Frequently asked questions.

After receiving your claim, CAA Insurance will send an adjuster to inspect your property to decide whether you will receive a settlement in order to repair the damage or to compensate you for a total loss.

CAA Insurance will pay the inspection fees for any contractors that we assign. However, a contractor can only be assigned once a claim has been opened.

We will supply you with our recommendations for qualified expert contractors, but the choice of who you hire is ultimately up to you. The insurance contract is not a repair contract; rather, it’s a financial vehicle that responds to the cost of the repairs that need to be done. Of course, we have the right to inspect the damaged property, and we will not pay more for the same repair work than was quoted by a CAA-recommended qualified expert contractor.

You will usually hear from your insurance adjuster within a day or so of filing your claim. It can take a few more days if your adjuster needs to inspect the damage. The claim process may be faster if you use a contractor recommended by your insurance provider.

There are numerous factors about your home and your neighbourhood that can influence the cost of your home insurance premiums. Here are some of the most important:

• The value of your home. The larger and more expensive your property, the more it will cost to replace your home and belongings.


• The location of your home. If you live in a postal code area that has a higher rate of claims or greater incidents of break-ins and vandalism, you may have to pay more for your insurance.


• Your home’s proximity to a fire station or fire hydrant. For safety reasons, the closer you are, the better the chance you’ll have lower premiums.


• Your electrical system. How your house is wired can impact your premiums in several ways. For example, a home that has knob-and-tube wiring (which increases the potential of a house fire) or fuses instead of circuit breakers will cost more to insure than a house with up-to-date and up-to-code wiring.


• How your home is heated. Houses that use safer heating methods, such as forced-air gas furnaces or electrical heating instead of oil-fired furnaces and wood stoves, come with lower premiums.


• The age of your roof. Houses with newer roofs are less likely to experience costly leaks resulting in property damage and are therefore less expensive to insure.


• The plumbing in your home. Houses with older plumbing systems, including ones that use lead or galvanized pipes, are at higher risk of clogs, leaks and other expensive repairs.

When determining your premiums, insurers will consider many other factors as well, including your insurance and claims history and if you’ve installed a monitored home security system that includes fire, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Other items on your property, such as a swimming pool, a hot tub or a detached garage, can also impact your costs.

You may qualify for discounts if you make important upgrades to your home. Replacing an aging roof, upgrading the electrical wiring, installing a monitored home security and fire alarm system, adding a backwater valve – these can help lower your costs while making your home safer in the process. You can also lower your premiums by choosing a higher deductible or bundling your home and auto insurance with one provider. If you’re a CAA Member, you can save 10% on your CAA Home Insurance premiums by doing this.

When CAA Insurance receives your claim, you will be assigned a claims adjuster who will help you through the process. They’ll review your claim as quickly as possible and arrange for a home visit to meet with you and inspect your property. The adjuster will confirm the details of your loss, assess the fire damage and determine if temporary accommodations for you, and anyone living in your home with you, are necessary. You will be asked to compile a list of essential documents and possessions that need to be replaced. The amount of your settlement will depend on the specific insurance coverage you have.

• “Replacement cost” coverage pays the cost of repairing or replacing your damaged items equal to the amount you would need to replace these items with new or similar products.


• “Actual cash value” coverage pays you for the value of your home and damaged items at the time of the fire, taking into account the original price of the items minus depreciation and the condition that the items were in before the loss.

No. A standard homeowners insurance policy does not provide coverage in the event of flood damage. In most cases, however, CAA Water Coverage is available as optional coverage.

If you add CAA Water Coverage to your home insurance, you will be insured against sudden loss or damage to your insured property, as defined by your policy. This includes floods, surface water from sudden heavy rainfall, the rising of the water table or groundwater and even mudflow. Other causes can be the escape of water or sewage from backed-up sewers, drains or septic systems in your home.

Your living expenses, as defined by your policy, might be covered if the extensive damage to your home is a direct result of an insured peril covered by your policy. Ask your agent or broker for more details and to see if this coverage is right for you.

Catastrophic weather events include hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, droughts and the like. In most cases, if one of these weather events damages your home, your CAA Homeowners Insurance will cover you. All our policies cover damage caused by events such as lightning, windstorms and hail. For even more protection, we recommend you discuss additional options, such as CAA Water Coverage, with your CAA agent or broker to obtain the best coverage for you.

No. If your dependent child is living temporarily away from home to attend school, their personal property is still insured under your Personal Property coverage included in your CAA Homeowners Insurance policy.

Yes. You may be renting your apartment, but tenant insurance is the smarter choice – some landlords even require it. Tenant insurance not only covers your personal belongings – like furniture, electronics and other possessions – but also provides you with personal liability coverage. You will be covered from legal liability for accidental injuries to someone who’s visiting you at your apartment or for accidental injuries or damage caused by your actions anywhere in the world.

In most cases, yes. Both you and your roommate can be covered under the same home insurance policy. However, if you and your spouse are sharing a home with another couple, the other couple will need to have their own insurance coverage.

Yes. When you’re moving to a new principal residence within Canada, CAA Insurance will cover your personal property for up to 30 days from the start of your move. These 30 days include the time your possessions are in transit from one home to the other. However, your new home is not automatically covered by your current policy. Contact a licensed CAA Insurance Agent or your local broker to ensure you have the right insurance coverage for your new residence.

“Replacement cost” and “actual cash value” (ACV) are two common calculations that insurance providers use to determine the amount you’ll receive when you make a claim. The calculation that applies to you will depend on the terms of your policy.

If you have an insurance policy that says it will pay the replacement cost for lost or damaged items, then your insurer will pay to repair your items or replace them with those of similar quality. Replacement cost does not apply to items such as fine art and antiques. You’ll find a complete list of these items in your policy, or you can ask a licensed CAA Insurance Agent or your local broker for details.

If your policy states that the ACV of your items will be covered, the value will be based not on what your possession cost when it was new but what it was worth at the time of the damage. This takes into account depreciation over time. So, if a five-year-old appliance is damaged or stolen, your insurance will pay you the amount that a five-year-old appliance is worth now. If you wish to replace it with a brand-new one, you will have to pay the difference.

Your home insurance policy designates a specific value for your property. With the guaranteed replacement cost enhancement in your policy, the full cost of repairing or rebuilding your home after a total loss is covered, even if this cost is greater than the insured amount listed for your property. This is the highest level of home insurance coverage available.

A “peril” is a sudden dangerous or destructive event – such as a tornado, a hurricane or even a vehicle – that could damage your home or belongings. In the case of such an event happening to your home, you will only be covered if the specific peril is named in your homeowners policy.

A comprehensive home insurance policy (also called an All Risk policy) provides coverage for your house, other structures on your property and your personal belongings. However, if there is loss or damage to your property caused by an event, or peril, that’s named on the list of exclusions in your policy, it won’t be covered.