THE GATEWAY: NO-FAULT INSURANCE PUTS ALBERTANS AT RISK

A recent opinion piece in The Gateway warns that the UCP’s Care First no-fault insurance overhaul might deliver efficiencies, but at the cost of justice, fairness, and protection for everyday drivers.

Under the new plan, if you’re injured in a crash — even if it wasn’t your fault — you may be barred from suing for damages, unless it involves a criminal charge or extreme case. Instead, your own insurer decides what you get, no matter who caused the crash. What sounds like efficiency is actually a shield for negligent drivers and profit-driven insurance companies — and a gag order on victims who deserve to be heard.

Even more troubling, the UCP is allowing insurers to hike rates by up to 7.5% for so-called “good drivers.” That’s on top of Alberta already having the second-highest auto insurance premiums in Canada. These changes hit hardest for those least able to afford it — young drivers, lower-income families, and people already stretched thin by inflation.

Without the right to sue and with higher premiums on the horizon, many Albertans could end up paying more for less protection — locked into a system designed for insurer convenience, not consumer care. The Gateway article also notes this isn’t just an Alberta issue. Other provinces are watching closely. If Care First is allowed to become the norm, this model of silencing victims and protecting profits could spread nationwide.

THE BOTTOM LINE: The UCP’s no-fault reforms may promise savings, but they risk gutting accountability, pricing out vulnerable drivers, and eroding the rights Albertans have long fought for. Fairness shouldn’t be optional — and it shouldn’t be sacrificed to pad corporate margins.

Read the full article from The Gateway here: https://thegatewayonline.ca/2024/11/alberta-is-driving-away-fairness-with-no-fault-insurance/