By Liam Verster

Fewer accidents, claims and payouts

Insurance claims, payouts in Grande Prairie saw significant decreases in 2020

Jan 22, 2021 | 12:53 PM

A new report from hellosafe.ca shows that in 2020 auto insurance claims and payouts dropped across Canada, including in Grande Prairie.

The findings of the report shows a 30.48 per cent reduction on claims made in the Swan City in 2020 compared to the previous year, which led to an estimated saving of $11,129,712 in payouts .

Alexandre Desoutter, the Press Relations Manager for hellosafe.ca says the drops represent the decrease in commuters and travel under the COVID-19 restrictions, which in turn led to fewer accidents and fewer claims being filed.

The report also contains comparable data for all the provinces, as well as Canada as a whole. In the Wild Rose province, there was an estimated 28.1 per cent decrease in car accidents, 32 per cent drop in claims filed, and $745,209,299 in savings for car insurers on a year-over-year basis.

“So, that positions Alberta as fourth in Canada, just behind Ontario (35%, $2,730,266,533), Quebec (34%, $1,587,648,767) and BC (34%, 913,136,723),” says Desoutter.

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“So, Alberta is about in the middle for claims decreased and amounts saved by the insurance industry.”

On a national scale, Canada saw a 32.9 per cent decrease in car-related claims, which amounts to over $6.7-billion dollars in savings.

Though these numbers are impressive, Desoutter says he does not expect this to lead to any long-term reduction in premiums for drivers.

However, he does add that most insurance companies have tried to make an effort during the pandemic to ease the burden on the general public.

“We’ve seen many private insurance companies offering temporary rebates on premiums, but just [during] the pandemic. So they said ‘in response for the moment we will give you a rebate of 20 per cent of your premium or $50’, depends on the companies.

“But when everything goes back to normal, I think premiums will go back to normal too. Of course I don’t expect a big increase in premiums, but they should remain stable at least.”

Though there aren’t any financial benefits for the general public, Desoutter says these numbers do represent fewer accidents, which is positive, even if it’s temporary.

Hellosafe.ca uses public data published by the Insurance Bureau of Canada, along with claim samples from private insurance companies to track trends and compile the report.

Desoutter adds it’s important for them to release these figures and bring more transparency to the insurance market so that the public can be more informed on the industry and the market.