aircare confusion

July 17, 2011 2:32 PM

I live in Vancouver and may be buying a used car on Bowen Island. How do I go about insuring it with air care?

So from what I know Bowen Island is exempt from aircare despite being part of the lower mainland. I'll be going out to take a look this week and if I like it I can buy it on the spot. I know there is an insurance office on the island but (I'm guessing) there isn't anywhere to have it aircare tested. It should pass (93 Chevy pick-up with 200,000k on it) but I'm wondering how this would work. Can it be temporarily insured and then tested after driving it back down here? Or is there a way to test it out on the Island? Alternative ideas?

posted by mannequito to travel & transportation around Vancouver, BC (5 answers total)

Definitely won't be a testing spot on Bowen as they are serious large setups and few in number. You can get temporary Autoplan coverage in any amount of days, though it is kind of expensive. A one-day permit is $25 and the price per day gets a little lower the more you buy. I've found if you just call any Autoplan place they are pretty good about knowing what you have to do. I would expect you'll have to get a temporary permit in Bowen, then Aircare in Vancouver, then permanent registration in Vancouver.
posted by PercussivePaul at 3:09 PM on July 17, 2011

You will have to come back to the mainland for AirCare testing. Here is a list of locations and hours of operation. Once you've purchased the truck, go to any Autoplan on the island to purchase temporary insurance. Then, as you guessed, you can drive it back and get it tested.
posted by keep it under cover at 4:26 PM on July 17, 2011

Go to an Autoplan location on the island and ask for a temporary paper tag. This will give you insuance coverage for the ride back to Vancouver, where you can get all the rest done re: AirCare.
posted by wowbobwow at 4:49 PM on July 17, 2011

Via ICBC:

Temporary Operation Permit
One to 15 days
This policy is useful when you only need insurance for a short period. Your vehicle might be going for repairs, for an AirCare test or to be sold.
To save money for coverage more than 15 days, you could buy a three-month policy and cancel it when you do not need it any more. (Emph. mine.)
posted by wowbobwow at 5:28 PM on July 17, 2011

Temporary Operation Permit
We got this 3-month coverage plan when we bought an old car in BC that we drove back to Quebec. You have 3 months to figure all the details to get a more permanent coverage (we just didn't renew the BC plan).
posted by ddaavviidd at 7:16 PM on July 17, 2011