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Alberta has this weird thing where they think they're cheap and affordable, but you get fucked all the time.
I moved here from BC a few years ago, and it's really amazing how many basic things are missing, like renter protections, or affordable energy.
It's the "conservative" ethos- fuck over your fellow humans to make a dime.
Saskatchewan has been pretty solidly conservative for almost 20 years now. Alberta has had a left-wing provincial government more recently than Saskatchewan. Scott Moe is a huge source of Covid misinformation. Also he killed a woman with his car. Your guess is as good as mine as to how someone like that manages to take the provinces highest office. Actually very similar situation in MB as well.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that understanding The Prairie Provinces is a lot more complex and interesting than the rest of Canada ever seems to want to engage with, and these kind of Authoritative drive-bys ("Albertans are defined by an ultra-conservative fuck-you-i-got-mine ethos") aren't particularly valuable when trying to understand the prairies (explain why AB has one of the highest levels of support for abortion? Why was Calgary the first major city to elect a Muslim mayor?) But they do serve as dismissive and diminishing ways to generate national division, and frankly I don't think feeding those narratives with terse snipes is valuable.
K. That is their overall ethos though, regardless of the tertiary anecdotes you have listed.
Solid point. I retract my previous comments.
How dare you have a multi-varied and diverse opinion! Don't you know where you are?!
/s
Yeah I've heard from a few people they pay less for auto insurance in Alberta vs BC. But there are many options for insurance that will effect your rates so unless they are comparing the exact same plan it's hard to compare.
I suspect it's a mix of private insurance and all the large pick-ups used in the oil and gas industry. It probably spreads to all the other drivers a little. There are a lot of contractors with big expensive truck sitting at around $100,000 in value putting around oil and gas country.
Corner cases aside, you will note the article compared similar plans and similar driver experience. Whether we can game the results for a particular driver is an academic problem most of us don't have time/money to figure out.
Remember this important fact: when there's more than one (eg private) insurer, none of them need insure you. When the only insurer is the gov, the books need to be more open and rejection becomes a media issue.
As a friend in Washington is discovering after a minor roof problem and then a major pipe problem a decade later, both involving water leaks, you can be dropped from your private insurer if they decide your two claims show a trend. And once you've been blackballed by one, you're lucky to get insurance from anyone whose name isn't, in fact, Lucky.
It's not that Alberta gets fucked, it's that they do it to themselves. Over and over. They keep voting in governments who say "We're going to privatize everything, and remove all caps/protections from essential costs." And then they do exactly that.
How does 'berta overall compare to BC these days? There's a lot of hidden costs in B.C, and everywhere.
I was thinking of moving to Berta, but would be interested in knowing what their bs hidden costs are, since every place has their own weird brand of grift and weird shit.
A few for BC are:
In berta my understanding is home energy (electricity and heating fuel/nat. Gas) would be more. The insurance being totally out of hand is new and unwelcome info to me. Info and opinions would be helpful.
I didn't shop around for car insurance very much, I ended up going with AMA, and my insurance guy was surprised I ended up paying less here than in BC, but like $50/year. Property taxes are going up crazy rates in Alberta right now, partially because bertians want everything but don't want too be taxed ever. I was blown away by how expensive home energy is here, and the total illusion of choice. Alberta's energy regulator is useless. You can pick your provider, but you'll probably get taxed a "Atco zone" or whatever charge, then about $100/ month in "Administration" because they paid to upgrade the system ten years ago or something. It's a mixed bag, there are something things that you won't pay for, like the sales tax, and some gas savings, but other things you'll get raked over the coals like 50% rent increases yearly, or property taxes going up 6%-8%.
I'm terrified by the prospect of this "Alberta Pension" the government seems to be fixated on. They released wrong information and keep doubling down on it. Then there's the renewable energy moratorium for no raisen whatsoever that lost something like a billion in investment. I'm here for university, and if the government doesn''t stabilize, when I'm done I'm planning to flee somewhere else.
Hmm, thanks. This gives me some things to think about. I'll research SK a bit more in light of this. Ive been considering Regina as well, but not as seriously as south 'berta.
I'm not saying don't take the plunge, Prolasped Anus, but there's a lot to take in if you're looking to make a big move for affordability's sake.
Thank you. I'll examine it a bit more, even if it's a big one to take in I think I can do it.
Pretty clear how crown corporations provide much better value to the people with SGI (SK) and MPI (MB) at the very bottom of the list.
ICBC in BC as well. Quebec also runs a public system but weren't included in the article for whatever reason. I would be curious to know where they rank.
The average premium was $796 in 2022.
...Well damn why aren't we all doing what they're doing?
We still have to get insurance through private companies in Qc. No apparent reason not to be included.
Just corporations providing the best service for the lowest prices /s
I'm very anti-privatization of health care. People wonder why.
I've read before that Ontario has the highest rate of insurance fraud/ false claims. Factors like that may have affected Ontario's price, bringing it up. I wonder how Saskatchewan compares. Does Saskatchewan have a high rate of insurance fraud. If Ontario had a publicly owned insurance company, how much cheaper would it be?
I can speak for Manitoba. MPI has a very robust anti-fraud investigative department.
They report publicly each year. (Partly to show the public that they're protecting the integrity of the system, and partly to remind potential scumbags that they're being watched and probably won't get away with their "clever" plan.)
It would be awesome if Ontario insurances made this information public. I would love to have public insurance here.
I don't know how other provinces operate, but I like Saskatchewan's actuarial model. Instead of a bunch of demographic slicing and dicing, the only thing that matters is your driving record.
No record means you're a new driver. Whether you're 16 or 80 doesn't get considered, just that you have a "new driver" risk profile. There are also a variety of driving restrictions that gradually come off over a few years of driving with a good record.
Build up a bad record and your premiums climb pretty rapidly. Depending on the nature of the infractions, even your driving license itself can start getting pretty darn expensive and possibly even revoked.
Build up a good record and your premiums go down and your driving license stays inexpensive.
I think it's a great system too. It's pretty simple and offers pretty decent discounts for safe driving. One other good feature is that the fees for demerit points are charged immediately, so it's another reminder of 'I should not do that' soon after the event happens rather than delaying until the next renewal.
Why is Quebec excluded from this list?
We still pay directly for this though
Ontario definitely has a high number of morons on the road, so Iβm not surprised our rates are so high.
It's awesome you say that in a country where the first road rage gun death in the world took place; and in Calgary, not Toronto.
I have driven in Ontario and Alberta. Now I'm in Vancouver. You may not know how well you have it.
Insanity.
For those who can, try CAA's pay-as-you-go insurance.
If you don't drive a ton, you will save a LOT.
Never heard of this before and going to check it out. Assuming I can use it with a 2012 Hyundai Sonata I drive under 10k a year I'm a perfect candidate for this.
Can't wait to argue with my coworker who also likes to say how much cheaper it is in Berta.
Do these prices deal with average vehicles and no good-driving discounts?
That would make sense, as out here in BC I am insuring a 2002 F-150 for just shy of $850 for the entire year. But I am at max personal discount due to a clean record, and I donβt exceed the KM limit for low use (which was introduced just a few years ago). So there is that.
Still, I paid 800+ back in the 90s, even with a discount (albeit not the max).