Alberta NDP MLA Samir Kayande (Calgary-Elbow) said the government’s solution to unaffordable auto insurance rates is to increase them. While Alberta has the second highest auto insurance rates in Canada, Kayande said they will be allowed to increase more. “I guess you might say that electing the UCP (United Conservative Party) could cost you 15% or more on your car insurance,” said Kayande in a Tuesday speech during Question Period in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. “But wait, it gets better — by which I mean worse — the province will also cap insurance payouts to injured people.” In this case, he said people will “pay more for less and when you get hurt, the insurance company can just walk away.” He asked Alberta Treasury Board President and Finance Minister Nate Horner what about this seems like a good idea. However, Horner said this is a care-first model. “This is about getting care to people quicker and easier,” said Horner. “Currently under our framework of benefits, it’s so meagre that if you’re hurt badly, not only is unlikely to be there for you when you need it immediately, but you may have to get a lawyer and go to court to pursue it.” What he said the Alberta government is talking about is the most generous framework of any care-first model in Canada, the highest income supports of any such model in it, and people will be relieved to know they can access it without having to go into the court system. While Horner justified the new insurance model, Kayande questioned what the Alberta government will do to stop auto insurance companies from walking away from injured clients. “Given that this is the same government that brought us a $100 million Turkish Tylenol boondoggle, a failed health privatization scheme, cancer and heart disease are your fault memes, and chemtrail truthism is now embarking on a never-seen-in-Canada plan to cap insurance payouts in a private insurance system, can the minister explain what Albertans are paying for if the insurance company can simply walk away from people who have been hurt?” he said. Horner responded by saying that is not the way it works in any of the other provinces. “I’m unsure why they think it works that way in Manitoba or BC or Saskatchewan or Quebec because it doesn’t,” he said. “There’s mechanisms in place to ensure that people are cared for.” That is the model the Alberta government is pursuing. He said the reason auto insurance rates are going up is to get to the new model. It will take two years to get to the new model when new products can be offered and savings can be realized. Although this might be hard to understand, he said that is what the Alberta government is shooting for on Jan. 1, 2027. Since the Alberta government is changing the auto insurance model, Kayande said Horner was favouring the wrong sides and making Albertans pay more for it. “Given that telling injured people to kick rocks won’t help anyone and given that the cost of insurance will be going up while the benefits will be going down and given that insurance companies are not great at paying claims unless they’re forced to by a judge and given injured people are just the eggs we need to break in order to make the insurance omelette according to this government, why did the minister chose to protect commissions, marketing expenses, Toronto jobs, and profits while hurting injured people and making Albertans pay more for it?” he said. While Kayande was making bold claims about the auto insurance model, Horner said it “might need to have another tech briefing for the Opposition.” “It is clear that they have no idea what they’re talking about when it comes to auto insurance reform,” he said. He noted the rate increases represent the actual costs in the system. In the system the Alberta government is changing, he said it has profit provisions at the regulator, which it lowered from 7% to 6%. The Alberta government brought in a clause that if an insurance company was more profitable than expected, it would have to pay it back as a rebate to its customers. Horner said it was doing this for Albertans at every step and offering the highest insurance benefits in Canada. The Alberta government said on November 21 it will be introducing a new auto insurance system to provide better, faster services to Albertans while reducing premiums..UPDATED: Alberta government to implement new private, care-focused auto insurance model .After hearing from more than 16,000 Albertans through an online survey about their priorities for auto insurance policies, the Alberta government said it will be introducing a new privately-delivered, care-focused system. “Albertans have been clear they need an auto insurance system that provides better, faster care and is more affordable,” said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.
Alberta NDP MLA Samir Kayande (Calgary-Elbow) said the government’s solution to unaffordable auto insurance rates is to increase them. While Alberta has the second highest auto insurance rates in Canada, Kayande said they will be allowed to increase more. “I guess you might say that electing the UCP (United Conservative Party) could cost you 15% or more on your car insurance,” said Kayande in a Tuesday speech during Question Period in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. “But wait, it gets better — by which I mean worse — the province will also cap insurance payouts to injured people.” In this case, he said people will “pay more for less and when you get hurt, the insurance company can just walk away.” He asked Alberta Treasury Board President and Finance Minister Nate Horner what about this seems like a good idea. However, Horner said this is a care-first model. “This is about getting care to people quicker and easier,” said Horner. “Currently under our framework of benefits, it’s so meagre that if you’re hurt badly, not only is unlikely to be there for you when you need it immediately, but you may have to get a lawyer and go to court to pursue it.” What he said the Alberta government is talking about is the most generous framework of any care-first model in Canada, the highest income supports of any such model in it, and people will be relieved to know they can access it without having to go into the court system. While Horner justified the new insurance model, Kayande questioned what the Alberta government will do to stop auto insurance companies from walking away from injured clients. “Given that this is the same government that brought us a $100 million Turkish Tylenol boondoggle, a failed health privatization scheme, cancer and heart disease are your fault memes, and chemtrail truthism is now embarking on a never-seen-in-Canada plan to cap insurance payouts in a private insurance system, can the minister explain what Albertans are paying for if the insurance company can simply walk away from people who have been hurt?” he said. Horner responded by saying that is not the way it works in any of the other provinces. “I’m unsure why they think it works that way in Manitoba or BC or Saskatchewan or Quebec because it doesn’t,” he said. “There’s mechanisms in place to ensure that people are cared for.” That is the model the Alberta government is pursuing. He said the reason auto insurance rates are going up is to get to the new model. It will take two years to get to the new model when new products can be offered and savings can be realized. Although this might be hard to understand, he said that is what the Alberta government is shooting for on Jan. 1, 2027. Since the Alberta government is changing the auto insurance model, Kayande said Horner was favouring the wrong sides and making Albertans pay more for it. “Given that telling injured people to kick rocks won’t help anyone and given that the cost of insurance will be going up while the benefits will be going down and given that insurance companies are not great at paying claims unless they’re forced to by a judge and given injured people are just the eggs we need to break in order to make the insurance omelette according to this government, why did the minister chose to protect commissions, marketing expenses, Toronto jobs, and profits while hurting injured people and making Albertans pay more for it?” he said. While Kayande was making bold claims about the auto insurance model, Horner said it “might need to have another tech briefing for the Opposition.” “It is clear that they have no idea what they’re talking about when it comes to auto insurance reform,” he said. He noted the rate increases represent the actual costs in the system. In the system the Alberta government is changing, he said it has profit provisions at the regulator, which it lowered from 7% to 6%. The Alberta government brought in a clause that if an insurance company was more profitable than expected, it would have to pay it back as a rebate to its customers. Horner said it was doing this for Albertans at every step and offering the highest insurance benefits in Canada. The Alberta government said on November 21 it will be introducing a new auto insurance system to provide better, faster services to Albertans while reducing premiums..UPDATED: Alberta government to implement new private, care-focused auto insurance model .After hearing from more than 16,000 Albertans through an online survey about their priorities for auto insurance policies, the Alberta government said it will be introducing a new privately-delivered, care-focused system. “Albertans have been clear they need an auto insurance system that provides better, faster care and is more affordable,” said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.
