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 Max Cimon and his kids, left to right, Phillip, Isabel and Kristofer, stand on the porch of the family's mobile home in Northlands Trailer Park. Cimon received a letter in the mail from Aviva Insurance letting him know that his insurance deductible for water damage-related claims was going up to $5,000. - Brent Reaney/NNSL photo |
Insurance premiums haven't changed, but the deductible to make a water damage claim has risen from $500 to $5,000, said Maurice Tulloch, senior vice-president at Aviva Elite Insurance.
But customers can bring the water damage deductible back down to $1,000 by paying $100 a year, Tulloch said.
Aviva Elite sets the rates for four insurance brokers in Yellowknife, including Arctic Insurance, said David Lyons, the company's regional manager, western Canada.
There have been no complaints from customers or brokers concerning the increased deductible, Lyons noted.
Max Cimon has been insured with Arctic Insurance for about five years. When he renewed the insurance policy on his mobile home this April, he got a letter in the mail informing him of the increased deductible.
"It's a little bit steep. Why the number $5,000? Because it's now $5,000 (deductible), most water damages will be less than that," Cimon said.
The increase came about because of the high number of claims in the NWT, Tulloch said.
"To be honest with you, we probably lose money in the Northwest Territories," Tulloch said.
"Water damage in Yellowknife is about double what we see anywhere else," Lyons said, though exact figures were not immediately available.
'Every second trailer freezes'
Some mobile home owners were surprised insurance companies even offer insurance against water damage.
"Every second trailer freezes every winter. I don't think they (insurance companies) even insure for water damage," said Burton Kelly, a resident of Northlands Trailer Park.
For policy renewals effective June 1, NWT mobile homeowners making a water damage claim will have to pay the increased deductible, Tulloch said.
New policy holders have had the water damage deductible as part of their policy agreements since May 1, Tulloch said.
Despite the increased costs, Aviva Canada has no plans to stop insuring mobile homes, Tulloch said.
