Severe Weather Disasters Becoming Commonplace in Western Canada

As unrelenting wildfires in British Columbia continue to burn, you can add the latest rendition of the BC wildfires to the list of recent disasters caused by weather in Western Canada.

From the Calgary/High River flood of 2013 to the Fort McMurray fire of 2016 to the latest devastating wildfires in BC (which seem to be an annual thing now), Alberta and BC have seen their fair share of devastation, within the past handful of years.

And things might only get worse.

Shawn Marshall, University of Calgary’s Research Chair in Climate Change, highlighted that even though droughts, fires and floods are natural weather processes, they increase in frequency and severity as the world’s climate conditions change.

‘’There’s a pretty realistic expectation for more of these big fire seasons going forward,’’ Marshall said. ‘’It doesn’t mean every summer’s going to be like this, but it’s going to be more common and more frequent.’’

According to a MacLean’s report, 190,000 hectares have already burned in BC this year, well above the annual average of 154,000 hectares. The worst part of that stat is ‘’fire season’’ in BC doesn’t typically start until mid-late July.

‘’Dryness and a lack of rain have made [the BC interior] a tinderbox,’’ Walt Cobb, Mayor of Williams Lake, said. ‘’Let’s just hope this isn’t just the beginning of something drastic.’’

Severe Weather: The Home Insurance Domino

$1.8 billion. $3.58 billion. $300 million (minimum) annually.

The above numbers represent the insurance industry hit from the 2013 Calgary/High River flood, 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire and an estimate on the BC wildfires hit each year on the insurance industry (source: Insurance Bureau of Canada).

If you live in BC or Alberta, you may wonder why your home insurance premiums have increased, despite you not having any claims.

One part is insurers trying to recoup some of the cost associated with prior devastations in your area (province). A second reason is, with BC and Alberta both more susceptible than ever to severe weather, the likelihood of people needing to activate their insurance policies is at an all-time high.

Severe Weather Highlights Importance of Re-shopping Home Policy

Just because home insurance rates overall are increasing, that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t save money on your home insurance.

Re-shopping your policy can provide you with peace of mind that the rate you have – whoever your insurance is with or whoever you decide to go with in the future – is the best rate on the market available to you.

Know that all companies will offer some type of incentives/discounts to try and earn your business, if they deem you a customer they wish to have.

Specifically, insurers want customers who have a history of paying their bills and have minimal  if any – claims on their record. If either or both of these statements describes you, you could be in line to save money, even as home insurance prices, overall, rise.

For 3 older home renovation ideas that will lower your home insurance premiums, click here.