‘Not just tariffs’: Some Canadians want rising insurance rates, natural disasters to become election issues

Home and auto insurance rates are rising after a slew of natural disasters, and as providers pull out of Calgary, it’s a problem that needs addressing.

Some Canadian home and vehicle owners believe rising insurance rates have gotten out of control — and they’re upset there’s little talk in Ottawa about what can be done.

An acceleration in the intensity and frequency of natural disasters, like wildfires and hailstorms, has led to insurers being “exposed,” according to one advocate.

“After what we’ve witnessed in the past decade, with over a million homeowners affected with over $30 billion in direct losses, it’s simple: this should be an election issue,” Craig Stewart with the Insurance Bureau of Canada said.

“It’s not just tariffs; it’s also what Mother Nature is throwing at us.”

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Stewart points out many insurance companies have pulled out of disaster-prone areas — or purposely overpriced certain locations so as not to receive business there in the first place.

He believes that leaves the average Canadian scrambling to find coverage they legally must have.

“Take Calgary,” Stewart said. “Insurers are taking a look at the risk in Calgary and adjusting their exposure. So, it’s likely going to become more difficult to access hail coverage and it’ll become more expensive.”

Azadbir Hayer was one of the people who had their vehicle impacted by northeast Calgary’s latest hailstorm.

But he says decisions by insurers made it feel like there was more damage than there really was.

For starters, he says RBC Insurance didn’t offer him enough cash back to find a used replacement vehicle.

And beyond that, when he went to bundle home and auto insurance on his next renewal cycle, he was told the company couldn’t help.

“My house does not have any hailstorm damage or any roof damage due to the hail, but we fall under those area codes that (RBC) have suspended the insurance for because those three postal codes were having more of the damages due to the last hailstorm,” he told CTV News.

“Others were quoting me (up to) $1,700 more for car (insurance) and $600 more for home.”

He too believes this is an issue governments should be looking into.

“I think city, provincial and federal need to work collectively to make it better for their citizens,” Hayer said. “Home insurance is a necessity; having a car is a necessity.”

“So, it’s impacting our daily life because we have to bring up a particular amount of money from our accounts to pay these insurance services. It’s really annoying.”

CTV News reached out to RBC to confirm the changes, but a representative wouldn’t comment.

Multi-pronged solution

Saymah Chaudhry has dealt with hail damage on four separate occasions in three different Calgary homes.

She also wants changes made to the process.

“If insurance companies are going to be turning us away because they’re not making a profit, maybe we need to look at that model again,” she said.

“And if the government doesn’t want to support us, if the insurance companies do not want to support us, why are they allowing developers and builders to build in areas where there is no support?”

Stewart believes the solution is multi-pronged.

“We need a FEMA in this country,” he said. “We need federal leadership on emergency management: some agency that’s going to lead the conversation with provinces and put in place a national recovery strategy to get homeowners back in their homes after a severe weather event.”

“We need to get our act together, and we need to start retrofitting homes that are in high-risk areas.”