Auditor general launches audit into rocky rollout of Quebec's auto insurance portal, SAAQclic

Last winter, the Socit de l'assurance automobile du Qubec (SAAQ) tried to go digital with its SAAQclic platform, but things didn't exactly go according to plan.

After a chaotic rollout of computer glitches, administrative errors, snaking queues and long delays, Quebec's auditor general has announced an investigation into the rocky SAAQclic rollout.

ric Caire, the province's minister of cybersecurity and digital technology, has previously described it all asa "fiasco."

The office of the auditor general, Guylaine Leclerc, is inviting the public to share their experiences using an online form for an audit concerning SAAQclic"and its components."

The report is currently scheduled for publication in winter 2025, but the timetable is still subject to change, according to the auditor general's office.

Quebec City's Le Soleil newspaper was the first to point out the audit on Friday, which was later confirmed.

WATCH | Drivers say they never got notices to renew their licences:

Did you get your driver's licence renewal notice from Quebec's auto insurance board?

8 months ago

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Some drivers told us they never received the form from the Socit de l'assurance automobile du Qubec (SAAQ). The form usually comes in the mail each year, a few weeks before your birthday.

Launched in February 2023, SAAQclic was presented as a platform that would enable customers to carry out most transactions online, including driver's license renewals, paying for vehicle registration or booking an appointment for a driving test.

But its launch was fraught with problems. Among other issues, SAAQ service centres had to be closed for two weeks to allow for the transition, resulting in long queues when they reopened.

Last fall, SAAQ President and CEO ric Ducharme revealed that the cost of the bungled digital transition cost an extra $41 million. This amount included the hiring of 465 people, an expense of $28 million on an annual basis, as well as $6 million in overtime.

Ducharme took office last April, when his predecessor Denis Marsolais was dismissed by cabinet in the wake of the SAAQclic fiasco.

Altogether, the SAAQclic platform was expected to cost $458 million, but according to Le Soleil, that number is now closer to $574 million.

The office of Quebec's Transport Minister told Radio-Canada that the minister, Genevive Guilbault, expects the SAAQ to fully collaborate with the auditor general.

"We will wait for the report's conclusions before commenting further," it said.

Staff face wrath as problems persist

In the year following the launch of SAAQclic, the SAAQ received almost 15,000 complaints, which surpasses the number of complaints for the five previous years combined.

But the headaches aren't limited to Quebecdrivers.

"There are still difficulties," said Christian Daigle, head of the SFPQ, the union that represents public and para-public service workers in the province.

Months after the debacle first began, Daigle says SAAQ users are still exasperated by ongoing technical obstacles and some are taking out their frustrations on staff.

"We need to get to the bottom of things to find out what happened and so that it doesn't happen again elsewhere in the government," he said.