In 2010, ICBC announced that it was going to be updating and modernising  its operations as part of what it called, “Transformation 2014”.  The new technology that ICBC was investing in would, it was reported, include the introduction of new vehicle registration systems.

Not much attention was given to “Transformation 2014” at the time, after all, what, if anything, is exciting about a new computer system at an insurance company? For those, however, who are interested in these things “Transformation 2014” opened a world of possibilities.

The Corporation was still using a registration system created in the 1980s that it had inherited from the Motor Vehicle Branch (MVB) when the two entities were merged in the 1990s. The antiquated nature of this system severely limited the Corporation's ability to innovate and introduce license plate features common in other states and provinces. This included the use of 7-character combinations and maybe, just possibly the replacement of the Social Credit Party's “Spirit Flag” design with something less political and more modern!

Recognizing, however, that there is an insanely high failure rate for technology projects (somewhere in the neighbourhood of 70-80%) and that the Corporation has a checkered history with such projects it was almost too much to hope that change would actually occur by 2014 and the exhaustion of the 000-AAA format that same year. And it was.

“2014” was quietly dropped from the title of the “Transformation” program and ICBC spent the better part of the next decade slowly rolling out its new technology. Again, for those interested in these things, there was solace in the old refrain that “anything worth having is worth waiting for”.

Which is why, as the AA0-00A format introduced in 2014 slowly churned through the roughly 8 million combinations available to be used on BC license plates, excitement began to grow in license plate circles that maybe, finally there would be a transformative change announced in relation to BC plates!

In past cycles, the Corporation had begun planning for the transition to a new series 3-4 years in advance of the last plates being issued. For instance, as the AAA-000 series ran out combinations, ICBC began planning the next series in 1997 (for release in 2001). When the 000-AAA series began to run out of combinations, ICBC announced the next series in 2010 (for release in 2014).

It was not unreasonable, in 2023, to assume that the Corporation knew what the next series would be as the AA0-00A neared exhaustion in 2025. Would there be 7-character and a new design? Curiosity lead several individuals to submit queries to the media department at ICBC seeking info on what the Corporation's plans were. All of which were rebuffed on the basis that the Corporation had nothing to announce.

Surely this could not be the case! Planning for the next series should have already been well advanced by 2023, and it is not like a license plate serial is a state secret requiring special access and clearances! Unless ... there was something really monumental coming down the pipe in terms of changes to the province's license plates!

Curiosity got the better of us here at BCpl8s.ca and a Freedom of Information (FOI) request was submitted to the Corporation in September of 2023 requesting the following:

all records from January 1 2022, to the present pertaining to the format of license plates to be used following the exhaustion of the current AA0 00A passenger format.

We'll cut to the chase and reveal that, after 6 tortuous months, the Corporation finally relented and coughed up the info that the next series would be A00-0AA!

Apparently, an announcement was planned for the Fall of 2024 regarding the new series, which Corporation staff appear to have taken to be justification to ignore statutory requirements under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to respond to a request for records.

Obviously, this was a very disappointing course of action from an organization that purports to take rules seriously, be it in honouring the terms of an insurance policy to encouraging motorists to routinely use their “Road Sense” when driving.