Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
The total cost of damages caused by post-tropical storm Fiona is yet to be determined but estimated insurable losses in Atlantic Canada could be in the hundreds of millions.
According to DBRS Morningstar, a credit rating agency, loss estimates currently range between $300 and $700 million, a record high in the region.
But, many residents of Atlantic Canada may not get coverage for all the damages caused by Fiona due to a lack of insurance covering storm-related floods.
According to Amanda Dean, vice-president for the Insurance Bureau of Canada's Atlantic region, residential home insurance policies frequently cover wind damage, including tree damage and specific types of water damage.
But to include flood coverage, customers typically need an add-on policy, she said.
"A lot of it just depends on the details," Dean told CTV's Your Morning on Wednesday, adding that residents should document as much of the damage to their homes as possible.
Dean said that water damage that might be caused in basements when falling trees and other debris punch holes through a house will require additional water damage insurance which is often not included in standard home insurance policies.
A typical plan will likely cover wind damage caused by fallen trees or flying debris, she added.
Dean said that claimants don't need to necessarily wait for an insurance officer before clearing up their homes, as long as it’s safe to do and the damages have been properly documented.
"Anything that you can do safely and that's, that's the key … (such as) safely patching a hole to prevent water damage," she said.
DBRS Morningstar said in a report that the insurable losses related to Fiona are roughly in line with previous natural disasters in other provinces, such as the flooding in B.C. last year that saw $515 million in insured losses.
Atlantic Canada represents a small portion of the Canadian property insurance market, according to the report.
However, Fiona will likely go down as one of the region's largest catastrophic events.
The Nova Scotia government is offering financial support to residents dealing with the effects of the storm. This includes disaster relief assistance funding, which Premier Tim Houston announced will cover certain uninsured losses up to $200,000. There will be no deductible for residents and small business owners, he said.
A full list of resources for Halifax’s impacted residents can be found here.
With files from The Canadian Press
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
A group of demonstrators were kicked out of the legislature after a second NDP motion calling for unanimous consent to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh failed to pass.
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.