Appeal how you were treated
If you are concerned about the way you were treated or how your claim was handled, you may present your concerns to ICBC's Customer Relations department.
What's the process?
Here are the steps you may follow to appeal how you were treated:
Stage1: Talk to your adjuster about your concern
Talk to your adjuster about your concerns regarding your treatment or claim handling. The adjuster may not be aware that there are other factors that have not been presented yet in your claim handling.
Stage 2: Talk to your adjuster’s manager
If after talking to your adjuster you are still not satisfied, ask to speak to the manager. The manager must be involved to resolve your dispute.
Stage3: Contact the ICBC Customer Relations department
If you are still not satisfied, contact our Customer Relations department.
Stage 4: Consult the ICBC Fairness Commissioner
If Customer Relations is unable to address your concerns, the Fairness Commissioner will review the handling of your claim to ensure you were treated fairly. The Commissioner will advise you of the results of this review and may make recommendations to ICBC where appropriate.
Peter Burns, Q.C., former Professor and Dean of Law at the University of British Columbia, is the ICBC Fairness Commissioner. His role is to ensure that customers affected by ICBC's products or services are treated fairly in terms of process and administration. Your complaint should include your specific details and the remedy you seek.
The Fairness Commissioner can investigate complaints about the fairness of an ICBC policy, procedure or practice. After a review, the Commissioner may:
- make a recommendation that ICBC remedy your complaint
- help you and ICBC resolve the matter
- recommend mediation or arbitration
- make recommendations about a group complaint, treating them as one issue in common, or
- dismiss the complaint.
The Fairness Commissioner can ask for any documents or information from ICBC to conduct an investigation. Before finalizing a recommendation, the Commissioner will give both you and ICBC a final opportunity to respond to any new issues that may arise during the investigation.
Jurisdiction of Fairness Commissioner
The ICBC Board of Directors sets the Fairness Commissioner’s Terms of Reference. The Fairness Commissioner does not have jurisdiction to deal with the following issues:
- Disputes that relate solely to the amount of final payment or the assessment of fault.
- The disposition of a violation ticket.
- Complaints arising from the result of an arbitration, court decision, or a matter that is currently in court proceedings or arbitration.
- A complaint that concerns the advice or conduct of lawyers acting on behalf of ICBC, or matters that fall within the principal jurisdiction of statutory decision-makers, such as the Human Rights Commission.
If you have pursued all other internal ICBC remedies and are still not satisfied, you may write to the Fairness Commissioner. Please note that the Commissioner does not operate a walk-in office. Initial access is by written request only (below).
Fairness Commissioner address
ICBC Fairness Commissioner
P.O. Box 86686
North Vancouver
BC V7L 4L2
Stage 5: B.C. Ombudsman review and recommendation
Finally, if the Fairness Commissioner is unable to address your concerns, the Ombudsman can review the handling of your claim to ensure you were treated fairly. The Ombudsman will advise you of this review and may make recommendations to ICBC where appropriate.
If after going through the above processes you are still not satisfied with the results, you have the option of Small Claims Court or Supreme Court. The courts have the final say, but could take as long as two years or more before your case is heard after a lawsuit is filed. Find out more about disputing through the courts.