B.C.’s provincial auto insurer to pay back $39 million in overcharged fees

VANCOUVER – B.C.’s transportation minister says he isn’t surprised residents are angry after learning thousands of customers were charged the wrong amounts by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.

Todd Stone says he was mad himself when he found out about the issue in February and told the public auto insurer it had to pay back the $39 million overcharged with interest.

The issue became public after a report in the Vancouver Province newspaper.

Stone says ICBC was keeping quiet because it was still trying to gather information on the matter.

He says he’s told the crown corporation it can’t raise rates to recoup the money or require those who were undercharged to pay retroactively.

Stone says the company must undergo a third party audit to make sure the problem has been fixed.

He says the issue started during an ICBC system upgrade when a number of vehicle identification codes were incorrectly entered. (CHNL)