A massive hailstorm last year in Calgary was Canada’s most expensive weather event in 2024, leading to roughly $3-billion in insurable losses, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. A hail damaged car on a flooded Calgary street on June 14, 2020.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
Gordon Wells expected to save money on maintenance when he switched from fancy cedar shingles to cheaper asphalt ones on his Calgary home last year. But he didn’t expect the nearly $800 refund he got when he informed his insurance company about the change.
The refund came because Mr. Wells’ new shingles are impact-resistant, meaning they’ll better protect his home from hailstorms that can often pummel Calgary. A massive hailstorm last year in the city was Canada’s most expensive weather event in 2024, leading to roughly $3-billion in insurable losses, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.
In fact, 2024 was the most expensive year for insurance companies in Canada on record, with insurance insurers paying out $8.5-billion, an increase from the previous record of $6-billion in 2016. The IBC says consumers can expect their home insurance rates to increase as a result, especially in provinces such as British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec, which have been hit particularly hard with floods and fires.
Homeowners aren’t helpless in their ability to contain those rising costs. Experts say there are specific renovations you can have done, such as Mr. Wells’s shingle replacement, that can lower your insurance premiums. In his case, he was refunded more than a third of his insurance premium for 2024 and he’s waiting to see what the discount will be in future years.
Craig Stewart, vice-president of climate change and federal issues at IBC, said the savings on insurance won’t always be so large, and that the primary reason homeowners make these changes is to be pro-active and protect themselves from the massive costs that come with major damage to your home.
“Insurers believe that incentives are of limited value. They think that most people are going to protect their home because they want to protect their home,” Mr. Stewart said.
“The incentives provide a little bit of stimulus, but based upon our experience, they’re really secondary.”
This is especially true when it comes to protecting against flooding, since flood insurance is particularly expensive and rarely covers the full value of your home and belongings.
We spoke to experts from the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation (an organization that seeks to educate communities and homeowners on protecting their homes from severe weather), insurers Co-operators Group Ltd., and the IBC to compile a list of home renovations that could lower your premiums.
But experts say you should notify your insurer of any improvements you make, because providers are increasingly offering incentives for all sorts of renovations that protect from severe weather. The Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation also has a comprehensive list of measures you can take against flood and fires that we have linked.
Renovations that can lower your premiums
Weatherproof shingles
Changing the type of roof shingles you have can be one of the most effective renovations for reducing your home insurance premiums because they can protect against hail, wind and fire.
Michelle Laidlaw, associate vice-president of Co-operators’ national product portfolio, says using a Class G shingle, which protects from all three of those elements, can cost anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 more than standard shingles depending on the size of your roof.
In Mr. Wells’s case, asphalt shingles were both cheaper to purchase and cheaper to maintain than the cedar shingles he had.
Realtors have also told him that asphalt shingles are improving resale value in Calgary homes, since hailstorms more easily damage cedar shingle roofing.
While Co-operators couldn’t provide the average insurance savings for weather-resilient shingles, Mr. Stewart said one Canadian provider offers discounts between 2.5 to 5 per cent for impact-resistant shingles.
Sump pumps, backwater valves and battery backups.
There are two pieces of equipment that are the most crucial line of defence for a home in flooding situations.
A sump pump pumps excess water in your basement or around your foundation away from your home.
A backwater valve prevents sewage from the municipal water system from backflowing into your home during a flooding event, which is a common and damaging event during a flood.
Kathryn Bakos, managing director of finance and resilience at the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, said a battery backup for your sump pump is also important, since power outages are a common occurrence during flooding events.
She said the cost of a sump pump can be roughly $1,000, while a backwater valve can be around $3,000.
Mr. Stewart said one Canadian insurer provides discounts of between 5 and 15 per cent on the flood insurance portion of a homeowner’s premium if they have these devices installed. He said the average flood insurance premium is roughly $200 per year, but that number can vary wildly depending on the risk of flooding in your area.
While a sump pump and backwater valve may not always save you large amount of money on your insurance, it can save you from extensive damage – some of which may not be covered by insurance since flood coverage is usually quite limited.
FireSmart certification
FireSmart is a program that seeks to help prepare homes in the event of wildfires in Canadian communities and has an extensive list of measures you can take to prevent wildfires from damaging your home and spreading through a town.
Ms. Laidlaw said FireSmart can do an assessment of individual homes and provide certificates for homes that meet their standards.
A certificate can lead to discounts on insurance, but she wasn’t able to specify how large those discounts can be.
“Co-operators does have a program with FireSmart where if the home does have the certification, a discount does apply; what that could look like depends on the type of risk and where the house is located,” said Ms. Laidlaw.
Some of the measures involved in a FireSmart certification can be as simple as moving wood piles and other combustibles away from your home, to renovating with fire-resistant materials on your home’s roof and siding.
Moisture detection system
A system that detects water in your home, particularly in your basement, can help you respond to a flood situation faster and prevent further damage to your home and property. Ms. Laidlaw said it can also save you money on your home insurance premiums.
The Intact Centre for Climate Adaptation said these systems can cost less than $250 to install in your home.
