Quebec drivers pay more for less service at SAAQ: MEI study

Quebec drivers pay more for vehicle registration and licence costs even as they received poorer service compared to drivers from Alberta, according to a Montreal Economic Institute (MEI) study.

MEI says the Quebecers pay $142.35 for vehicle registration compared to $86.5 paid by Albertans.

The cost of driver’s licence in Quebec is also higher — $26.75 compared to $19.6 in Alberta.

Quebec drivers must also renew their registration and licence every year whereas in Alberta vehicle registrations need to be only renewed every two years and licences every five years.

“The result is clear: Quebec drivers pay around 60 per cent more for this service than their Albertan counterparts,” said Gabriel Giguère, policy analyst at MEI who co-authored the study.

“Not to mention the lack of customer satisfaction, especially since the SAAQclic fiasco,” he added.

The study also noted Alberta had more service points than Quebec even though its population is lower.

In a statement to CityNews, SAAQ said it had 129 service points, of which 45 are managed directly by the auto insurance board.

However, the MEI’s comparison between the provinces is misleading, according to SAAQ spokesperson Simon-Pierre Poulin.

“The ratio comparison is misleading because it doesn’t reflect how Quebec’s system works,” Poulin explained. “For instance, in Quebec, car dealerships can register new vehicles directly on site, which meant over 800,000 people didn’t need to visit a service point last year year.

“Our network is designed around geography and online service. Today, 99.6 per cent of people in Quebec have a service point within 50 kilometres,” Poulin added.

MEI’s study also highlighted the number of complaints SAAQ had received in the recent years. In 2023, the auto insurance board had received 15,000 complaints — more than previous five years combined. The following year the complaints dropped to over 9,000.

Poulin said this was due to the “chaotic digital transition” which has been the subject of Gallant Commission investigation which said SAAQ leaders had lied to Quebec ministers about the progress and cost of the project.

“Complaint volumes have since dropped significantly as our system stabilized,” Poulin said. “In 2025, we received 7,299 complaints down 21.3 per cent from 9,278 in 2024.”

The conservative thinktank also said Alberta’s use of private sector for service points allowed it to keep the costs lower.

SAAQ said being a public insurer, its premiums remain among the lowest in Canada. The insurance contributions include coverage for victims of road accidents for injuries as well as income replacement.

“Alberta drivers must pay for that coverage separately through the private market,” Poulin said. “When you look at the full picture, Alberta drivers pay much more overall.”