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Les Leyne: Rush review of ICBC is pointless

Attorney General David Eby’s referral of the new ICBC rate regime to the independent B.C. Utilities commission is a charade. The commission is supposed to be the independent overseer of whether actions taken by ICBC, B.C.
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Les Leyne mugshot genericAttorney General David Eby’s referral of the new ICBC rate regime to the independent B.C. Utilities commission is a charade.

The commission is supposed to be the independent overseer of whether actions taken by ICBC, B.C. Hydro and the like are in the public interest.

But it will barely have time to scroll to the bottom of the 300 pages of detail ICBC submitted, let alone research the mass of data, listen to all the interested parties and pass judgment on whether it’s fair.

There are hundreds of changes scheduled over years to territories, driver profiles and a host of other factors that determine the premiums every driver in B.C. pays. The commission has been given just 45 days to pass judgment.

And if it does raise any major objections, it will probably be overruled. This train is already too far down the track to make many changes. Every time you issue an independent body direct orders, it gets easier to do so again. Ask the B.C. Liberals.

The exercise is a waste of time. Getting the BCUC to wave a hurried hand over the hugely complicated new rate system means nothing.

So why is Eby doing it? He’s shy about completely ignoring the legal requirement to do so, because that’s what the NDP carped about for years when the Liberals used to indulge in the practice. But the fast-track directive amounts to much the same thing.

The BCUC’s rushed, constrained conclusion about the new rate system will be a dodge he can hide behind once the complaints from younger drivers start pouring in. They are in that one-third group who are going to get penalized. Eby’s response will be: “Hey, the BCUC OK’d it.”

The government-ordered rush job stems from the desire to juggle the calendar. It wants the new rate design and all its new categories approved before the separate decision to raise the rates themselves is undertaken.

So ICBC’s overhaul is being rammed through at warp speed. It was unveiled two weeks ago, and Eby ordered the corporation to submit it to the BCUC this week, which it did. The commission got it Thursday and is whittling the approval process down to the bare minimum.

It gave ICBC barely a full day to notify interested parties. They have until next Friday to register. There are two days in early September set for hearings and questions, and the BCUC has to give its decision on whether the new regime is “adequate, efficient, just and reasonable” by early October.

The commission warned parties this week how limited the scope of inquiry will be.

Eby has promised that about two-thirds of customers won’t pay more under the new rate design, which takes effect next year. So the BCUC likely has no discretion to question that breakdown.

It cited other issues it might not have any discretion over, as well, as a warning that some details are off the table.

One of the outside consultants who looked at ICBC as its financial crisis was developing broached the idea of ending BCUC oversight, saying it’s time-consuming, expensive and inefficient, and ICBC needs a more nimble approach.

But when Eby released the new rate design, he said that government thought a BCUC review was important to be fully transparent. So it will review the rate design in a hurry, then brace to tackle the regular application for a general rate hike later this year.

Since he got responsibility for the corporation, he has scored political points by blaming the Liberals for the mess it’s in.

He has replaced Liberal patronage appointees on the board with his own (former NDP minister Joy MacPhail is chair).

They came up with a series of major policy shifts to cut costs.

Now he’s ramrodding a major revamp of how premiums are set and reassuring everyone it’s what customers want, based on an online survey.

MacPhail said at the unveiling: “Under the direction of minister Eby, the ICBC board and our leadership team, British Columbians can have every confidence that … auto insurance in B.C. is headed in the right direction. ”

People would have a lot more confidence in that declaration if the utilities commission were given a reasonable amount of time to reach its own conclusions.

lleyne@timescolonist.com