‘You’re at the mercy of insurance companies,’ says St. Catharines, Ont., homeowner impacted by floods

Diona Macalinga · CBC News

· Posted: Aug 20, 2026 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: August 20

It’s been over two weeks since a cleanup crew from Terry Davison’s insurance company came to his St. Catharines, Ont., home to itemize and seal his sewage-contaminated belongings damaged by flooding and sewer backup in July.

After that initial storm, he was able to get in touch with his insurance company, but when a second storm hit on Aug. 3, Davison could no longer reach his adjuster and has still not heard back from them.

“I've sent emails, I've made phone calls, left messages, ‘Can you please just call me? Please just acknowledge that you even got my emails?’” Davison told CBC Niagara.

He often sits in his backyard, concerned that the combination of heat from not having air conditioning and a sewage-contaminated basement will flare up his chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Until his insurer’s restoration company comes to inspect and confirm his furnace and hot water tanks are damaged, he can’t replace any of it, he said.

“You’re at the mercy of insurance companies,” Davison said.

As the weeks went by, Davison’s conundrum became more urgent.

He said he wondered if he could wait any longer for his insurance company to bring its restoration crew to replace his damaged furnace and hot water tanks and ensure that cost was covered.

Or whether he should he have his “furnace guy” come in and do the job right away, but risk potentially paying $8,500 out of pocket if the insurance company deems the appliance ineligible for coverage.

Before removing any contaminated or damaged items and drywall, make sure to take photos and videos of it, said Anne Marie Thomas, a consumer and industry relations director at the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

“You don't have to wait for a restoration company to come out and do that,” said Thomas.

But similarly to what Davison was told by his adjuster, Thomas added "if you hire someone, though, just make sure you have the coverage or be prepared to pay for it on your own."

Take photos, videos of everything

According to Thomas, the most important thing to do before anything else is document all the damage you can.

“Document, document, document,” Thomas stressed. 

“From an insurance company perspective, there is no such thing as too much information. Even the smallest detail, document. List every single item that was lost.”

She recommends providing detailed estimates of the costs of items that were damaged or lost to help your adjuster go through your claims more quickly at a time when they are handling an influx of claims.

"Not only are the insurance adjusters inundated with all of these claims, restoration companies, in turn, are inundated with all of this too," she said.

"It takes much longer to sometimes get through an insurance company or get a claim settled when there is a major event like this ... It just takes time, I'm afraid."

Consider adding overland flooding and sewer backup coverage

Another important thing homeowners can do before a visit from an adjuster — or another extreme weather event — is to ensure their home is covered for risks specific to their neighbourhood, Thomas added.

“What a lot of people don't realize is that not all policies include coverage caused by sewer backup or overland flood,” said Thomas. “If you didn't buy it, you could find yourself without any coverage at all."

Coverage for overland flood and sewer backup are add-ons, according to David Mayer, insurance and underwriting director at Rates.ca.

The insurance rate comparison company has a tool open to the public called Insuramap which displays common risks, tracked by past claims and the area's weather patterns, for every postal code.

Unlike car insurances, in which premiums can increase after you submit a claim, home insurance premiums are dependent on how high of a risk your house is to, for instance, crime, overland flooding, wildfires, hail, and more.

• How extreme weather makes life more expensive for Canadians

If the back-to-back floodings in St. Catharines caused claim losses to be higher than normal, it can lead to an increase in premiums, said Mayer.

“But again, it doesn’t necessarily mean that’s going to be the case,” he added.

Thomas also urges renters to purchase tenant insurance to cover the cost of belongings that get damaged in events like floods, which aren't protected by their landlords' home insurance, and hotel expenses if they're required to evacuate the property.

What if my insurer still isn’t responding?

For those having a hard time reaching their insurance adjuster, like Davison, Thomas recommends escalating the claim to a claims manager or supervisor.

“If you exhausted all efforts to get ahold of the adjuster or their supervisor, every insurance company has an internal ombudsperson,” said Thomas.

An ombudsperson helps customers with disputes against a claim or formal complaints against an insurance company.

Customers can reach an ombudsperson internally, through the insurance company’s website, which also includes steps on the dispute resolution process, Thomas said.

But if they find themselves still unsatisfied with the internal ombudsman's resolution, they can bring the complaint to the General Insurance OmbudService, an independent third-party organization.

• Read more stories from CBC in Niagara here