The Points System and ICBC: Difference between revisions

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{{REVIEWEDPLS | reviewer = [https://www.icbc.com Krista Prockiw], ICBC|date= February 2024}} {{Dial-A-Law TOC|expanded = cars}}  
When you get a ticket for a driving offence in British Columbia, you’ll typically get '''penalty points''' on your driver’s record. The more points you get, the more you may have to pay in insurance premiums. Learn how penalty points work.


This script explains driver penalty points and how they relate to the new driver risk premiums charged by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (called ICBC).
==Common questions==
===What are driver penalty points?===
'''Driver penalty points''' are like black marks on your driver’s record. You get them when you commit certain driving offences. The number of points varies depending on the type of offence. For example, speeding tickets earn you three points, while distracted driving earns you four. ICBC lists the [https://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/tickets/Pages/fines-points-offences.aspx number of penalty points for each type of driving offence].


==What are driver penalty points?==
If you get more than three points in a one-year period, you have to pay a '''driver penalty point premium'''. This is an extra amount that’s separate from any fine for the offence. It’s also over and above your regular Autoplan insurance premiums.
When you receive a traffic or violation ticket for speeding or some other driving offence under the BC ''Motor Vehicle Act'', you normally get points on your driver’s record. You also get points for certain ''Criminal Code'' offences like impaired driving, criminal negligence, and failure to remain at the scene of an accident. Driver penalty points are like black marks on your driving record.


==When are points added to your record?==
===How does ICBC calculate driver penalty point premiums?===
Points are added to your record if you plead guilty to a driving offence or if a court convicts you of the offence. If you pay a traffic ticket, you’re admitting that you are guilty, so if you don’t agree with a ticket, you must fight (or dispute) it. You have 30 days from the date of the ticket to dispute it. If you don’t do so, the offence and points are automatically added to your driving record. Check script [[Traffic Tickets (Script 194)|194]] called “Traffic Tickets” for more information on how to fight a traffic ticket.
Every year, ICBC looks at the number of penalty points you collected in a 12-month period. (They call this your “assessment period.”) If four or more points have been added to your driver’s record since your last assessment, you’ll be billed a penalty point premium.


==How many points do you get?==
The more points you have, the higher the premium. For example, say ICBC looks at your record and sees you only have three penalty points for a speeding offence in the assessment period. This is below the four-point threshold, so you wouldn’t pay a premium. But say you got ''two'' speeding tickets in your assessment period. In this case, you’d have six penalty points, resulting in a penalty point premium of $367. [https://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/tickets/Driver-Penalty-Points See ICBC’s website for details].
It depends on what the ticket is for. Most traffic tickets are for 2 or 3 points. All speeding tickets are worth 3 points.


==What is the driver penalty point (DPP) premium?==
===How long do penalty points stay on my driving record?===
Each year, ICBC looks at your record of driver penalty points and bills you a driver penalty point (or '''DPP''') premium. The bill is sent 4 weeks before your birthday. The DPP premium depends on the total number of points you get in a 12-month period, called the assessment period. ICBC reviews your driver’s record for this period, which starts about 17 months before your birthday and ends a year later, 5 months before your birthday. For example, if you have 4 points, the annual DPP premium is $175. It’s $230 for 5 points, $300 for 6 points, and so on. If you have 50 points or more, you get the maximum DPP premium of $24,000.
Tickets and driver penalty points stay on your driver’s record for '''five years'''. But you only pay the penalty point premium once. You’ll get a bill just before your assessment date, which is usually your birthday.


==How are you billed for DPP premiums?==
===What if I can’t (or don’t) pay the premium?===
ICBC bills you for a DPP premium only if you’ve had 4 or more penalty points added to your driving record in the assessment period. So if you get only an occasional minor traffic ticket, you won’t be charged any extra premium. Also, you don’t get points for parking tickets and other minor violations of city bylaws.
If you don’t pay the bill for a driver penalty point premium within 30 days, ICBC will charge you interest. ICBC can also refuse to renew your vehicle insurance until you pay. Also, you won’t be able to renew your driver’s licence if you don’t pay a driver premium bill.


ICBC uses the points just once to calculate the premium and bill you. Once the points go on your record, they aren’t used again for billing, but ICBC keeps a record of each motor vehicle violation and point.
If you give up your driver’s licence to an ICBC driver licensing office for the whole one-year billing period, you won’t have to pay the bill.


==What are driver risk premiums (DRPs)?==
Or you can reduce a driver premium bill by giving up your licence for 30 days or more during the billing period. When you want your licence back, go to a driver licensing office and pay the reduced bill, plus any extra licence fees. But this works only if you do not have to take a driver re-examination and don’t have any outstanding driving prohibitions.
Driver risk premiums ('''DRPs''') started in 2009. They will eventually replace DPP premiums. But there’s no date set for the replacement. And until then, both programs operate together. Under this new DRP program, ICBC reviews your driving record for offences for the previous 3 years. You will have to pay a DRP if, during the previous 3 years, you have:


*one or more driving-related ''Criminal Code'' convictions (such as, impaired driving)
===What if I’m not allowed to drive? Do I have to pay the driver penalty point premium?===
*one or more ''Motor Vehicle Act'' convictions worth 10 points or more (such as driving while suspended)
ICBC will reduce a driver penalty point premium bill if you’ve been prohibited or legally banned from driving for 60 days or more in the billing period. It usually does this automatically, but you may have to ask it to do so and to prove your situation.
*one or more excessive speeding convictions
*two or more roadside suspensions or prohibitions


The DRP (like the DPP premium) is in addition to the usual ICBC insurance premium that you pay for any vehicle you own. And it differs from the fine you have to pay for the traffic or violation ticket. It also differs from any insurance cost increase or surcharge you have to pay if you are in an accident that was your fault. You are billed even if you don’t own or insure a vehicle.
Also, you can apply to ICBC for a refund or reduction if, for at least 30 days in a row during the billing period, any of the following apply:


==How much are DRPs?==
* you lived in another province and legally held a driver’s licence there
The amount depends on the number of convictions you get. For example, the DRP for one excessive speeding offence is $320. It’s $905 for one ''Criminal Code'' conviction like impaired driving. And it’s $3,760 for two ''Criminal Code'' convictions.
* you were not in Canada or the US
 
* you were in jail
==How are you billed for a DRP?==
* you had medical reasons for not driving
You will get only one DRP bill a year. But because the assessment period is 3 years, one conviction during this period means you have to pay the DRP each year for 3 years. For example, if you have one excessive speeding conviction, then you’ll have to pay $320 each year for 3 years, for a total of $960.
 
==Can you be billed for both a DPP premium and a DRP?==
No, both the DRP and the DPP premium will operate until the DRP replaces the DPP. Until then, you will be billed only one premium, whichever is highest.
 
==How long do you have to pay?==
You get a DPP or DRP bill once a year. You have to pay the bill within 30 days of the invoice date. You can pay it with online banking or in person at any bank, at Autoplan insurance brokers, ICBC claim centres, and driver licensing office. You can mail a cheque to ICBC at ICBC Revenue Accounting, 151 West Esplanade, North Vancouver, BC, V7M 3H9.
 
==What if you can’t or don’t pay?==
If you don’t pay the bill within 30 days, ICBC will charge you interest. ICBC can also refuse to renew your vehicle insurance until you pay. Also, you won’t be able to renew your driver’s licence if you don’t pay a DPP bill or a DRP.
 
You can avoid paying a DPP or DRP bill if you’re willing not to drive for a year. If you give up your driver’s licence to an ICBC driver licensing office for the whole one-year billing period, you won’t have to pay the bill.
 
Or you can reduce a DPP or DRP bill by giving up your licence for 30 days or more during the billing period. When you want your license back, go to a driver licensing office and pay the reduced bill, plus any extra license fees. But this works only if you do not have to take a driver re-examination and don’t have any outstanding prohibitions.
 
If you do this, be sure to actually take your licence in person to the driver licensing office and get a receipt for it. If you just put your licence away and decide not to drive, you’ll still owe the same money as before, plus interest, because there would be no proof that you gave up your right to drive.
 
==You may be able to reduce a DPP or DRP bill in other cases too==
ICBC will reduce a DPP or DRP bill if you’ve been prohibited or legally banned from driving for 60 days or more in the billing period. It usually does this automatically, but you may have to ask it to do so and to prove your situation. Also, you can apply to ICBC Customer Service for a refund or reduction if, for at least 30 days in a row during the billing period, any of the following cases apply:
 
*you lived in another province and legally held a driver’s license there
*you were not in Canada or the US
*you were in jail
*you had medical reasons for not driving


Again, you may have to prove your case to ICBC.
Again, you may have to prove your case to ICBC.


==Multiple crash premium==
===How many penalty points lead to a driving prohibition?===
If you are 50% (or more) at fault for 3 crashes in 3 years, you have to pay a multiple crash premium of $1,000. For each additional crash within 3 years, you would pay an extra $500.
As a rule of thumb, those with a class five licence (the basic licence) get a driving prohibition if they get nine to 11 points. For those with a class seven licence (the new or learner’s licence), it’s four points. However, that’s not the whole picture. ICBC has the final say about whether to issue a prohibition.
 
==Where can you find more information?==
*Check the ICBC website at [http://www.icbc.com www.icbc.com]. It has information on both the DPP and DRP at [http://www.icbc.com/driver-*licensing/tickets/Pages/default.aspx www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/tickets/Pages/default.aspx].
*Call ICBC Customer Contact at 604.661.2800 in the lower mainland, or 1.800.663.3051 (toll-free) elsewhere in BC.
*The ''Motor Vehicle Act'' is at [http://www.bclaws.ca www.bclaws.ca] and the ''Criminal Code'' is at http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/.
 
 
[updated June 2014]
 


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In coming to a decision, ICBC will look at the circumstances behind why you got the points. For example, imagine a class five driver with six points on their record. The points came from three tickets for the same two-point offence — failing to yield to pedestrians. ICBC may decide to issue a driving prohibition even though they’re below the nine-point threshold. Because a dangerous pattern of conduct is on display here, in their view.
----


==Explore further==
{{PLSTipsbox
| text = '''Deeper coverage of ICBC’s penalty points system'''<br>
For more detail, see [https://www.peopleslawschool.ca/points-system-and-icbc/ the People's Law School's coverage of the points system and ICBC].
}}


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{{Dial-A-Law Copyright}}
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Latest revision as of 23:04, 7 March 2024

This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by Krista Prockiw, ICBC in February 2024.

When you get a ticket for a driving offence in British Columbia, you’ll typically get penalty points on your driver’s record. The more points you get, the more you may have to pay in insurance premiums. Learn how penalty points work.

Common questions

What are driver penalty points?

Driver penalty points are like black marks on your driver’s record. You get them when you commit certain driving offences. The number of points varies depending on the type of offence. For example, speeding tickets earn you three points, while distracted driving earns you four. ICBC lists the number of penalty points for each type of driving offence.

If you get more than three points in a one-year period, you have to pay a driver penalty point premium. This is an extra amount that’s separate from any fine for the offence. It’s also over and above your regular Autoplan insurance premiums.

How does ICBC calculate driver penalty point premiums?

Every year, ICBC looks at the number of penalty points you collected in a 12-month period. (They call this your “assessment period.”) If four or more points have been added to your driver’s record since your last assessment, you’ll be billed a penalty point premium.

The more points you have, the higher the premium. For example, say ICBC looks at your record and sees you only have three penalty points for a speeding offence in the assessment period. This is below the four-point threshold, so you wouldn’t pay a premium. But say you got two speeding tickets in your assessment period. In this case, you’d have six penalty points, resulting in a penalty point premium of $367. See ICBC’s website for details.

How long do penalty points stay on my driving record?

Tickets and driver penalty points stay on your driver’s record for five years. But you only pay the penalty point premium once. You’ll get a bill just before your assessment date, which is usually your birthday.

What if I can’t (or don’t) pay the premium?

If you don’t pay the bill for a driver penalty point premium within 30 days, ICBC will charge you interest. ICBC can also refuse to renew your vehicle insurance until you pay. Also, you won’t be able to renew your driver’s licence if you don’t pay a driver premium bill.

If you give up your driver’s licence to an ICBC driver licensing office for the whole one-year billing period, you won’t have to pay the bill.

Or you can reduce a driver premium bill by giving up your licence for 30 days or more during the billing period. When you want your licence back, go to a driver licensing office and pay the reduced bill, plus any extra licence fees. But this works only if you do not have to take a driver re-examination and don’t have any outstanding driving prohibitions.

What if I’m not allowed to drive? Do I have to pay the driver penalty point premium?

ICBC will reduce a driver penalty point premium bill if you’ve been prohibited or legally banned from driving for 60 days or more in the billing period. It usually does this automatically, but you may have to ask it to do so and to prove your situation.

Also, you can apply to ICBC for a refund or reduction if, for at least 30 days in a row during the billing period, any of the following apply:

  • you lived in another province and legally held a driver’s licence there
  • you were not in Canada or the US
  • you were in jail
  • you had medical reasons for not driving

Again, you may have to prove your case to ICBC.

How many penalty points lead to a driving prohibition?

As a rule of thumb, those with a class five licence (the basic licence) get a driving prohibition if they get nine to 11 points. For those with a class seven licence (the new or learner’s licence), it’s four points. However, that’s not the whole picture. ICBC has the final say about whether to issue a prohibition.

In coming to a decision, ICBC will look at the circumstances behind why you got the points. For example, imagine a class five driver with six points on their record. The points came from three tickets for the same two-point offence — failing to yield to pedestrians. ICBC may decide to issue a driving prohibition even though they’re below the nine-point threshold. Because a dangerous pattern of conduct is on display here, in their view.

Explore further

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