Leaked reports suggest no public auto for New Brunswick

Actuarial reports leaked to Canadian Press suggest the New Brunswick government will announce tomorrow that public auto is off the table.The actuarial studies, which were reported widely Monday in Atlantic Canada’s newspapers, suggest that a public system would actually cost drivers more, about $36 per policy, than the current private system rates. A spokesperson for New Brunswick’s Justice Department acknowledged the leak of the reports but said the department would wait until Tuesday to make a formal announcement. Don Forgeron, Atlantic region vice president for the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), also said he would wait until Tuesday to comment on any actions announced by the government at that time.New Brunswick had commissioned a report on public auto, headed up by provincial NDP leader Elizabeth Weir, a vocal proponent of government-run insurance. The proposal suggested the price tag for such a system would be $82 million. Canadian Press says one of the two actuarial reports, by Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP, puts the actual start-up cost at $120 to $190 million, and the average premium under such a system at $1,047, $36 more than the average premium currently.Insurers have worked since the implementation of government reforms in October, 2003 to lower auto insurance premiums in the province, including moving drivers out of the high-priced Facility Association. Recent comments by Weir suggesting New Brunswick had the lowest premium decreases in the country were met with quick response by the IBC, which noted that when current rate filings are approved, New Brunswick will have among the lowest auto insurance premiums in Canada.