Posted Feb 26, 2023 5:15pm ET
Fabian England says he is on the verge of losing his insurance after being hit by a string of storms, with insurance companies calling him “high risk”. (Ryan MacDonald/CTV Atlantic)
Ever since moving into his home in Reserve Mines, NS, more than six years ago, Fabian has had one thing at a time in England.
“We bought this house in 2016,” England said. “It wasn’t long before we had this Thanksgiving flood.”
England’s home suffered water damage from that storm and again from another heavy rain about a year and a half later.
He put an extra sump pump in his basement and hasn’t had any water damage since. But then came the wind damage.
Fiona blew through, followed by another storm. Now he has damage to his siding and roof.
“I need a new roof and I need siding because of the hurricane and they charge me two deductibles,” England said.
England said he had bought insurance for more than 40 years and never filed a claim until the Thanksgiving storm six years ago.
“Like I said, I had a clean record forever until I moved into this house — and it’s all weather related.”
Now he says he was told his insurance would be canceled because he was taking too much risk.
In recent days England has been contacting insurance companies across the country to find one to cover him.
He worries that if he can’t find home insurance, he’ll have to sell his house.
“It just eats me up. I’m more scared than anything,” he said.
England said part of the reason he’s struggling to be insured is because his Fiona repairs aren’t fixed.
He said he has a contractor to do the work but will have to wait until the weather warms up.
He also shared his story in case others still dealing with Fiona damage are in a similar situation.
“It’s not just about me,” he said. “I worry about the elderly or the foreigners who don’t understand this stuff and are in the same or worse situation.”
England said they were willing to pay within reason to regain cover.
“I don’t know what to say. I’m just in a bind,” he said. “I am devastated. I’m embarrassed it happened and the more you talk to insurance companies the more depressed you become. I’m losing faith in it.”
England added he has also contacted a few elected officials in his area about his situation, so far to no avail.
