B.C. proposes ‘first step’ amendments to laws governing condo insurance

VICTORIA – The B.C. government says proposed legislation it has introduced takes first steps to address concerns about sky-high costs and availability of insurance for condominiums and other shared properties.

Housing Minister Selina Robinson says the legislation proposes to amend the Strata Property Act and the Financial Institutions Act.

Robinson says the changes will seek to address high insurance premiums and triple-digit increases in deductibles, while bringing more transparency to the insurance industry.

A report released last week by the B.C. Financial Services Authority said the insurance market isn’t healthy for about 1.5 million people living in condos, townhouses and other tenant-in-common properties in B.C.

The report says premiums are rising 40 per cent annually across the province and those costs are up 50 per cent in Metro Vancouver.

Chuck Byrne, executive director of the Insurance Brokers of B.C., said the report’s findings detail what he called a crisis in the province’s strata insurance market.