In the past two years, many people worked from home and changed their vehicle use to pleasure use only. But things are changing.

When everyone who could work was working from home, changing vehicle use has made good sense. People were connecting online, not going out to see clients or making business car trips. Many vehicles were parked and this change in use resulted in some premium savings for drivers who made the adjustment.

Now, people are returning to work. Some full-time, some in hybrid work settings. You may be using your vehicle part-time for work once again. Do you need to change your insurance back? The short answer: YES.

Ensure your ICBC insurance rate class is correct.

The implications of not declaring correctly your vehicle use can be costly. You will be assessed penalties that can set you back significantly if it is proven in an extensive questioning process that you use your vehicle differently than what you have declared. With more and more people returning to the office, insuring your car correctly is important and not something to be overlooked.  

Test yourself: How am I using my vehicle today that was different than last week, last month or last year?

As soon as you know you’re changing how you use your vehicle, you need to talk to your Allwest broker – you have a duty to ensure you declare correctly. Here are your vehicle use options:

• Driving to and from work or school – less than 15 KM
  • Driving to and from work or school – more than 15 KM
  • Driving partway to work or school with public transport for the remaining balance of the journey
  • Pleasure Use – Using your vehicle for personal pleasure driving only
  • Business Use – Using your vehicle for your business or job including use by employees (e.g. Travelling sales professionals; employees that may need to pick up supplies, products or other business materials on your behalf)
  • Commercial Use – Using your vehicle for Delivery, ride sharing or rental (e.g. A caterer who delivers meals; Uber or Uber Eats)

Where does your vehicle sleep? ICBC needs to know.

ICBC uses your vehicle location to determine your territory and premiums. That’s why it is important that this is properly declared. Your vehicle location is where it is kept the majority of time when it is not being used and this is usually your home address – where your vehicle sleeps at night when not in use.

If you have multiple vehicles stored in different locations, which you use seasonally or only operate a few months of the year, this need to be declared as well.

Not all territories are rated the same. If you live in the city, you will be rated higher than if you live in the countryside. (City roads are busier, crashes more frequent and crime is generally higher, while country roads are less congested and generally see fewer crashes.)

However, if you live and work in BC’s Lower Mainland, you cannot use your countryside residence as your vehicle location – this would be a breach and you would be assessed a penalty of 10X the difference between what you paid and what you should have paid.

Get an expert opinion. Talk to your Allwest Broker. As ICBC experts, we can help you sort it all out. Just give us a call, or come on down to your local Allwest location and talk to us in person. After all of this pandemic craziness, we would be more than happy to see you

Visit https://allwestinsurance.com/insurance/auto/icbc/ to learn more