Hmmmm... Insurance, what a rip...

[dr_bar]

Okay, I know there was an insurance topic before, but be damned if I could find it.


Here in Beautiful BC, I have the joy of dealing with ICBC. Our local government owned insurance company. If you ride or drive as a BC resident, this is where you get your insurance from. They continually tell us that they have rates that are competitive with everywhere else in the country, (SURE, we all believe it too... )

So, just how competitve are they? I recently got a quote basing my rates on a couple of parameters,

1. I have the maximum "Safe Driver deduction", which just happens to be 43%.
2. I'm the sole operator of the bike.
3. Declared replacement cost is $22,000.

Premiums .................................. Coverage/Deductable ............................. Base .................. My Cost

Basic third party liability - ........................................................................... $1555 .................. $886
Extension 3rd party liability .................. $2,000,000 .................................. $279 .................. $128
Collision ................................................ $300 ........................................... $1481 .................. $637
Comprehensive .................................... $300 ............................................ $1917 .................. $882
Total Premiums ......................................................................................... $5257 .................. $2558


Now those sure look competitive eh!!!

I bought just the basic and extended 3rd party with ICBC, and purchased everything else with a private insurer. So my coverage and costs are as follows;

ICBC ................. $1014
Private .............. $597
Total cost ........ $1611

With the few hidden fees that ICBC throws in, my savings add up to over $1000 by splitting insurers, and that doesn't even included the 43% I saved for being a good driver...

The private insurance gives me the following coverage in addition to the basic replacement values for Collision & comprehensive, these are not included in the ICBC full coverage...

Motorcycle Trailer .......... $1000
Riding Gear ................... $1000

Elite coverage

Roadside assistance ................................... $100
Lock Re-keying ............................................ $1000
Travel protection - Recovery ....................... $750
........................ - Living Expense ................. $1000
........................ - Rental ............................... $1500


So, anybody planning on moving here???

[bill1300]

You won't get any arguements about ICBC ripping us off from me.
The insurance (thru ICBC) on my 1300 is $1987 yr with the maximum discount.
I went with Beacons private coverage for collision and comp and saved over $600 year.
We get a little discount in the Kootenay area because our accident rates are lower than in the city - but it is still a huge ripoff considering that US companies can offer the same coverage for less than half of that amount- or even less.
I guess it's no different than the Canadian manufacturers/dealers charging up to 30% more for the bikes. It drives me nuts to see the bike I bought last spring being sold in the US for $3000 less than in BC. They used to claim it was because the Canadian dollar was so low - but that is a crock based on current rates. I checked out purchasing in the US but was told that they would not honor the warranty. The US dealers/stealers nearby will not even sell to Canadian customers.
Oh well, my $.02 worth.
I better stop before my blood pressure gets any higher....
Bill

[Patrick]

Are you Canadians a bunch of reckless drivers or what. I pay down here in Texas $236 a year for full coverage.

Patrick

[dr_bar]

Are you Canadians a bunch of reckless drivers or what. I pay down here in Texas $236 a year for full coverage.

Patrick

When I first started riding, I paid $94 for the year on my H1. A year later, ICBC was formed, and my insurance was $670. A monopoly will do that to rates....

[Big B]

yeah, but dr bar's got lots of shiny plasticky thingies on his beautiful new ride that are awful 'spensive to replace. every insurance agent i got quotes from asked me immediately if my bike had hard bags and a fairing because the premiums are more on those

[dr_bar]

yeah, but dr bar's got lots of shiny plasticky thingies on his beautiful new ride that are awful 'spensive to replace. every insurance agent i got quotes from asked me immediately if my bike had hard bags and a fairing because the premiums are more on those

That's only a tad higher than my Valk. They base the basic insurance on replacement cost and cc's. My Valk was listed as $10,000 to replace and the basic insurance was almost identical. The coverage I have from the private company is almost double for my new bike but then so is the value. I'm still saving over $1000 by telling ICBC to cluck off with their high priced extra coverage...

[Big B]

That's only a tad higher than my Valk. They base the basic insurance on replacement cost and cc's. My Valk was listed as $10,000 to replace and the basic insurance was almost identical. The coverage I have from the private company is almost double for my new bike but then so is the value. I'm still saving over $1000 by telling ICBC to cluck off with their high priced extra coverage...

then that's a hell of a good on ya then. when i was looking into buying my boss' venture, which was only two years newer than my vtx and less displacement, my premiums would have gone up significantly. not that it was a factor in my not buying it. that's a slick system you've got

[dr_bar]

So, what do you pay, and what's the coverage you get... ???

[Gadjet]

When I had full coverage on my KLR (required by the finance company), I was paying ~$500 a year. Now that I have just Liability on the bike (finally paid it off last summer) I pay $216 for a year.

I get my insurance through the Alberta Motor Association

[Kibagari]

I thought the insurance companies down here were a complete rip-off. But oh my GOD are you people in Canada getting screwed.