When love is expensive: a reader discovers that the criminal past of her spouse explodes their home insurance of $ 5000
At the Canada Insurance Office (BAC), I was told that a criminal file is one of the many factors considered by insurers to assess the risk.
“A person accused in the criminal committed, in a voluntary manner, a gesture that brought such an accusation,” said a spokesperson for the bac. It represents, for an insurer, a larger moral risk, which can lead him not to want to insure him, or to demand a more important premium. ”
The decision does not take into account other members of the same family, both in car insurance and residential insurance, even if the contract covers them.
Legitimate question
The business relationship between you and your insurer is based on mutual trust and honor. The insurer believes you when you give him the information he claims to better understand his risk.
It is therefore legitimate (and even legal) that he asks you if you or another member of the household have judicial history. And it is not considered to be discrimination, which is shocking for certain consumers.
Insurers systematically check it. Certain criminal convictions influence their perception of the level of risk associated with a person, even if it has obtained a suspension from its criminal record (or “forgiveness”).
“This allows a fairer assessment of your profile, while respecting the laws in force,” adds a spokesperson for Desjardins, who occupies a large part of the Quebec market for damage insurance. Desjardins specifies that each file is analyzed individually.
Before making a decision, an insurer will take into account the nature of the offense, the sentence and the circumstances. In auto insurance, dangerous driving or with weakened faculties, offering or criminal negligence crime mean a higher bonus.
The problem is that some consumers have difficulty ensuring, either because they are refused, or because the premium requested is prohibitive.
About 900,000 adult Quebecers have a criminal record (one in seven people), according to the Association of Social Rehabilitation Services in Quebec (ASRSQ); 83.7% are men.
Advice
- Do not hide a criminal file. Never lie when you ask for insurance. If you make a complaint, the insurer makes an investigation (and his means are imposing). He could refuse to compensate you.
- In the event of refusal because your spouse has a criminal file, you can argue with an insurer that the civil status (married, de facto union) constitutes a reason for illegal discrimination, according to a 2013 judgment of the Human Rights Tribunal.
- Shop, because some insurers accept consumers who are refused or non-renewal. But, if you have difficulty ensuring yourself, do business with (1-877-288-4321).
