Image Credit: Contributed / Scott Montagliani

By James Peters

Crashes into Buildings

Do drivers hit buildings in Kamloops more than elsewhere? ICBC says yes

Apr 20, 2023 | 11:34 AM

KAMLOOPS — Kamloops may not be the B.C. capital of vehicles crashing into buildings — but it’s close.

A Volkswagen careened into a North Shore restaurant Monday afternoon (April 17), causing extensive damage.

That led to a revival of online commentary premised on the perception that vehicle-into-building collisions are more common in Kamloops than elsewhere.

Statistics provided by the Insurance Corporation of B.C. (ICBC) support that perception.

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According to ICBC, between 2017 and 2021, there were 46 vehicle-into-building/wall collisions reported in Kamloops. Using a 2021 census population of 92,442, that means there was one such collision for every 2,010 residents during the five-year period.

Only one large B.C. city analyzed by CFJC Today had a higher rate of vehicle-into-building crashes — Delta at 1-per-1,838.

Image Credit: CFJC Today

Among similar-sized cities, Chilliwack (1-per-2,814), Kelowna (1-per-3,182), Nanaimo (1-per-3,929), White Rock (1-per-12,129) and Prince George (1-per-16,834) all saw lower rates of collisions into buildings and walls.

Meantime, Kamloops RCMP say the cause of Monday’s crash is still under investigation.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story identified North Vancouver as having a lower ratio of population-per-collision than Kamloops. However, that calculation only considered the District of North Vancouver’s population. When added with the population of the neighbouring City of North Vancouver, the population-per-collision ratio increases significantly.