Quebecers experience delays in reaching insurance companies post-flooding

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Don’t panic if you can’t reach your home insurer just yet to report damage from last week’s record rainfall in Quebec.

It’s normal for there to be delays given the extent of the flooding caused by the remnants of tropical storm Debby, the Insurance Bureau of Canada said Monday.

“All insurance companies have mobilized all available personnel to respond to calls and start claims as quickly as possible,” said Pierre Babinsky, the director of communication and public affairs at the IBC, acknowledging that the association is aware of delays.

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Babinsky said it’s too soon to say how many homes have been affected. In Montreal, where more than 150 millimetres of rain fell on Friday, homeowners in areas such as St-Laurent, Beaconsfield and Dollard-des-Ormeaux reported flooding on social media.

Homeowners waiting to hear back from their insurance companies can go ahead and start cleaning up, Babinksy said — they just have to make sure to document the damage (including the height of accumulated water), any items being thrown out and to keep receipts for any services acquired.

“What people need to realize is that even if it takes a couple of days, it won’t negatively impact their insurance claim,” Babinsky said.

Homeowners should, however, keep in mind that whatever they spend on services post-flood will be deducted from the dollar amount associated to the particular type of water damage spelled out in their insurance contract, Babinsky said.

“Let’s say your insurer covers you for sewer backups up to $40,000,” he said. “If it costs you $10,000 just to clean up your basement, there’s only $30,000 left to rebuild and replace the items that were lost. So if you decide to call a cleaning company, make sure that you’re aware of that.”

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Homeowners should also be aware that coverage for many types of water damage are actually add-ons to standard insurance contracts, so they might not actually be covered.

“Infiltration through the roof, through the foundation, sewer backups are all optional protections,” Babinsky said. “As a citizen, you may have other recourses if a third party might be responsible, but … if the endorsement is not in the contract, then that damage will not be covered.”

Some of the Montrealers who made social media posts about flooding said it wasn’t the first time they had dealt with the issue, including in the case of sewer backups.

Babinsky said he’s seen insurance companies either reduce or refuse coverage to residents of problematic areas in the past until the issue is rectified by the municipality.

Asked if the city of Montreal has plans to address infrastructure issues in areas where floods appear to occur frequently during heavy rainfalls, a city media relations adviser said the resilience of buildings must be improved “since it is impossible to think of burying all the water from such events underground” because of technical and financial constraints.

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“It’s therefore essential to prepare accordingly by ensuring that the backflow preventers are working … and also by ensuring that water accumulating on the roadway cannot flow into buildings,” Kim Nantais said in an email.

She said the city is working to become more resilient as climate change increases the frequency of heavy rain, notably by building sponge parks to absorb water that would otherwise pool on streets and near buildings. There are plans to add 400 sidewalk installations and 30 parks across the territory, Nantais said.

Quebec, meanwhile, announced on Sunday that eligible citizens and municipalities affected by the flooding will be able to benefit from its disaster financial assistance program. The eligibility list has not yet been made available. Residents are being asked to keep an eye on the “Status report on heavy rains in Quebec” web page on the government’s website.

Public Security Minister François Bonnardel wrote on X on Sunday that according to the most recent information available at the time, 55 municipalities had been affected by flooding, including eight that had declared local states of emergency. About 260 homes had been flooded and more than 400 people evacuated. Some 170 roads had been affected.

According to the city of Montreal, the fire department responded to 1,391 emergencies related to flooding on Friday and Saturday. Its 311 line, meanwhile, received more than 3,400 calls to report a variety of issues related to the rain.

More information on what to do if your home floods — and how to prevent flooding in the future — can be found here.

kthomas@postmedia.com

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