
Quebec’s failed auto insurance digital shift could cost $500M, inquiry hears
MONTREAL — A public inquiry examining a failed digital shift by Quebec’s automobile insurance board heard Monday it could end up costing the province nearly half a billion dollars more than initially planned.
Alain Fortin, Quebec’s interim auditor general, testified that cost overruns could mean the final tally for the so-called SAAQclic project will come in at $1.1 billion by 2027, nearly $500 million more than was budgeted.
The project was expected to cost $638 million over 10 years when launched in 2017. Fortin noted that the board no longer tracks operating costs, and the assumption by the auditor was that operating costs would be at least what was initially budgeted in 2017.
The projected total includes costs for services that are already implemented and others that haven’t been completed. However, several phases are on hold without firm deadlines for completion.