A High-Value Vehicle Has Its Own Rules at ICBC.
We've Been Working Them Since 1994.
ICBC Autoplan is the same everywhere. How a Rate Group 98 file is handled is not.
Rate Group 98. The APV274 Special Risk Own Damage Policy. The high-value Basic premium. The Exotic Repair Rate. For vehicles on ICBC's luxury list, the buying process doesn't work the way it does for a standard car — a separate application, its own underwriter, its own timing, an in-person signature. The specifics are straightforward when the advisor across the desk has done them before. We have.
Ask for Kuljeet or Kul by name.
Most luxury owners find us after a previous advisor hadn't done enough of these to know where the rhythm is different. By then, the deal is usually waiting on plates. Usually it's a call from the dealership floor, the salesperson hovering — a few days later than it should have been.
What Triggers Luxury-Vehicle Treatment at ICBC
ICBC uses two separate mechanisms for luxury vehicles, both based on a vehicle's original MSRP and model year. A vehicle may be subject to one, both, or neither — and it can move in or out of the published list as ICBC updates it.
The thresholds come straight from ICBC's Basic Insurance Tariff. A high-value vehicle is a BC-registered private passenger vehicle with a manufacturer's suggested retail price over $150,000 and a model year within seven years of the current year, or an MSRP over $400,000 and a model year within fourteen years. Commercial vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, and recreational vehicles are not subject to the luxury rules, regardless of value.
Rather than ask owners to do that math, ICBC publishes a luxury vehicle list, make by make and model by model, showing which years carry the high-value Basic premium and which require the APV274 application for own-damage coverage. The list changes over time, so the only reliable answer for your vehicle is to check the current version — which we do before placing anything.
ICBC's luxury vehicle thresholds
Thresholds and eligibility are set by ICBC and confirmed against the current published list for your specific year, make, and model before coverage is placed.
High-Value Basic Premium vs. the APV274 Special Risk Policy
These get lumped together in conversation, but they are separate things with separate rules — which matters if your vehicle sits on the list for one but not the other.
High-value vehicle Basic premium
When your vehicle appears on ICBC's luxury list at the high-value threshold, your Basic Autoplan premium is charged at double the standard rate. It is automatic, not optional, and applies the moment the vehicle is registered in your name.
- Applies to the Basic coverages you already carry — Third Party Liability, Basic Vehicle Damage, Underinsured Motorist Protection, and Inverse Liability
- Does not require a separate application
- No underwriter sees it
- Does not, on its own, provide Collision or Comprehensive — those are separate Optional coverages
APV274 Special Risk Own Damage Policy
For vehicles flagged for Special Risk Own Damage, Collision, Comprehensive, and Specified Perils cannot be written on a standard Optional policy. The own-damage coverage moves to a separate APV274 policy, underwritten individually by ICBC.
- Requires a separate application reviewed by an ICBC underwriter
- The deductible is set by the underwriter, not the customer
- The declared value is assessed individually against current market value
- Third Party Liability stays on the standard APV250 policy
- Vehicles on the APV274 automatically qualify for the Exotic Repair Rate
The Exotic Repair Rate — Why It Matters at Claim Time
Vehicles insured under the APV274 are automatically eligible for ICBC's Exotic vehicle repair rate — a repair rate set higher than the standard one, to reflect what these vehicles actually cost to fix. A standard collision shop isn't equipped to repair them, and mixing non-original parts into a high-value vehicle can permanently damage its value.
ICBC also applies the Exotic rate automatically to every model, every year, from eleven makes — regardless of APV274 status:
Source: ICBC Exotic Vehicle Eligibility list. The full luxury vehicle list is maintained at icbc.com. We pull the current list and check your exact vehicle before placing anything.
Two Things Clients Get Wrong on the APV274
ICBC reviews every APV274 application by hand. Experienced advisors rarely cause problems here, because ICBC sends sloppy submissions back for correction. The problems that actually cost clients coverage or time are on the client side of the counter — and both are avoidable.
Mistake #1 — Treating the APV274 like a same-day transaction
Every APV274 is reviewed individually: an underwriter sets the deductible and assesses the declared value. A clean application from an experienced advisor often clears quickly, but ICBC asks that it be submitted at least five business days before you take delivery or renew — and higher-value files can take longer. None of that works on a Saturday afternoon. You can sit at the dealership with a delivered vehicle and no Collision, Comprehensive, or Specified Perils coverage on it until the APV274 clears. We coordinate the application with your dealer and your renewal date so the approval lands before it's needed.
Mistake #2 — Sending someone else to sign
ICBC requires the registered owner or lessee to sign the APV274 application in person, at a licensed Autoplan brokerage. The signature cannot be delegated — not to a spouse, not to an assistant, not to a dealership salesperson. The signing itself takes about fifteen minutes. If you're coming from Vancouver, West Vancouver, or elsewhere in the Lower Mainland, call ahead and we'll have the full application ready to sign and submit when you arrive.
What Separates Group 98 Work From an Ordinary Autoplan Transaction
Most counters in BC see a handful of these files a year. We see them as a regular part of the week — and the difference shows up in the details that decide whether your coverage is in place when you drive away.
Founder-level experience
Kul has been a Level 3 licensed advisor in BC since 1990 — before ICBC introduced the Rate Group 98 classification. He still handles luxury files himself, alongside Kuljeet.
Family-owned, second generation
Kuljeet joined Prime full-time in 2002 and holds the CAIB designation. Prime is family-owned — not a franchise, not a private-equity rollup. The advisor handling your file next year is the advisor handling it five years from now.
Technical backup on staff
Mark, our commercial and personal lines advisor, also holds the CAIB. When a wording question on an APV274 endorsement needs a real answer, Kuljeet and Kul have him down the hall.
Application discipline
We start your application as soon as we know the vehicle. A clean APV274 submitted early gives ICBC's underwriter room to work — so the approval lands before the dealer handover, not after.
Liability sized to your assets
The $200,000 Basic liability limit isn't enough for most luxury owners. $5 million is ICBC's maximum Extended Third Party Liability for passenger vehicles, and for most of our luxury clients it's the right number. We explain Basic TPL, Extended TPL, and the private umbrella, and help you size each to what you actually have to protect.
We tell you what triggers a call
Once your APV274 is approved, a material change during the year — you start commuting, you add a driver, you relocate, your use shifts — is worth a phone call. We tell you up front exactly what counts, so there are no surprises at claim time.
Why We Stay Focused on ICBC for Luxury Vehicles
Most of our luxury clients have been with us 20-plus years on ICBC Autoplan alone. That's the proof that the public system, handled properly, is enough for most owners.
Some brokerages in BC lean hard into private-market top-up products. Those have their place — particularly for collector vehicles, which are a different product with different rules — but they are not the default answer for a current-year Group 98 luxury vehicle in regular use.
Our position: ICBC's framework, written properly by an advisor who knows the rules cold, covers the great majority of luxury vehicle owners in this province. When a client's situation genuinely calls for private-market coverage, we say so plainly. When it doesn't, we don't sell it just because it pays more.
That's a different conversation than most are having. It's the one we've been having since 1994.
Vehicles, Scenarios, and Geography
We handle luxury files across the full spectrum of ICBC's list — from European supercars to high-value SUVs, from brand-new MSRP-threshold vehicles to imported exotics. If your vehicle is on the list, we know how to write your file.
Vehicle categories we write
- Luxury SUVs — Bentayga, Cullinan, Urus, DBX, G63 AMG, Range Rover SV
- Supercars — Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Aston Martin
- German performance — Porsche 911 GT3 / Turbo S, AMG GT
- Mercedes-AMG — S-Class, G-Wagon, E63, C63
- BMW M-cars — M5 Competition, M8, XM
- Audi RS — RS Q8, RS7, RS6 Avant, R8
- High-value electric — Taycan Turbo S, Model S Plaid, Lucid Air, Rimac
- Luxury sedans & coupes — Flying Spur, Phantom, S-Class Maybach
- Coachbuilt & limited-production vehicles
Common scenarios we handle
- New-vehicle purchase — APV274 prepared before the deal closes
- Rate-class review at renewal on an existing vehicle
- Relocation to BC with an imported luxury vehicle
- Collection management — multiple high-value vehicles in one household
- A second opinion when the current coverage doesn't feel right
- Family fleet — a mix of daily drivers and weekend cars
Surrey · White Rock · South Surrey · Langley · Delta · Vancouver · West Vancouver · North Vancouver · Burnaby · Richmond · and the wider Lower Mainland. Our office is in Surrey; we serve clients across BC.
Three Steps. The First One Matters Most.
Call as soon as you're serious
A week ahead is plenty; even 48 hours usually works. We get the APV274 moving while you're still finalizing the deal.
Quote first, then the binding document
We prepare a quote from preliminary documents — bill of sale, MSRP, any private appraisal, photo ID. To issue plates and insurance we also need one of three things: the APV9T transfer/tax form signed by the dealer, the current vehicle registration, or the NVIS for a brand-new vehicle.
Sign, plate, drive
Come to our Surrey office to sign the APV274 and take your plates — or for a dealership purchase, we'll complete the transaction on site and issue plates there. About fifteen minutes at the desk, either way. APV274 approved, APV250 liability in place, renewal reminders set.
Luxury & Exotic Vehicle Insurance: Common Questions
The questions luxury owners ask most. If yours isn't here, call us. We answer the phone.
What is ICBC Rate Group 98 (RG98)?
Rate Group 98 is ICBC's classification for the Special Risk Own Damage Policy (APV274). It applies to certain high-value and exotic vehicles where ICBC underwriters must approve Collision, Comprehensive, or Specified Perils coverage individually.
Third Party Liability on these vehicles stays on the standard APV250 policy; only the own-damage portion moves to the APV274.
How do I know if my vehicle is on the list?
ICBC publishes a luxury vehicle list that it updates regularly. For each make and model, it shows the model years that require the high-value Basic premium and, separately, the model years that require the APV274 application for own-damage coverage. We check your specific year, make, and model against the current list before placing coverage.
What triggers the high-value vehicle Basic premium?
Under ICBC's Basic Insurance Tariff, a high-value vehicle is a BC-registered private passenger vehicle with an MSRP over $150,000 and a model year within seven years of the current year, or an MSRP over $400,000 and a model year within fourteen years.
Once flagged, Basic Autoplan is charged at double the standard Basic premium. It's automatic and applies whether or not the vehicle also requires the APV274 for own-damage coverage.
Can I get New Vehicle Replacement Plus on my luxury car?
No. New Vehicle Replacement Plus isn't available on a Group 98 luxury vehicle — ICBC excludes these vehicles from the coverage. So the strongest new-for-old protection ICBC offers simply isn't available on yours.
That leaves a real replacement gap on a brand-new luxury vehicle: ICBC settles a total loss at its depreciated value, not new-for-old. We tell you about the gap — and your private-market options for closing it — before you sign, rather than after a write-off.
How early should I contact you before buying a high-value vehicle?
As early as you can. ICBC asks that the APV274 application be submitted at least five business days before you take delivery or renew, because every application is reviewed individually by an underwriter — and higher-value files can take longer.
The earlier we have your file in the queue, the less pressure on the dealer handover. Forty-eight hours ahead is usually workable. Saturday afternoon at the dealership is not.
Does the APV274 have to be signed in person?
Yes. ICBC requires the registered owner or lessee to sign the APV274 application in person at a licensed Autoplan brokerage. The signature cannot be delegated to a spouse, assistant, or employee.
The signing takes about fifteen minutes at the desk. If you're coming from Vancouver, West Vancouver, or elsewhere in the Lower Mainland, call ahead and we'll have the full application ready to sign and submit when you arrive.
What is the Exotic Repair Rate?
Vehicles insured under the APV274 are automatically eligible for ICBC's Exotic vehicle repair rate. ICBC also applies the Exotic rate automatically to all models, all years, from eleven makes: Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, Ferrari, Koenigsegg, Lamborghini, McLaren, Pagani, Rolls-Royce, Saleen, and Spyker.
It's a repair rate set higher than the standard one, recognizing that these vehicles cost more to fix properly than an ordinary car.
What Extended Third Party Liability limit should I carry?
For most luxury owners we recommend $5 million, which is also ICBC's maximum Extended Third Party Liability for passenger vehicles. Someone driving a high-value vehicle typically has assets and income worth protecting at the top of the available limit.
Extended TPL is separate from the own-damage coverage on the APV274 — it protects you against claims from others, not repairs to your own vehicle. Coverage above $5 million is available through the private umbrella market, and we'll tell you when that's worth considering.
Can I use my luxury vehicle as my daily driver?
Yes — you just need to be rated for the use you actually have. ICBC's pleasure-use class allows up to six days per calendar month for driving to or from work or school; routine commuting beyond that must be rated as to-work or business use.
The application records your declared use up front, and misstating use is a claim-time problem. We rate the vehicle based on how you actually drive it.
Is a Group 98 policy the same as collector vehicle insurance?
No — they are two separate products. Rate Group 98 is for current high-value luxury vehicles in regular use. ICBC's collector vehicle status is for vehicles 25 years or older, or limited-production discontinued vehicles 15 years or older, insured for pleasure use only — with different eligibility rules and a different application process.
Do you handle luxury vehicles outside of Surrey?
Yes. We place coverage for luxury and exotic vehicle owners across the Lower Mainland and the rest of BC. Because the APV274 requires an in-person signature, most luxury clients travel to a brokerage they trust rather than the closest one.
Our Surrey office is easily accessible from Highway 1 with parking on site.
For the official details, see ICBC’s Autoplan Insurance brochure (PDF).
Buying a luxury vehicle? Call before you sign.
A 48-hour heads-up is usually enough for us to have your APV274 ready when you come in to sign. Ask for Kuljeet or Kul by name.
604-582-0557