It’s desolation. More than a year after the chaotic launch of the SAAQ IT platform, combined with the implementation of the Digital Government Authentication Service (SAG), Quebecers continue to experience aberrations in their daily lives. After spending hundreds of millions of dollars, the situation is sometimes worse than before.
Here is an example lived at home with 16-year-old sons, simply wanting to pay for the renewal of their scooter license with the start of the spring season.
As no renewal notice was sent by mail or email, you had to go to SAAQclic to find out the amount due and pay the bill on the website of a financial institution.
But now, SAAQclic then refers to the Government Authentication Service (SAG), which asks you to provide precise personal information to then access the file.
However, the sons had already created their file last year.
What information are we asking for? The number of the notice of assessment from the previous year to Revenu Québec.
The sons, aged 16 I remind you, have obviously not yet filed an income tax return in their life.
Even if they fulfilled the second condition, which is to enter their driving license reference number, it was impossible to access the file because step one could not be completed.
The SAG then asks for information on the physical address, and indicates that Revenu Québec will then send a “secret identifier” BY POST, and be careful, WITHIN 15 DAYS, so that the children can again try to access their own file.
Solely to… pay for their renewal online.
Anachronism
Waiting for a code to be mailed is the opposite of digital progress.
In 2024, it’s a damn anachronism.
It’s even worse than keeping the fax machine healthy!
However, when we make a transaction on a banking site with a phone, the institution sends us a code by text and in a few seconds, we can easily authenticate our identity and proceed.
With the SAAQclic/SAG combination of the Quebec state, you have to wait… days.
The Government Authentication Service will be implemented in the next stages of the State’s digital transformation.
After the SAAQ, the SAG must eventually become the key to entering your Revenu Québec file.
Admit it’s scary.
However, it would be normal to improve service delivery with the online state.
Despite millions
While waiting for a dream that seems unattainable, the Auditor General has launched an investigation into the deployment and failures of SAAQclic.
Remember that $458 million was invested in 2018 for the IT transformation of the SAAQ.
That the failed operation of switching to the new platform cost an additional $40 million in hiring emergency personnel, overtime and other measures.
And that the SAAQ granted an “endorsement” of an additional $69 million by renewing the contract of the company that developed the platform.
If this orgy of spending had made it possible to acquire the Cadillac of transactional sites, making life easier for users forever, we could conclude that the game was worth the effort.
But no.
The SAAQ has modernized its platform, but with the combination of the SAG, the Minister of Digital Éric Caire, we continue to experience crazy situations, far from the online efficiency which was the desired goal.
Buckle up for the rest…