A rare decision by Canada’s Supreme Court to review a civil case in 2024 highlights a key coverage point brokers can use in conversations with clients.
The case, Trillium Mutual Insurance Company v. Emond, centred around a couple whose home on the Ottawa river was destroyed, and later sued when their insurer deemed the policy’s guaranteed replacement cost (GRC) endorsement did not cover costs to meet regulatory standards or by-law changes enacted since the home was built.
While lower courts initially found for the couple, the Supreme Court determined the policy did not entitle the family to those additional rebuilding costs in a Feb. 2026 decision. GRC endorsements generally apply to homes that are destroyed by catastrophic events, such as flood or fire.
While most policies include replacement cost coverage, extra rebuilding costs required to meet current building codes or safety standards are often capped under separate by-law coverage, leaving homeowners exposed, says Daniel Ivans, who provides commentary for rate aggregator Rates.ca.
“By-law coverage isn’t standardized across policies,” says Ivans. “Some insurers include it automatically with a set cap, while others require homeowners to add it separately.
“How much coverage is needed can also vary based on where a home is located since rebuilding requirements can change depending on local building codes, zoning rules, or environmental regulations. Higher limits are often available, but those options aren’t always reviewed upfront.”
He lists some gaps in by-law coverage that homeowners might not be aware of, or don’t fully understand:
By-law coverage does not equal replacement cost. Replacement cost generally covers the rebuilding of a home to the state it was in before the loss. By contrast, by-law coverage is used when further upgrades are required to ensure the rebuilt home meets building code changes, and new zoning rules or safety regulations enacted since the home’s construction.
When by-law coverage is included automatically, it often comes with a preset limit. But those default limits might not be reflective of current costs to rebuild, and could fall short when current regulations and rebuilding requirements are taken into account.
Limit adjustments are not automatic. “Even when local rules or standards have changed over time, by-law coverage limits typically remain the same unless they are reviewed and updated,” notes Ivans.
Homeowners will be on the hook for any costs exceeding the limits in the by-law policy. So, the difference between the policy limit and the excess costs due to regulatory upgrades become the homeowner’s responsibility, even if the insureds believed they had full replacement coverage.
“Rebuilding after a total loss isn’t about restoring what was there before; it’s about meeting today’s standards,” says Ivans. “That’s when by-law limits tend to show up as an issue because the rules and requirements at the time of a rebuild may be very different from when the policy was first set up or fully understood.”
Even as overall inflation cools, Canadian home insurance premiums increased by 4.01% nationwide in 2026, according to a recent study from MyChoice Financial, Inc.
Atlantic Canada saw the sharpest increases between January 2025 and January 2026, led by Nova Scotia (+12.12%), Newfoundland and Labrador (+8.87%), Prince Edward Island (+8.78%), and New Brunswick (+8.36%).
Many factors continue to elevate home insurance rates, the Toronto-based insurtech reports, including a steady stream of weather-related losses, rising repair and rebuilding costs, and the growing impact of an aging housing supply across Canada.
In light of this multi-year trend, MyChoice conducted a nationwide analysis of home insurance inflation using its proprietary quote data, alongside the Shelter Consumer Price Index. The study reviewed provincial trends, examined the impact of 2025’s major weather events, and assessed how structural risks such as renovation costs and home condition continue to shape pricing.
Although Atlantic Canada saw the sharpest increases, Alberta saw premiums rise by 9.29% following another year of hailstorms and severe weather.
Ontario (+2.47%) and Quebec (+3.97%) remained relatively stable, despite experiencing the largest Cat event of the year — the Mar. 28-31, 2025 ice storm that cost the Canadian P&C insurance industry $466 million in insured losses. The storm saw Ontario’s Kawarthas region experience 35 hours of freezing rain, resulting in 25 mm of ice accumulation that led to widespread damage and power outages for hundreds of thousands of people.
In 2024, the industry saw a record $9.1 billion in insured loss. Last year, weather-related insured losses exceeded $2.4 billion, marking another multi-billion-dollar year for catastrophes in Canada.
MyChoice’s study found British Columbia was the only province to see a decline (-1.20%), although underlying flood risks remain elevated.
Spotlight on Atlantic Canada
One of the most notable shifts is happening in Atlantic Canada. The August 2025 Kingston wildfire caused more than $70 million in insured damage and ranked as the costliest property loss event in Newfoundland and Labrador last year. It forced the evacuation of upwards of 3,000 people, underscoring how regions generally considered lower risk are now seeing meaningful losses and, in turn, sharper premium increases.
“As a result, insurers are beginning to reprice risk more aggressively in the region, which is reflected in the double-digit premium increases seen across several provinces,” MyChoice says.
Beyond weather, the study also found that rising repair costs (3% to 6% in many cities) and Canada’s aging housing stock are playing a growing role in pricing.
“Insurance pricing is no longer just about location and weather,” says Matthew Roberts, MyChoice’s chief operating officer. “The condition of the home itself is becoming a key risk factor.
“When repair costs rise and maintenance is delayed, insurers are forced to price in that additional risk.”
There are also broader policy implications. Canada’s long-discussed National Flood Insurance Program, intended to support 1.5 million high-risk households, has yet to be implemented, despite being proposed in 2019 and referenced in multiple federal budgets. There was a renewed promise to set up the flood backstop this year, but it’s uncertain if that will occur. In the meantime, gaps in coverage remain, particularly in flood-prone regions.
Seismologists, structural engineers, and developers aren’t always on the same page when it comes to earthquake-resistant building codes, a world-renowned seismologist tells the Insurance Bureau of Canada’s 2026 InSight Summit.
“Let’s imagine we have a building built to the current code,” said keynote speaker Dr. Lucy Jones, who spent 33 years with the U.S. Geological Survey, and who served as Los Angeles’ Science Advisor for Seismic Safety. “What if your ground shaking exceeds what the code [says]?
“We’ve got a problem that the engineers and seismologists look at things in different ways. As seismologists, we do theoretical wave equations and say, ‘Oh, look at the strong shaking.’ And the engineers say, ‘We’ve never recorded this. We need real data.’”
And then on Feb. 6, 2023, a Magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern and central Turkey and northern and western Syria. Estimated damage from the event was more than US157.8 billion, with death estimates ranging between 59,000 and 62,000.
Jones showed a slide with a black line indicating what kind of shaking the building codes anticipated. “And their building code is the same as ours [in California],” added Jones. Blue and red lines showed what kind of shaking was actually recorded at the epicentre of the quake in Syria and Turkey.
For small buildings, a few stories tall, the building codes were built for quake frequencies of less than one second, said Jones. But for the tall buildings, “we were really far off,” said Jones, with the codes underestimating the shaking by a factor of five to 10.
“And the seismologists tended to go, ‘Hey, that’s what we were talking about,’” Jones said. And “the engineers are now going, ‘Uh, okay.’
“So we’ve got an issue there. I will say, at least discussions are happening, but don’t believe that we’ve got it covered with the building code.”
Code coverage
Jones asked the audience of insurance professionals to consider what building codes actually offer, adding that building codes do not say the structures can’t collapse. Plus, large stocks of older buildings have been built to previous code standards.
She showed slides of damage caused by various earthquakes in Los Angeles. All of the damage happened to older structures, she noted. “We no longer allow them to be built, but that doesn’t make them disappear,” she said.
She noted one dozen cities in Southern California require quake-resistant retrofits, and three cities are addressing problems related to concrete building structures.
“We’re getting somewhere, but there are still a huge number of buildings out there [that can] be running into trouble,” she said.
Jones and other seismologists modelled a quake along California’s San Andres Fault to measure what kind of damage it could do downtown Los Angeles, assuming all structures were built to the current, highest building codes.
In the modelling, 1% (about two, three, or four) of the buildings would completely collapse. Another 10% would have to be torn down, accounting for dozens of structures, and another 40% would not be usable immediately after the event.
“So we will not be able to use most buildings in Southern California…and these are the modern buildings built to code,” she said.
Some developers in North America shy away from spending more on up-front costs required to build to more quake-resistant standards, Jones said. “Our codes are trying to minimize life loss while minimizing upfront costs. It is not minimizing long-term costs. It’s minimizing the cost for the developer and the building owner.”
She noted in California, “it adds about 1% to the cost of construction to build to what we call a recoverable standard that you can repair the building afterwards.”
But it’s not a requirement, she added.
In fact, in California, commercial lenders don’t even require earthquake insurance if developers can show their Probable Maximum Loss following an earthquake is less than 20% of the value of the building, Jones said.
“You’d be surprised at the industry that’s out there to give you ratings of 19.4% or 19.7%,” she said. “Essentially, nobody gets commercial earthquake insurance, so the banks are going to be sitting there [after an earthquake event] holding the bag.”
Why is it worth it for developers to invest more upfront to build to a higher earthquake standard?
Jones referenced March 2011 Magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck the east coast of Honshu, Japan. More than 20,000 people were killed, 140,000 people were displaced and more than 500,000 buildings and structures were damaged or destroyed by the earthquake and resulting tsunami.
Then, Jones showed a slide of a city that appeared untouched by the disaster.
“The city of Sendai is basically due west of the [Honshu quake’s] epicenter,” she said. “They received the strongest level of shaking, and this is what Sendai looked like after the earthquake.
“There’s essentially no damage. Because in Japan…earthquakes happen several times more often. So just overall, the code is going to be higher.
“But also, if you’re a Japanese structural engineering company, and your building fails in an earthquake, you will lose so much face you’ll never again get another job. It’s a cultural issue. They never go towards the lower level.”
A small, remote First Nation in northern Alberta is undertaking a major initiative to build climate-resilient structures in response to the increasing regularity of debilitating smoke from wildfires and the impacts of environmental change.
On evenings when new building plans are discussed with members of the Lubicon Lake Cree Nation, the process often begins not with blueprints, but with a shared meal. Residents gather to talk about where a doorway should go, how a kitchen should feel, or how a space can better serve families who live in close relation to the land.
Those conversations are helping shape a series of new buildings that are designed to reflect both the realities of a changing climate and the priorities of the people who live in the territory.
“It’s very community-based,” said Janice Willier, health projects co-ordinator with Lubicon Lake Band #453. “We meet with community members and invite everybody over. We have supper first, and then we talk and adjust things based on what the community thinks they need.”
That approach now sits at the heart of a large-scale, one-of-a-kind infrastructure effort, marking what local leaders say is the first time a First Nation has applied the Climate Ready Infrastructure Service (CRIS) across an entire community. CRIS connects local governments and Indigenous communities with climate experts to integrate low-carbon resilience into infrastructure projects.
At Lubicon Lake, more than a dozen major buildings are being planned or constructed with the overall initiative expected to run through 2028. The work includes a new school, health centre, continuing care facility, administration building, fire hall and public works infrastructure, alongside road, water, wastewater and solar projects.
To date, 19 homes have been completed, with approximately 125 more planned. While most of the larger buildings are expected to be finished within the next few years, the full housing build‑out is anticipated to take several more years to complete.
The work goes beyond construction, reflecting a response to a changing climate and a renewed focus on how the Nation lives on its land.
Defining reality
Wildfire smoke has become a defining reality across northern Alberta, with immediate and disruptive impacts in Lubicon Lake. Last year alone, the community shut down operations for about 14 days due to poor air quality, Willier said. During those periods, offices closed, health services paused and residents stayed home.
“Fourteen business days is a lot of downtime for a small Nation,” she said.
Portable air filtration units were distributed to homes, but could only filter a single room, while key buildings were not equipped to operate during prolonged smoke events.
The experience revealed how vulnerable the community’s infrastructure was.
“We started with fire and smoke,” Willier said. “But then we realized there’s so many other things we have to plan for.”
Willier pointed to “extreme hot and cold” and “higher highs and lower lows,” along with stronger storms, shifting seasonal patterns, and the long-term impacts of permafrost. Although not specified in this case, similar projects that factor in permafrost must account for shifting ground that can affect foundations, changes in drainage that can lead to water pooling or erosion, and increased maintenance requirements due to freeze-thaw cycles.
Tegan Martin-Drysdale, new infrastructure project manager with Lubicon Lake Band, said those conditions required practical changes.
“We’ve added backup generators because it’s not just wildfire season. We also face winter storms, ice and high winds,” she said. “When the power goes out at minus 30 or minus 40, we need to keep everyone warm, so homes now include backup heat sources like wood stoves.”
Climate resilience toolkit
To address these overlapping risks, Lubicon Lake worked with CRIS and Simplify Energy to develop a climate resilience toolkit, which provides a locally tailored guide that informs all current and future builds and ensures new designs respond to conditions exposed during smoke and fire seasons.
New homes are being built to be “airtight,” Martin‑Drysdale said, with an air‑change rate of about 1.5 or less and heat‑recovery ventilators that can recirculate indoor air during wildfire smoke instead of drawing in outside air. Public buildings use MERV 13 high-efficiency, commercial-grade air filters for improved air quality.
FireSmart principles are also being applied, including keeping flammable building materials and vegetation at least 10 metres away from homes and using Class A fire‑rated roofing and siding, with protected eaves and soffits to reduce ember risk. The homes are designed to be about 30 per cent more energy efficient, important in a region that routinely sees deep winter cold.
Beyond climate resilience, the build is creating homes that fit how Lubicon families actually live.
Martin-Drysdale said the new floor plans were developed through “many consultations with the families and the Elders and the community,” and differ from standard builder designs. Many houses are laid out for multi‑generational living, with larger gathering areas around the kitchen and dining room to reflect how the space is used.
One visible change is the mudroom. Martin‑Drysdale said mudrooms were specifically written into the settlement agreement because a typical small entryway “is totally inadequate for these families” given time spent on the land and the number of people in each home. The reworked plans make room for boots, gear and outdoor clothing used for hunting and similar activities.
‘Lubicon standard’
“We’ve tried to bring in other builders and looked at their catalogues and their floor plans, and there are clear differences unique to Lubicon,” she said. “We call it the Lubicon standard.”
Those designs have been shaped through repeated community consultations where members help refine each detail.
“It takes a longer time, but it ensures that we are delivering what the band requires,” Willier said.
The scale of the project is inseparable from Lubicon Lake’s history.
For generations, the Nation fought for recognition of its rights after being excluded from Treaty 8 in 1899. A settlement agreement reached in 2018 marked a turning point, providing the foundation for long‑overdue infrastructure and formally recognizing the community as a First Nation.
This new construction flows directly from that settlement and shows what self-determination looks like in practice.
“The language in the settlement agreement was very strategic and specific about climate resiliency, being culturally appropriate and sustainable,” said Martin-Drysdale. “That’s what allows us to do these unique Lubicon standards that we know aren’t being applied in other Indigenous communities.”
The work is also opening the door for members to help build — and later run — their own infrastructure.
Martin-Drysdale said contractors are required to involve local labour and support apprenticeships, with the Nation tracking hires and training hours. A planned “Try a Trade” week will introduce residents and students to construction trades, while additional training will support the local operation of new water and wastewater systems.
The goal, she said, is not just “general exposure to the trades,” but helping people step into longer‑term careers that can keep the community’s new infrastructure running.
Alberta’s government says it is also working with communities to reduce wildfire risk through a range of measures, including FireSmart initiatives, vegetation management, and improved land-use planning.
In a statement, Alberta’s Forestry and Parks department told Windspeaker.com the province is “taking a proactive approach to wildfire preparedness by working with communities across the province to reduce the potential impact of wildfires before they start,” including support for “Indigenous-led initiatives” and the incorporation of traditional knowledge.
Signed in 2018 after generations of being overlooked, Lubicon Lake Cree Nation’s settlement agreement has now become a blueprint for building together — on their own terms, for their own future.
“This is impacting Lubicon band members directly, so we want to make sure we’re giving them the best that they need and deserve,” Willier said. “That kind of engagement is our cultural way of doing things. You make sure everybody has a voice at the table.”
Communities seeking to develop similar climate-resilient buildings through community-focused design can learn more at ClimateReadyCanada.ca.
Final cost estimates from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) place the final insurance industry loss estimate for the Mar. 28-31, 2025, ice storm in Ontario and Quebec at $466 million.
This is the fifth, and final, estimate from CatIQ and serves as a snapshot of the insurance market one year after the event.
The estimate notes the loss number covers both commercial and residential property claims, as well as auto claims, including additional loss adjustment expenses. There’s a slight decrease from the $490 million estimate issued last September due largely to a decline in personal lines losses for Ontario.
“This final estimate shows a slight decrease in the personal line losses versus the six-month mark, which, as noted at the time, demonstrated somewhat above-average growth last autumn,” says CatIQ director Caroline Floyd.
“At this point, it seems reasonable to expect that insurers feel comfortable they have received all the outstanding claims, particularly those related to any seasonal access properties, and have released their additional reserves.”
Floyd says claims data indicates more than 90% of personal lines claims have been closed, which is consistent with expectations for an event of this ice storm’s magnitude one-year on.
The multi-day March storm saw Ontario’s Kawarthas region experience 35 hours of freezing rain, resulting in up 25 mm of ice accumulation. That ice strained power lines, trees and other surfaces, leading to widespread damage and power outages for hundreds of thousands of utility customers.
Some of those disruptions lasted for weeks and may have slowed people’s ability to visit impacted properties, leading to further loss tallies.
“Severe weather events continue to intensify. Insured losses from catastrophic weather and wildfires have nearly tripled over the past decade, rising from $14 billion annually to $37 billion, while claims have almost doubled,” says Maximilien Roy, IBC’s vice president for strategy.
“This reality demands a different approach to how we build and plan communities – and investing in resilience now is critical to keeping Canadians safe and insurance available and affordable.”
Municipalities in Nunavut received $78 million dollars from insurance companies between 2018 and 2025, convincing Canadian companies to declare communities in the territory “uninsurable,” according to Peter Boucher, principal attorney for the Nunavut Association of Municipalities Insurance Exchange.
During that period, hamlets received more than 10 times as much from insurance companies as they paid in premiums, Boucher explained to a crowd of municipal officials at the Baffin Mayor’s forum on March 11.
Hamlet buildings, water tanks, trucks, and any other property a community government insures are often in poor condition and likely to result in an insurance claim, he said.
In May 2025, hamlets were close to being left without insurance before the Government of Nunavut agreed to step in, just before the non-profit Nunavut Association of Municipalities Insurance Exchange was ready to end its operations.
“The board was ready to wind up your insurance program, potentially exposing all of you to going to buy insurance for yourselves. And I can tell you right now, most communities are uninsurable,” Boucher said.
Instead, a new system for insuring hamlet-owned property and assets is being enacted this year.
UK insurance [market] Lloyd’s of London is now covering hamlet-owned property, but at a much higher cost to Nunavummiut taxpayers.
The GN is providing $11.25 million to help cover the expenses, up from $850,000 in past years, according to Boucher.
But hamlets could still see their insurance premiums spike if their assets aren’t up code.
“Insurance is only a means of spreading payments over time. It’s not a new pool of money. So we’ve explained to the Government of Nunavut that the price that we pass on to you is not dictated by us. It’s dictated by our losses, our values and outside factors,” Boucher said.
Building inspectors will be travelling to each community to assess the condition of hamlet building roofs, water boiler storage and vehicle garages. Eight municipalities will be inspected per year.
Communities with poor infrastructure will pay more, and communities in good shape will pay less.
“If Arctic Bay is fully code compliant, we will credit them. And if another community isn’t compliant at all, then they will get a debt. They’ll get an additional charge,” Boucher said. “If you have a 35 per cent increase in your asset value, you can expect a 30 per cent increase in your insurance cost next year before we even talk.”
When considering future mergers and acquisitions (M&A) opportunities in Canada, firms offering insurance product manufacturing and distribution remain “the number one priority” for Intact Financial Corporation, chief operating officer Patrick Barbeau tells a March 25 fireside chat.
That’s “followed closely by global specialty lines. And that means U.S. in particular, but also because of our global capabilities, [the] U.K. and [Ireland] or Canada,” he says during the National Bank of Canada Capital Markets’ 24th Annual Financial Services Conference.
Barbeau says the current M&A environment is more active than in the past 12 to 18 months. “Our approach to M&A has not changed…first it needs to be a good strategic fit,” he says.
“We’re looking for assets that have a very good overlap with what we’re already doing in the geographies [where] we operate. We’re not about trying to plant flags in more geographies…we would look for assets that have a good overlap with the lines of business we’re already in.”
He adds both large and small firms may be reviewed for M&A, and that Intact does many smaller deals, particularly in distribution – citing BrokerLink’s recent deals.
There’s also interest in managing general agents (MGAs) “in the context of specialty lines.”
Referring to Intact’s current balance sheet and excess capital, Barbeau says the company “could deploy around $5 billion in acquisition before issuing shares…we could issue shares on top, but it gives an idea of how much dry powder we have.”
Tech-based drivers
In Canada, he tells the conference, Intact’s been deploying technology with brokers that simplifies the quoting process – allowing them to make more quotes, and do it faster to create larger volumes of new business.
He notes the artificial intelligence (AI) evolution is underway and that companywide, “we’ve implemented more than 600 AI models within our system, at scale and in the operations.” He adds that’s currently creating recurring annual benefits of around $200 million – and the goal is to get to around $500 million by 2030.
First priorities are to deploy AI to improve the loss ratio, and in pricing segmentation and claims. “When we automate decisions and underwriting and claims, we do it with by leveraging the specific and very precise view of the profitability of every policy,” Barbeau says.
The next AI priority is boosting the top line with investments that improve customer journeys. And the remaining priorities are software engineering and efficiency.
Looking at the company’s structural drivers of return on equity (ROE), Barbeau says an evolving mix of business, specifically growth in commercial and specialty lines, has changed Intact’s portfolio over time.
“These lines of business are producing higher ROE on average, not only now but if you look at the longer term. So that’s creating a shift in the business,” he says.
And, in terms of introducing technologies, he tells the conference AI and pricing sophistication models were initially used in in personal lines. “We’ve been deploying these models into commercial lines and specialty lines – and also outside of Canada – and we see that it’s producing at least the same kind of benefits in improving the combined ratio.
“That’s another reason we think the [company’s] ROE is in a new zone and more structural than cyclical. We don’t really worry about cycle, because our pricing decisions are made at the policy level. Yes, we want to make sure we cover inflation, but then the final decision of writing risk or not is at the policy level. And our underwriters have these indicators on their screen[s]. They know the walk away price.”
Quebec’s broker association is working and speaking with the provincial government on a number of files, including rising climate-related losses, floodplain mapping, cyber risk and maintaining a strong independent brokerage network.
Government support is critical for insurability and sustainability in Quebec and across Canada, says Lucie Fréchette, president of the Regroupement des cabinets de courtage d’assurance du Québec (RCCAQ).
“It’s no longer isolated incidents; it’s now a fact of life,” Fréchette says in an interview with Canadian Underwriter. “So, government support is incredibly important in increasing the sustainability of the insurability of the market by fostering…encouragement to sustainable building practices.”
RCCAQ even asked the government to implement a government subsidy for consumers and businesses that choose to rebuild in a sustainable fashion, such as through home renovations and better insulation, she adds.
Fréchette spoke with Canadian Underwriter after Quebec Premier François Legault announced on Jan. 14 that he would resign following the election of his successor. CU asked what the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) leader’s resignation means for provincial brokers and consumers, and which files the broker association is working on with CAQ.
Fréchette says RCCAQ has very good working relationships with various government officials and expects continuity. “The RCCAQ through the years has worked with successive governments for decades, and so our approach is consistent.”
As for files, the broker association is also asking the provincial government to move forward on creating standard floodplain maps. This is reportedly in progress, and there is collaboration with the federal government on floodplain maps.
“We want the government to come in and actually implement policies, so land use, building policy alignment [and] clear disaster compensation rules,” Fréchette says. “For every dollar that you spend in prevention, you reduce public spend after.”
Increasing education for companies and consumers on the importance of cyber risk is also on RCCAQ’s radar. “Everywhere, it’s one of those things that people think won’t happen to me, for some reason,” she says. Only when there is a breach in an industry in which a client knows somebody do people seem to realize a breach can happen to them, Fréchette adds.
“Another file that’s incredibly important to us is the maintaining of a strong, independent brokerage network in Quebec,” she says.
“It’s good, not only for the broker network, but also for Quebec’s economy as a whole, because brokerages are small businesses that are implemented in all regions of Quebec…and they are good corporate citizens,” she adds. “They offer good jobs in their communities, and they offer access to independent, impartial insurance advice for their local communities and their local businesses.
“Quebec is the only region where an insurance company cannot own 100% of a brokerage and we are keen on maintaining that.”
Quebec’s next provincial general election is set for Oct. 5.
“Regardless of who forms the next government, we’ll continue to advocate for stable regulation and a strong independent brokerage sector,” Fréchette says. “So, our focus is really going to be on continuity with whatever government comes into place later in the fall.
“The government is more than just its leader.”
That said, RCCAQ has had a constructive relationship with the Legault government, which has been responsive on several industry issues, Fréchette reports.
For example, CAQ granted RCCAQ a $3.7 million subsidy to help brokerages invest in and digitize their operations with new technology tools. This allowed the broker association to build a technology knowledge base within the province and RCCAQ member firms.
RCCAQ also worked with the provincial government to get direct broker access to things like DASH (Driver and Auto Search History), MVR (Motor Vehicle Records) and claims information.
Previously in Quebec, brokers had to go through an insurer to gain access to the central motor vehicle accident database. “So now there is a mechanism for brokers to be able to get approved to get direct access…That increases broker efficiency and service quality.”
About 5,300 Hydro-Québec customers remain without power as of 11:30 a.m. Friday, following an ice storm that swept through Québec and parts of Ontario Wednesday and into Thursday, according to data from the utility. At the outage’s peak, 200,000 customers were without power.
On the claims side, so far, so good, say adjusting firms contacted by Canadian Underwriter. Claims linked to the ice storms are described as “limited.”
For Ontario, Shannon Hoyt, ClaimsPro’s vice president for Central Canada, says recent claims activity has mainly been linked to recent warmer weather and resulting snow melt, as opposed to the ice storm itself.
“This past weekend brought rain to many areas in Ontario, melting the snow that has been accumulating for months,” she says. “We did experience a slightly elevated claims volume as a result, but not at catastrophic levels. The predicted ice storm for parts of Ontario did not cause any increase in volume.”
And in Québec, recent claims reports are also linked to the March warming trend as opposed to the ice storm, says IndemniPro’s vice president for Québec, Sonia Ryme.
“The minor ice storm did not significantly impact us,” she tells CU. “We received some claims, but they were mostly related to the mild weather last weekend rather than the ice storm.”
Crawford also says claims, so far, appear light.
“While portions of Ontario and Quebec did experience the effects of this week’s weather, early indications suggest that the claims impact has been limited and our partners have not reported any significant increase in claim volume attributed to the event,” William Slade, Crawford’s vice president, National Property and Contractor Connection, tells us.
“As with all weather events, we expect claim activity to continue to develop over the coming days and we continue to monitor closely.”
Looking at catastrophe response, Christine Segaric, ClaimsPro’s director of Cat response, says the industry is monitoring the situation since impacts from ice storms can emerge following the event. So far, the storm hasn’t required any formal catastrophe deployment.
“With ice storms, the impacts don’t always show up immediately,” she tells CU. “Damage from falling branches or ice accumulation often becomes apparent once the ice begins to melt and homeowners start assessing their properties.”
She adds efforts are being made to ensure resources are available to insureds if they’re needed.
Jasper policyholders have just four months to file insurance claims for wildfire damages or initiate legal action against an insurer.
On Tuesday (March 10), after being informed that a blanket extension was not feasible, committee of the whole directed council to continue its advocacy efforts.
“I think we owe it to our community members to relieve them of one additional burden, if we can,” said Mayor Richard Ireland. “I am quite prepared to carry this battle further. I don’t think we should let it go.”
The Alberta Insurance Act sets the statutory limitation date of insurance claims at two years. As per council’s direction, the Municipality asked the Alberta government, through the Minister of Finance and the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), to extend the deadline for claims related to the Jasper wildfire.
“A disaster of the scale of what occurred in Jasper can be quite complex from an insurance perspective, and claims can take quite some time to resolve,” said Michael Fark, Jasper’s Director of Recovery. “In some cases, some claims may remain open beyond the two-year statutory limit.”
The deadline for claims or claim disputes is two years after known losses occur—i.e. July 24, 2026, the two-year anniversary of the wildfire disaster. However this date may vary between policyholders, Fark advised.
While insurers are required to notify policyholders in writing of the statutory limitation period, Fark said a blanket extension would not be possible without amending provincial legislation. The IBC told The Jasper Local a blanket extension would likely be a violation of Canada’s Competition Act.
“Insurers are prohibited from agreeing with each other with respect to claims adjusting practices, whether or not to indemnify a type of claim, or the kind of service to be provided to a customer,” said IBC media relations manager Brett Weltman.
Voluntary extensions
Weltman said some residents have already received a voluntary extension in writing from their insurer. He said insurers review each claim on a case-by-case basis and may provide a voluntary extension in specific situations.
Ireland said he was aware of at least one insurer that has issued an exemption with no requirement that a policyholder had to file a request.
“People are already under significant stress, and it is not impossible for the industry to issue a blanket exemption,” he said.
Following the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire in Wood Buffalo, the Alberta Superintendent of Insurance issued a formal notice, advising insurers to consider requests for voluntary extensions in good faith. Fark said the Municipality has requested a similar direction for Jasper and expected the Superintendent to issue this within the coming weeks. IBC confirmed this.
“It is likely [the Alberta Superintendent of Insurance] will issue some type of bulletin, similar to what was done in Fort McMurray,” Weltman said.
Ireland noted how insurers had voluntarily extended the deadline by one year for the 2016 Fort McMurray fire. Fark replied policyholders still had to request an extension in that case.
“The same rights are afforded to Jasper residents as were afforded those in Wood Buffalo,” Fark said.
IBC noted in Fort McMurray extensions were granted on a case by case basis.
Potential for misinterpretation
Coun. Kathleen Waxer shared the mayor’s concerns, since residents had varying levels of legal literacy, and there was potential for misinterpreting correspondence from insurers.
Coun. Laurie Rodger, who last week wanted to make it clear that households that have not yet closed their claim need to take proactive steps ahead of the two year deadline, asked if the Municipality should directly contact the insurance companies.
CAO Bill Given advised council to stick with political advocacy. Given said the MOJ should be “very cautious” about inserting itself in a relationship between a policyholder and insurer.
“That seems to start to increase risk to the municipality,” Given said.
Fark added that the Jasper Recovery Coordination Centre (JRCC) did not have an exhaustive list of every insurance company with one or more policyholders in Jasper, and the Insurance Bureau of Canada was the organization best equipped to contact all the insurers.
The Municipality is strongly encouraging policyholders to review the status of their insurance claim and confirm the deadline with their insurer. If there is a chance their claim may not be resolved before then, they should request a voluntary extension in writing at least one month prior to the deadline. Any extension granted by the insurer should be provided in writing.
If policyholders wish to dispute a claim but were not granted an extension, they should file a statement of claim with the courts before the deadline. The IBC said that some claims might only need a few months extension, while others might require a full year extension or more.
