OP-ED: After the Rejection of No-Fault, It’s Time for Alberta to Start Over

"At the United Conservative Party’s Annual General Meeting, delegates overwhelmingly rejected the government’s proposed “Care First” no-fault auto-insurance model."

Author: Tyler J. van Vliet

At the United Conservative Party’s Annual General Meeting, delegates overwhelmingly rejected the government’s proposed “Care First” no-fault auto-insurance model. For a governing party that prides itself on accountability, grassroots democracy, and respect for individual rights, this result was expected, and should serve as a useful turning point for Finance Minister Nate Horner and Premier Smith.

Albertans did not ask for no-fault insurance. In fact, they have spent the past two years expressing deep concern about what Care First would mean: a loss of the right to sue, fixed bureaucratic payouts for life-altering injuries, and a shift in power away from victims and toward insurance companies.

Those fears aren’t abstract. British Columbia has already run this experiment, and its “Enhanced Care” model has left countless injured people with no meaningful right of appeal and little recourse when insurers cut off treatment. It is no surprise that UCP members refused to import David Eby’s failed BC NDP project into Alberta.

The grassroots rejection of no-fault is a reaffirmation of a core Alberta instinct: we do not surrender our rights lightly. The right to seek justice, the right to hold a negligent driver accountable, the right to have your story heard are not boutique privileges. They are the foundation of a fair society, and they are the protections people rely on at the worst moments of their lives.

Care First would have swept them aside.

Supporters of Care First are right about one thing: Alberta’s premiums are too high. But affordability cannot come at the expense of basic justice. The AGM vote gave the government a clear roadmap to go back to the drawing board and find a solution that balances these two priorities.

Real reform is possible without abolishing the right to sue. Alberta can target frivolous claims, clarify definitions, and streamline minor-injury disputes while preserving accountability for serious harm. We can modernize and craft a “Made in Alberta” solution without importing the BC NDP’s failed model.

This AGM result should be treated as an opportunity. Premier Smith once opposed no-fault insurance; now her own members have echoed that position. They want solutions grounded in conservative principles: personal responsibility, accountability, and the protection of individual rights.

The path forward is clear: scrap the no-fault model, convene a serious multi-stakeholder process, and design an Alberta-made framework that delivers both fairness and affordability.

That is what UCP members voted for. It is what Albertans deserve. And it is where the government’s next chapter must begin.