Canadian home insurance rates have been rising steadily over the past five years due in part to extreme weather conditions leading to more claims. New statistics from Lowestrates.ca show that even a single claim can cause your insurance rates to go up, and if you have two claims within five years, some companies will cancel your policy. That’s what happened to Christine Buechler, of St. Thomas, Ont. “We had a flood in our basement, and it was serious enough that we decided to put in a claim,” she said. Buechler told CTV News that a sewer back-up caused flooding and there were some problems with tree roots in her yard. She filed a claim with her insurance company for about $18,000. The claim was paid, and she thought everything was fine, but in August she got a letter saying her insurance was being cancelled. “It said ‘our company would not be renewing our insurance due to frequency of claims.’ I was a little baffled to be quite honest,” said Buechler. She then remembered three years earlier she lost a hearing aid and made a claim for $4,000. She was told two claims in three years meant she was considered “high risk,” and she was being dropped as a client and had to scramble to find another home insurance policy. “We must have called 10 to 15 insurance companies, and some of them would not touch us because they considered us high risk,” said Buechler. Claims history an important factor While there are many factors that determine how much you pay for home insurance, one of the most important is your claims history, according to Fleur Dsouza, an insurance expert with Lowestrates.ca. “Home insurance is there to protect you for sure, but it is there for bigger losses,” said Dsouza. According to Lowesrates.ca, one claim over five years could increase your premiums by 20 to 22 per cent and two claims over five years could make your rates 30 per cent higher. While you may want to make a claim for a major flood or fire, Dsouza said for smaller claims you may want to consider paying for them yourself. Some insurance companies could drop you if you make two claims within five years no matter if they’re big or small claims. “More than two claims in a span of five years does pose a threat to be able to get good rates for insurance,” said Dsouza. In Buechler’s case, her insurance premiums have now doubled. She said she would have replaced the hearing aid herself if she knew it would have impacted her rates. “I specifically asked him, ‘Will my insurance go up?’ And he said, ‘No, you should be fine,’” Buechler recounted.
