I HATE ICBC

Source: Source CTV. Oct. 03 2001.

The departing president and CEO of the Insurance Corp. of B.C. has negotiated a severance deal worth almost $500,000. That’s about two years in salary for Thom Thompson, whose contract with the corporation was set to expire this month.

Finance Minister Gary Collins said Thompson signed the deal under B.C.’s former NDP government. The Liberal said the amount would have been higher had he not threatened to cancel two additional deals Thompson negotiated after his appointment in 1995.

“They were unreasonable and I wouldn’t have allowed them to go forward,” Collins said. He added that he could not provide details about the two additional deals that were made with then-ICBC chairman Bob Williams.

But Nick Geer said the two deals would have increased Thompson’s pension and severance. Geer replaced Williams as ICBC chairman and he said that Thompson was not forced out of the company.

Rumours had been circulating for weeks about Thompson’s departure and it was made official in a corporate news release on Tuesday. Thompson’s annual salary was $240,000 per annum.

ICBC’s annual revenues are approximately $3 billion. The corporation is expected to earn a $35-million profit this fiscal year, but it has been the focal point of controversy in recent month.

Last fall, ICBC bought two real estate properties as investments, spending more than $120 million. The Crown corporation proceeded without the required consent of government or filing the proper government documents.