Message from the Chairperson

The transport of people and products takes on special importance in a province of such vast expanses. It isn’t surprising that Manitobans lead the country when it comes to time spent behind the wheel, as Statistics Canada confirmed early in 2008.

And just as we rely on our motor vehicles, we rely on our public auto insurance system to be there when we need it most and evolve to meet our changing needs.

It’s a challenge we embrace. As we state in our corporate values, “As our customers’ needs and the business environment continue to change, so must we.”

In 2007, after a period of improvements related to changes in driver and vehicle licensing, Manitoba Public Insurance once again ramped up to deliver more value to Manitobans in a number of new ways.

It was truly a time to reach out to Manitobans with plans for more service improvements, and to reach higher in our quest for excellence in all its forms.

Among the plans set in motion was a program of major capital improvements aimed at improving customer convenience. We began to convert our existing claims centres into full-service facilities that will allow customers to do more types of business with the corporation at one location. After successfully piloting this new service model at our claims centre in Winkler, we have paved the way for similar conversions all across the province.

As we made these plans for the future, we were heartened to see the benefits of initiatives we had begun in the recent past.

Among these successes was our impressive progress in reducing auto theft. Two years ago, when we introduced the Immobilizer Incentive Program, we promised Manitobans that we could defeat this serious safety problem – and in 2007 we delivered. By the end of the fiscal year, we were beginning to see a marked reduction in auto theft of all kinds, including attempted theft and partial theft. Thanks to immobilizers and intensive monitoring of chronic thieves, Manitoba is no longer the auto theft capital of Canada. And the positive effects of our efforts will only grow in 2008.

Most importantly, we continued to reach for new levels of excellence in our core business of auto insurance. Providing assistance and support when policyholders need it most is the most basic promise of any insurance company – and in 2007, we exceeded customer expectations once again. When a devastating hailstorm hit the Dauphin area, our commitment to service translated into quick mobilization of staff to deal with the deluge of claims.

Another important promise to policyholders is comprehensive coverage at an affordable price, and once again the corporation delivered. After a decade of rate stability, Autopac rates decreased for 75 per cent of policyholders in the 2007 insurance year. And for the third time in six years, Manitobans received another premium rebate, and the promise of another rebate in 2008. We said we would deliver a better model for service centres that’s more efficient and provides customers with more options. We have delivered. We have pledged to keep insurance rates among the most competitive in the country – and again we have delivered.

Of course, we cannot continue to meet or exceed these high standards of excellence without the hard work and dedication of our staff. I’d like to take this opportunity, on behalf of my colleagues on the Board of Directors, to thank the staff, management and business partners of Manitoba Public Insurance.

Without their efforts, any talk of reaching out and reaching higher remains just that – talk. Together with Manitobans, we’re committed to making our shared future stronger.

Shari Decter Hirst
Chairperson of the Board

(SITTING LEFT TO RIGHT)
Ed Arndt; Annette Maloney; Marilyn McLaren, Ex-Officio
(STANDING LEFT TO RIGHT)
Kerry Bittner, Vice-Chairperson; Mary Johnson; Manisha Pandya; Dale Paterson; Shari Decter Hirst, Chairperson; Daryl Reid