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ICBC earlier this week announced it had begun filing its basic insurance rate application with the B.C. Utilities Commission.Darryl Dyck/The Globe and Mail

The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia says fraudulent claims have played a role in its need for a 6.7-per-cent increase in basic rates, a trend the corporation says is in keeping with what is happening nationwide.

Last year, the auto-insurance provider opened 3,200 fraud investigations – the most ever in a single year. Spokesman Adam Grossman could not say how many of those cases – or similar investigations in 2013 – were determined to be fraud, although he noted ICBC investigations led to about 360 convictions between 2010 and 2014.

Mr. Grossman said industry studies have estimated 10 per cent to 20 per cent of insurance claims contain an element of fraud or exaggeration "and ICBC wouldn't be immune to that."

ICBC earlier this week announced it had begun filing its basic insurance rate application with the B.C. Utilities Commission. It will not set the final number of the proposed increase until the end of October, but said that, as of Monday, it was looking at 6.7 per cent. ICBC said part of the need for the increase was a rise in injury claims. It said two possible factors were more soft-tissue injuries and "potentially more exaggerated and fraudulent claims."

B.C. is not the only jurisdiction to face insurance fraud. A 2012 study estimated such fraud costs up to $1.6-billion every year in Ontario, and an Insurance Bureau of Canada spokesperson said "it's a problem everywhere."

Mr. Grossman said in an e-mail ICBC has two special investigation units with a combined staff of about 70. He said one focuses on claims investigations, the other on driver licensing. He said ICBC also has a cyberunit that combs the Internet and social media for evidence of fraud, and the organization is looking into analytics technology.

"Investigations are not quick and easy and often require extensive work which can take many months," he said. "Given that, many of our investigations from the last year or two remain ongoing."

ICBC has said higher legal and medical bills have also contributed to the increasing cost of injury claims, but did not provide totals.

Steve Kee, a spokesperson for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said his focus has largely been on insurance fraud in Ontario, but it is an issue across the country.

Automobile insurance is private in Ontario, while B.C. has a public provider.

Ben Kosic, chief executive officer of CANATICS, an Ontario-based industry organization that combats insurance fraud, said fraud is a large problem across the country. He said fraud cases can increase for reasons such as fraudsters moving from one jurisdiction to another, or fraud just becoming more evident.

Kelley Brinkworth, a spokesperson for Saskatchewan Government Insurance, said the public provider has not seen an increase in fraudulent claims. Ms. Brinkworth said in an e-mail the number has remained flat.

Mable Elmore, a B.C. New Democrat MLA and party spokesperson on ICBC issues, said she has not had much luck finding more information on fraudulent claims.

"I don't have those hard numbers as of yet," she said in an interview.

Ms. Elmore said ICBC last year transferred $139-million to government, and she called the suggested rate increase "unacceptable."

B.C. Transportation Minister Todd Stone earlier this week also described the proposed increase as unacceptable, and said government would work with ICBC to keep rates as low as possible.

"ICBC has informed us that it is facing an increase in the complexity, frequency and severity of bodily injury claims. Last year, bodily injury costs totalled over $2.17-billion, up nearly 10 per cent in one year. This trend continues to grow," Mr. Stone wrote in a statement on Monday.

"While the number of crashes is relatively unchanged, ICBC is also reporting more crashes with multiple injuries than ever before, with more cases being potentially fraudulent."

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