Re: "Maintaining ICBC 'a disservice to B.C. drivers,'" opinion column, Friday, Oct. 28.

I was disappointed to see Neil Mohindra's shallow and poorly researched analysis of auto insurance given such prominence on your editorial page.

As a lawyer who has represented both insurers and injury victims in Ontario and B.C., it is easy to spot some obvious omissions. B.C. has a "full tort" system which gives accident victims unrestricted access to courts to compensate them for damages. Every other province has restricted the rights of innocent accident victims by capping or limiting compensation.

Quebec has low rates because the government makes the decision as to how much insurance money goes to injury victims. It is no surprise the government chooses low payouts, as little as $32,000 for a permanent brain injury to a child.

Also missing is Mr. Mohindra's explanation as to why Ontario drivers pay more for their auto insurance, even though most injury victims are forbidden to claim compensation and insurance is delivered by private companies "competing" for customers.

First, Ontario has a much higher accident rate, which is why it is foolish to compare Ontario (or B.C. for that matter) with low accident provinces like the Maritimes.

Second, private competition for business conflicts with good public policy. I watched the private insurance industry collapse into "no fault" in Ontario between 1987 and 1992 and here's how it happened: Private insurers would only compete for good drivers, offering them low rates and refusing to insure "bad drivers" altogether. "Bad drivers" included someone with a speeding ticket. These "bad drivers" were forced to resort to "facility" insurance at rates above $5,000. The result: as many as 30 per cent of drivers did not buy insurance. Those drivers hit "good drivers" who had to resort to their own uninsured coverage, so good drivers were eventually also charged outrageous rates by their own carriers. ICBC, in contrast, spreads risk over all drivers.

Third, private insurers waste enormous court time litigating fault for accidents, even those that do not involve injuries, whereas public insurers decide fault in house, while leaving individual drivers the T right to challenge that decision in court.

If the Fraser Institute gets its wish, and private auto insurance returns to B.C., I predict that compensation for innocent accident victims will be severely restricted, and rates will go up.

Chris Bacon

Port Moody

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