Coquitlam, BCThe machinations and frustrations experienced by homeowners dealing with home warranty insurance is reflected in the dealings of one Canadian couple who told Global News last year that success with a home warranty provider appears to hinge on the capacity for a homeowner to push the envelope and make noise – through a home warranty lawsuit perhaps, or otherwise – in order to have any success with a claim.
Cases in point are the trials and tribulations of Tina and Ben Wilson, a Canadian couple from Burke Mountain, near Coquitlam in the province of British Columbia. According to Global News (01/11/16)), every residential builder in the province of BC was required, as of January 2016, to have in place home warranty insurance through a third party before a building permit is even issued for a new home. Thus, when the Wilsons moved into their new home in March 2013 the home already had home warranty insurance coverage.
According to Global News, it wasn’t long before the Wilsons began noticing some deficiencies with their new home including but not limited to electrical issues, drainage problems and the appearance of mold in a basement suite.
The provider of the home warranty insurance was Aviva Insurance Company of Canada, identified as being represented by National Home Warranty Group. According to the news report, a third-party investigator was dispatched to the home to check into the mold problem, who then communicated with the couple that nothing appeared to be wrong.
Tina Wilson said that eventually the builder, the insurer and the third party all visited the site, and all agreed the ventilation system was working optimally and had been installed according to the building code in force at the time.
“When we pushed back and hired engineers and hired environmental specialists,” Tina said, in comments to Global News, “they found that not only was it not functioning at all, but it wasn’t installed to code.”
In the end, the home warranty insurer accepted the unbiased findings of the independent experts hired by the Wilsons and undertook the work needed to remediate the situation.
But the matter turned into a virtual full-time effort for the BC couple, who opine it shouldn’t have to be that difficult.
“If you are willing to fight,” she said. “If you are persistent. If you don’t go away quietly, then new home warranty eventually might do something to help you a little bit,” Tina continued.
The Homeowner Protection Office with the BC government indicated at the time that the Province was planning to review the new home warranty insurance regulations.
Some homeowners don’t wait for legislative changes to act, preferring instead to pursue a lawsuit against a provider of home warranty insurance in an effort to protect both their home and their investment.
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