On March 16, Vélo Québec was invited by the Commission des transports et de l'environnement of the National Assembly to present its recommendations on the bill 22. We took the opportunity to put forward a proposal that was both simple and revolutionary: that all road accidents* should be treated equally, and that victims should be compensated for the bodily injuries they suffer.
Does this seem obvious to you? Unfortunately, this is not the case at present. Under the Automobile Insurance Act, a motor vehicle must be involved in a collision for its victims to be compensated by our public insurance plan. This restriction is hard to understand, given the mission of the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec, which is to «protect people against the risks associated with the use of the road [...]».
At a time when the SAAQ's excellent capitalization rate has enabled the government to offer Quebecers two years off their driver's license payments (a gift of over a billion dollars), and to increase compensation for road accident victims reaching the age of 68, we believe that Quebec society is ripe for better protection and compensation for vulnerable road users: pedestrians and cyclists.
Our proposal would ensure that Robert LeBlanc, who died in a collision with another cyclist in June 2021, could have benefited from financial support to pay for his funeral expenses. It would ensure that Béatrice Létourneau doesn't have to pay outrageous dental bills on her own following a fall on her bike, in which she struggles to have the involvement of a∙e motorist recognized. These examples may seem rare, but for each of the victims and families affected, financial worries are added to the physical and moral suffering.
At the Commission, we had the opportunity to explain to its members that this form of universal victim compensation should be offered to vulnerable users, without any additional contribution from them to the SAAQ compensation fund. Considering that 9 out of 10 cyclists have a driver's license, it could be said that they are already contributing to the public insurance scheme. So, whenever a cyclist uses their bike instead of their car, they should have the peace of mind of knowing they're covered in the event of an accident. This is a very small compensation for their contribution to reducing the number of vehicles on the road, and therefore the risks for all users. And what about the reduction in GHG emissions and the benefits of physical activity for the collective health of our whole society!
We invite you to take a look at the other proposals contained in our memory, listen to our presentation We'd be delighted to hear from you, and to share your own stories of road collisions. Have you ever had difficulty obtaining reimbursement from the SAAQ for medical expenses or replacing lost income? Getting reimbursed for damage to your bicycle? Have you had to deal with a∙e motorist's insurance company about property damage to their vehicle? We want to hear from you!
