ICBC allows customers to request driving records online

The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) announced on Thursday that it has launched a new online tool that allows customers to now request their driving records online and immediately receive them by email.

In 2015, ICBC customers requested more than half a million driver’s abstracts and nearly 97,000 insurance and claims history reports, ICBC said in a press release. Now, customers can access this free service online and from mobile devices, any time of the day.

Driving abstracts provide details of a person’s basic driving history, including tickets and offences for the last five years. Customers can also access insurance and claims history records that detail a driver’s insurance coverage and claims history, for up to 20 years. Commercial drivers can also use the online system to ask for a commercial driving record called a “national safety code abstract.” That abstract is a five-year record of a driver’s history and any commercial vehicle-related convictions.

“Moving this service online – one that most drivers will need at some point – is a great example of the way ICBC is simplifying and improving day-to-day interactions with British Columbians,” said Todd Stone, the provincial Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. “Government and ICBC are committed to continuing to make meaningful service improvements.”

Mark Blucher, ICBC’s president and CEO, said in the release that “like many companies, we know the needs of our customers are changing. Many of our customers want the choice of going online and we’ll continue to look for opportunities to make it easier for our customers to get the services they need from ICBC.”

Driving records are often necessary when applying for membership at a car-sharing company, volunteer driving for school activities or a person has moved outside of the province and needs to apply for auto insurance. Customer information is protected with multiple security checks and electronic files have security features that prevent them from being altered.

“Car sharing is all about ease and convenience – this applies as much to booking and driving our cars, as it does during the registration process,” said Selena McLachlan, director of business development at Modo, which has a fleet of share vehicles across B.C.’s Lower Mainland and Victoria. “With ICBC’s enhanced customer service, our members can now signup online and request their driving records at the same time, getting them into our cars sooner.”

Customers can make their request online, but can also still visit a driver licensing office or call ICBC to request a copy of their driving record or claims history, if preferred.