Report from the Panel of Experts
RECOMMENDATIONS MADE BY THE PANEL OF EXPERTS ON AUTOMOBILE
INSURANCE CONTRIBUTION AMENDMENTS PROPOSED BY THE SAAQ
Québec, December 9, 2011. – Recommendations by the Panel of
Experts on insurance contributions are based on one general
principle, which is also one of the essential values of the
public automobile insurance plan, that is, equity among various
groups of contributors.
In the report made public today, the Panel of Experts noted that
although considerable advances have been made over the last
several years in terms of equity, some measures proposed by the
Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) for 2011
through 2015 deviate from that principle.
“To gather public support, contributors must consider the
insurance contributions they pay to be fair and equitable,”
explained Mr. Michel Sanschagrin, actuary and Chair of the Panel
of Experts. “Any relaxation of the rule of equity would weaken
that essential value of the plan. Therefore, we invite the SAAQ
to resist any temptation to diverge from this rule, so as to
maintain plan equity.”
In its report, submitted to the SAAQ Board of Directors, the
Panel of Experts made the following fourteen recommendations:
GENERAL PRINCIPLE: EQUITY
Recommendation 1The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- maintain, for each category and subcategory of users,
insurance contributions that correspond to assessment of their
real risk, while at the same time avoiding rate shock.
INSURANCE CONTRIBUTIONS FOR MOTORCYCLES
Recommendation 2The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- modulate, during the next rate review, insurance
contributions
upon acquisition of a motorcycle so as to reflect the real risk
in connection with driving a new motorcycle.
Recommendation 3
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- track the effect of the insurance contribution upon
acquisition of a motorcycle on changes in the motorcycle
fleet, so as to avoid interference with efforts to improve
motorcyclists’ safety;
- contemplate, during the next rate review, the
possibility of modulating insurance contributions upon
acquisition in order to encourage the acquisition of
motorcycles that have safer equipment, inasmuch as risk
assessments justify doing so.
Recommendation 4
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- eliminate from the proposed rates the cap on insurance
contributions to register sport motorcycles, in order to
reflect the real risk of this type of motorcycle.
Recommendation 5
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- eliminate from the proposed rates the cap on insurance
contributions to register sport motorcycles, in order to
reflect the real risk of this type of motorcycle.
Recommendation 6
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- adopt the proposed definition of restricted-area-use
motorcycle in order to limit access to this subcategory;
- adopt the proposed insurance contribution in order to
recognize the real risk of this subcategory;
- regularly review access criteria and controls that
ensure that the criteria of this subcategory are respected.
Recommendation 7
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- reallocate, during the next rate review, motorcyclists’
insurance contributions between driver’s licences and
registration, based on the analysis of risk associated with
motorcyclists who are not motorcycle owners, as is the case
for passenger vehicles.
Recommendation 8
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- eliminate from the proposed rates for the motorcycle
category the reduction related to the concept of
vulnerability, as per the proposal, so as to respect the
general principle of equity.
Recommendation 9
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- proceed as quickly as possible with the necessary
changes to computer systems in order to issue driver’s
licences for three-wheeled motorcycles and collect related
insurance contributions.
Recommendation 10
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- ensure that all those who want to drive a motorcycle
have the skills to do so safely. The conditions applicable
to this measure are left to the discretion of the SAAQ and
road safety task forces.
INSURANCE CONTRIBUTIONS FOR BUSES
Recommendation 11
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- adopt the classification proposed for buses and related
insurance contributions, which reflect the risk assessment
associated with buses.
TRANSPARENCY OF PAYMENT NOTICES
Recommendation 12
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- modify payment notices in order to clearly break down:
- insurance contributions to finance the plan on an annual basis;
- insurance contributions to amortize the accumulated deficit (underfunding);
- the additional premium related to demerit points by distinguishing between points associated with a licence to drive a passenger vehicle and those associated with a licence to drive a motorcycle;
- other amounts collected as fees, charges and taxes, amounts that are remitted to the government or used for other purposes by the SAAQ.
SALES TAX ON INSURANCE CONTRIBUTIONS
Recommendation 13
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- review its method of taxing insurance contributions so
that the tax is fair and equitable.
THE FUNDING POLICY
Recommendation 14
The Panel of Experts recommends the SAAQ:
- amend its funding policy so that the annual financing
deviations are noted separately for each category of road
vehicle and accumulated on the date of review of insurance
contributions; these deviations would be amortized over a
period of three years, in percentages of the insurance
contributions of the category in question;
- use the funding policy thus amended during the next rate
review to establish the SAAQ’s proposal;
- submit the funding policy to public hearings during the
next rate review.
In addition, the Panel of Experts suggests that the SAAQ
should examine the possibility of adopting incentives to
encourage good conduct on the road, inasmuch as such incentives
are supported by a risk analysis. Thus, the Panel of Experts is
suggesting that the SAAQ should contemplate setting up a system
under which careful drivers could benefit from a “discount” when
renewing their driver’s licences. For instance, this decrease in
costs could be granted based on the period during which drivers
have no demerit points on record.
The report is available on the Panel of Experts Web site (www.conseilexpert.aauto.ca)
as well as on the SAAQ Web site (www.saaq.gouv.qc.ca).
Paper copies of the report are available by contacting the
Direction des communications at the SAAQ.
Information
Jacques Carrière
Communications Coordinator
Conseil d’experts sur les contributions d’assurance automobile
Telephone: 418 643-1890; 1 855 622-4077 (toll free)
Email: email@conseilexpert.aauto.ca
