With insurers overwhelmed, Nova Scotia homeowner stuck with unfinished repairs
Months after flooding, Amanda Cresswell says she still can't use her wood stove
A homeowner in Chester Grant, N.S., says she's been waiting months for help from her insurance provider after July's torrential rains and flash floods.
Amanda Cresswell's South Shore home is certainly not among those that suffered the worst damage. But her story illustrates how far behind insurance companies — and contractors — are in keeping up with claims.
Cresswell said when she woke up on the morning after the storm, water had poured in through her back door.
If that wasn't bad enough, lightning hit the house too, destroying appliances.
Since then, mould has started collecting throughout her house, first along her baseboards, then the walls and ceilings.
"If you look around, this wasn't the worst-case scenario," Cresswell said. "It just got worse and worse as it got left."
Cresswell's insurance provider, Carey Insurance and Financial Services — part of the Co-operators Group — was unable to find a local contractor to work on her home. So they flew a crew in from Toronto.
In a written statement, a Co-operators spokesperson said it was their only option.
"In situations where our local vendor network does not have the capacity to support our clients, arrangements may be made with our broader network of preferred vendors to provide immediate support to those in need," it said.
"Recently, vendors in our Atlantic region have been faced with increased volumes of work due to catastrophic claims events including Hurricane Fiona, wildfires, Hurricane Lee as well as other significant weather events."
Cresswell said the crew from Toronto got rid of the mould, removed flooring throughout the house and cut out damaged drywall, but didn't complete repairs.
The insurer also sent her $1,500 that she used to help pay hotel bills when she and her two children moved out of the house for eight days while the workers were on site.
But three months after the storm, she said she is still waiting for contractors to come back and finish the job. She can't light her woodstove until the heat barrier is rebuilt. Cresswell said her emails to her Lethbridge-based insurance adjuster — and her local insurers — are routinely ignored.
"If one person tells me another person will call, that person may call me but they don't do anything past that," she said. "I'm scared at this rate that they are going to let us freeze to death in our own home."
Her insurers say they're simply overwhelmed with claims and are finding it difficult to keep up. However, shortly after CBC News inquired about Cresswell's situation, her insurers said they're working on it.
"We understand how difficult this situation is for Ms. Cresswell, and everyone who was impacted by the severe storm that hit Nova Scotia on July 21, 2023," the statement from Co-operators said.
"While we can't discuss the specific details of this claim due to privacy considerations, we can tell you that we have connected with Ms. Cresswell to review the details and discuss her concerns, and have moved this claim toward resolution."
In the meantime, Cresswell said she's losing patience.
"I have children. I feel like a failure. Like I can't provide what I need to for my children. And I feel powerless because it doesn't matter who I call, who I leave the message with ... they can be polite, they can make their promises but no one ever follows through."
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