Commercial

Two confirmed tornadoes blast Ottawa-Gatineau area

Two confirmed tornadoes ripped through the Ottawa-Gatineau area late Friday afternoon, critically injuring five and causing extensive damage to homes, cars and commercial buildings. Environment Canada confirmed Sunday that an EF-3 category twister hit Dunrobin, Ont., a suburb northwest of Ottawa. The national weather agency said the tornado’s wind speeds reached up to 265 km/h. A […]

By David Gambrill | September 22, 2018

2 min read

Steering the Course: Course of Construction (COC) Insurance Options

All it takes is a spark.  From a sander. Or errant cigarette.  And POW!  Igniting common, flammable construction materials like wood, solvents, packaging, and gasoline and turning a work in progress to a pile of ash.  It’s a powerful blow to any construction firm and property owner. Fire is the leading cause of losses during […]

By Baxter Hall | August 28, 2018

3 min read

Communities using development permits to reduce risk of wildfire: ICLR

Reducing the risk of wildfire, several communities in western Canada are using development permits as a way to address construction of new residential development in the wildland-urban interface, the Institute for Catastrophe Loss Reduction (ICLR) noted in a recent report. More than a dozen communities in British Columbia and Alberta have begun to use development […]

By Jason Contant | June 1, 2018

3 min read

Kinder Morgan begs the question: Is civil disobedience an insured risk?

With continued legal challenges and protests surrounding construction of the proposed new Kinder Morgan pipeline, potential insurance repercussions could be just around the corner. An Insights West opinion poll released last month found that more than one in 10 British Columbians were willing to engage in “civil disobedience” to stop Kinder Morgan from building a […]

By Jason Contant | May 28, 2018

2 min read