February 2007 News Releases

Customer Satisfaction Award Winners in Collision Repairs — February 6
February is Auto Crime Enforcement Month in BC — February 1

Customer Satisfaction Award Winners in Collision Repairs

In 2006, 25 of ICBC's accredited express repair shops won AutocheX Premier Achiever Awards for excellence in customer satisfaction. The winners were recognized for achieving customer satisfaction ratings of 98.8 per cent or higher out of 9,000 entries across North America.

AutocheX, on behalf of ICBC, measures customer satisfaction with the 379 accredited express repair shops that participate in ICBC's c.a.r. shop Valet program - and approximately 70,000 customers are surveyed annually in BC.

ICBC works with the repair industry to allow customers to take their vehicles directly to an express repair or glass express facility for collision repair services. This simplifies the claims process, speeds up the repair time and reduces customer costs, which effectively helps ICBC maintain low and stable rates.

"One of ICBC's key goals is to focus on our customers and provide them with hassle-free claims service," said ICBC President and CEO Paul Taylor. "This was the second year that some of our shops won the Premier Achiever Awards and their customer satisfaction scores were even higher in 2006 than they were in 2005. This is an outstanding achievement on the part of ICBC's accredited express repair shops throughout BC."

According to AutocheX, shops receiving the Premier Achiever Award have attained customer satisfaction index (CSI) scores in the top five per cent of facilities from the U.S. and Canada that use the AutocheX service. Customer recommendations to friends and family are the strongest indicator of customer loyalty.

"The collision industry in BC has some of the finest CSI scores in North America," said ARA Director Dale Finch. "The people working in our jurisdiction really put the customer in the forefront which has helped the shops flourish in this industry."

Most of BC's winning repair shops agree that customer satisfaction comes down to quality work, honest communication and follow up with the customer throughout the vehicle repair process. A lot of these companies are small or medium-sized, family-run businesses that have served their communities for some time.

The 2006 award winners are located throughout BC:

For more information contact:

Kate Pasieka
604-982-2781

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February is Auto Crime Enforcement Month in BC — February 1

This is a joint news release from the Integrated Municipal Provincial Auto Crime Team (IMPACT), the Ministry of Public Safety & Solicitor General and ICBC.

February is Auto Crime Enforcement Month in British Columbia. During this month the provincial government, police, and ICBC are working together to reduce auto crime through a number of innovative initiatives.

The problem: Auto theft is linked to almost every other common crime such as break and enters, mail theft, purse snatching and armed robbery. Drug addicted car thieves steal vehicles to help them commit other crimes to raise cash to buy more drugs. In 2005, 12 people were killed in BC in stolen car crashes and hundreds more were injured. The financial cost of auto crime to the residents of British Columbia is in the hundreds of millions of dollars. In 2005 ICBC alone paid out more than $130 million in auto crime related claims.

Tools for the public: Ten "top ten" lists have been created that will educate the public about how they can prevent auto crime which is not just a police or insurance problem, but is everyone's problem.

Police enforcement: Police chiefs from across the province have endorsed Auto Crime Enforcement Month and are providing resources to focus on auto crime through the identification of high risk locations and the targeting of repeat offenders. IMPACT has provided all BC police forces and detachments with updated training and tools specific to capturing car thieves and holding them in custody. In addition, a "ten most wanted" car thieves list has been generated and officers will be searching for these ten offenders with a goal of having all of them in custody by the end of February.

Tools for the Police: The Province of B.C. has taken steps to make sure police have many tools in their auto theft toolbox including new technology. In addition to the highly successful bait car program that was first launched in 2002, there is the bait recreational vehicle program and Air One, the $2.2 million helicopter that serves Lower Mainland communities. Last fall, B.C.'s Solicitor General introduced the Automatic Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology which helps officers keep dangerous drivers off the road and provides important data that helps police target criminal activity. The Police Records Information Management Environment (PRIME) has also been a great tool for police because it allows them to instantly access information and share details about crimes like stolen vehicles, and potential suspects, with other police agencies. Police also use undercover auto crime enforcement teams, police dogs and chronic offender programs. As an educational tool for secondary school students, watch for the 2007 release of 'Stolen Lives', a 34 minute video that will illustrate the real impact of auto crime on society.

ICBC education: ICBC is supporting the extra enforcement through an advertising campaign targeted at auto thieves. ICBC is also working with community partners to raise awareness of ways to prevent auto crime, through advertising and a number of community initiatives. In the Lower Mainland awareness initiatives will focus on younger motorists, as people aged 16 to 25 are more than twice as likely to have their vehicle stolen. Volunteer groups will be out in full force during the month conducting parking lot patrols and checking for stolen vehicles.

Visit www.baitcar.com for the complete top ten lists. Auto theft stats are available at www.icbc.com.

For more information contact:
Sgt. Gord Elias
IMPACT
604-598-4456

Doug Henderson
ICBC
604-982-1332,604-786-2597

Cindy Rose
Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General Public Affairs Officer
250-356-6961

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