Canadian home insurance covers some injuries that happen in the home, but if you don’t know your policy very well, you might be surprised about what is covered and what is not. If you have guests in your home who become injured while they are staying with you, who has to pay?
We will look at this kind of event and how your home insurance can help out so that the burden is not entirely on you. It can be helpful to know what your insurance can do for you and if you need to worry in case of an accident.
The Injury- What to Do
Let’s start with the best advice for the event of an injury. It would be awful if someone were to be injured while in your home, but accidents can occur, and they tend to happen in the home more than anywhere else. So, what do you do when someone is injured while they are in your home?
First of all, you assess the injury and determine if calling for an ambulance is necessary. If the injury is severe enough to need to be treated by a doctor, then definitely call emergency services and get an ambulance sent to your home. In some cases, it may be safe to take the person to the hospital yourself.
You should also document everything for your records. Make sure you have the full name and contact information of the person who was injured. That may seem strange to ask of you, but it’s possible that you invited friends over and they brought friends of their own or children that you don’t know very well. You want to be able to get in contact with the injured person later or give your insurance company a way to contact them at least.
You should also make a note of the location and time of the injury. If possible, also retain copies of any medical reports or other documents that pertain to the injury. These can come in handy later when filing an insurance claim.
Who Will Your Insurance Cover?
Typically, home insurance in Canada covers the injured guest in cases of accidents in the home. If someone comes into your home and is injured as they fall on a wet floor or they are hurt when they hit their head on a low ceiling or they burn themselves on the stove when they didn’t realize it was on, the home insurance may cover these types of injuries. If the injury was accidental and not caused by your neglect or their own, then the home insurance will typically cover them.
If you or your family are injured, on the other hand, your home insurance probably won’t provide coverage. Those injuries are not covered under what is normally a third person policy. That means that people outside of your family are covered but your family is not.
The home insurance covers you if you are found to be legally responsible for the injury to the guest. So, if your guest does something reckless and causes the injury because of their negligence, then your insurance will not pay since you would not be legally responsible. In that case, your guest would have to pay for their own medical bills.
What to Do in Uncertain Injury Cases
There may be times when you think that your insurance company should cover you for the medical expenses of your guest or for another third party and your insurance company disagrees. In these cases, you may need some help. There are times when the insurance company will not accept your account of events. If you have not documented everything clearly or the insurance company is not being customer friendly, you may have a fight on your hands.
In those cases, it is a good idea to bring in Toronto attorneys to help you out. You can hire someone to represent you to the insurance company and plead your case. Attorneys will know the law better than you and will be able to contend with the insurance company for your rights. Now, if you seek out an attorney, you will be asked some specifics for the case, and the attorney may tell you whether they think you have a case or not before you hire them.
That can be helpful if you are trying to figure out your next step. In some instances, you may not get coverage from your insurance company. If it is a clear case where the insurance company will not cover the claim, then it makes no sense to pursue the issue further with an attorney.
What Will Your Insurance Company Cover
Let’s talk specifics about what kind of coverage your home insurance will provide. This will differ from one policy to the next, but the general coverage will stay about the same.
If someone visits your home, they are considered a guest or a third party, and they will be covered in many instances. If your pets bite or otherwise attack the guests, then that should be covered as well.
The insurance company will typically cover medical bills for the injured guest or guests. They may also cover legal fees if there are court damages awarded in the case. If the guest sues you, then your insurance may cover you for those costs as well.
What about if the injury occurs outside of your property? In many instances, your home insurance will cover this as well. These are injuries not caused while in a vehicle, usually, and they include injuries you or your family members cause to other people while you are away from home. For instance, if you cause someone to trip as they walk by you and they are injured, then your home insurance may cover you.
We hope this article sheds some light on injuries and their coverage when it relates to your home and home insurance.
