BC Government Looks to Curb Distracted Drivers

Nov 6, 2017 | 2:12 PM

The Provincial Government announced today that it will be designating distracted driving as a high-risk behaviour and increasing the penalty under the ICBC Driver Risk Premium program. Drivers with two distracted driving offenses over a span of three years can expect to pay up to $2,000 on top of their regular insurance premiums. That’s up $740 from the existing penalty.

Distracted driving is the cause of more than 25% of fatal car crashes in the province, killing an average of 78 people every year. Right now, there are about 12,000 British Columbians with multiple distracted driving offenses over the past three years.

To avoid seeing your premiums increase, driving instructors recommend you simply put your phone away before getting behind the wheel. “We’ll usually ask people to shut their phones off when they get into the vehicle,” said Driving for Life CEO, Chris Schulz, “I use the new iOS do not disturb while driving, that’s a fantastic feature.”

The changes to the Driver Risk Premium program will take effect on March 1.