, comparable auto insurance coverage costs:

• $8,206 in Edmonton, Alberta

• $6,930 in Kitchener, Ontario

• $1,774 in Winnipeg, Manitoba

A 24-year-old female driving a 2016 Honda Civic with eight years driving experience and no crashes living in Vancouver’s West End could expect to pay $2,039 annually for basic and optional ICBC auto insurance.

In other Canadian cities, comparable auto insurance coverage costs:

• $3,046 in Calgary, Alberta

• $2,476 in Toronto, Ontario

• $1,232 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

​A 42-year-old male driving a 2017 Ford F150 SuperCrew with 26 years driving experience and no crashes living in Abbotsford could expect to pay $1,517 annually for basic and optional ICBC auto insurance.

​In other Canadian cities, comparable auto insurance coverage costs:

• $3,383 in Red Deer, Alberta

• $2,515 in Thunder Bay, Ontario

• $1,712 in Fredericton, New Brunswick

More information on Enhanced Care is available at icbc.com/enhancedcare​.