Dear editor,I have recently broken the law. I did not mean to but I have.It was a mistake on my part not to be 100 per cent truthful to the ICBC representative. Therefore, I must make amends for this transgression against the law. The situation was a misrepresentation to ICBC and the submission of a false claim under Section 42.1 of the Insurance (vehicle) Act of B.C. The maximum penalty I may have received was a fine of up to $25,000 and/or imprisonment up to two years.In addition, I would have borne all the repercussions that go along with any conviction, such as a criminal record and the loss of personal freedoms.Thankfully, this was not the case. However, I have been delegated with informing the public at large of the consequences of my actions and how it may affect all individuals. The population of B.C. (particularly ICBC customers) pays an average of $150 extra a year because of fraudulent claims. So all citizens, not just the victim, suffer from my incident of a hit-and-run fraudulent claim.Not to forget to mention the fact I am solely responsible for paying back all monies ICBC paid out to repair the damages to the other person鈥檚 vehicle, the money to repair my vehicle and the possibility of raised insurance rates for myself.This should be more than a fair warning as to the consequences of lying and not to make a false claim. In short, it is not worth it.The second and, I feel the most important part of this letter, is to apologize to the individual who was the victim of that hit and run. I am truly sorry for any inconvenience and problems that may have been caused by this incident.I assure you, if ever I am faced with the same situation I will act in the correct manner and choose the appropriate course of action. In addition, I must apologize to the community overall for misrepresentation and the penalty we all pay for any fraud.I would like to mention also the concerned citizens who took the licence plate number and reported the hit and run. People like you are the responsible ones and actually do help the community at large by not allowing these incidents to go unsolved and make the town just that much better to live in.Finally, to the Justice Centre, I have learned my lesson and because of your efforts, I will not have any criminal record. I have a second chance now and I plan to do it right.Name withheldEditor's note: This letter of apology is a condition of a resolution conference at the Comox Valley Community Justice Centre.
