According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, men under 25 are generally at higher risk of collision than women of the same age, which means their premiums are often higher.
David, who was 23 at the time, says he learned he first had to change his gender on his birth certificate and driver’s licence before he could have it reflected on his insurance policy, to get the cheaper rate.
After doing some research, he realized he needed a doctor’s note to show the government he identifies as a woman, even though he doesn’t.
“It was pretty simple,” he said. “I just basically asked for it and told them that I identify as a woman, or I’d like to identify as a woman, and he wrote me the letter I wanted.”
Under the rules in place at the time, Albertans needed to produce a doctor’s note to switch the gender marker on their personal documents. In June, the government scrapped the doctor’s note requirement for adults, allowing them to declare their marker as M, F or X, for those who don’t fit into a strictly male or female binary.
“I’m a man, 100 per cent. Legally, I’m a woman,” he said.
“I did it for cheaper car insurance.”
David says he’s aware the methods he used to become a woman on paper are designed for Albertans who need to correct the gender marker on their identification to reflect who they really are. But he says his target was the insurance industry, not the gender diverse community.
Steve Kee, spokesman for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, says he’s heard anecdotal reports of people changing their gender for cheaper insurance, though he doesn’t know how often it happens.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/change-gender-identification-insurance-alberta-1.4754416
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