Water is the first question here, and the answers are not interchangeable.
We write anywhere in British Columbia, so you do not have to drive anywhere to deal with us. Send us the policy and tell us what is on the property. Our nearest counter is on Fraser Highway in Surrey if you would rather come in, and the Delta office is open seven days a week.
Call 604-319-1000 Branch details and hours Build your fileCan I use an insurance broker near Chilliwack without driving in?
Yes. We are licensed across British Columbia and most of this is handled by phone and email, including ICBC Autoplan. Send us the current policy, the address, and what is actually on the property, and we will go through it. If you would rather sit down with somebody, our nearest counter is at 104A-19151 Fraser Hwy, Surrey, and our Delta branch at 2-8195 120 St is open seven days a week. Call 604-319-1000.
What we are asked for most here.
Farmland, workshops and main street businesses, sitting on a floodplain that the City spends millions keeping dry. That shapes every conversation:
Water, in all its forms
A burst pipe, a sewer backing up and a river coming over are three different events and three different parts of a policy. Commercial property insurance.
Barns, equipment and livestock
Outbuildings, machinery and farm liability, none of which sit inside a standard home policy. Farm and acreage insurance.
Trades and contractors
Certificates for a job starting Monday, tools in the van, and the limit the general contractor names. Contractor insurance.
Trucks, trailers and the yard
Owned units, hired units, and the staff member who runs to town in their own vehicle. Commercial vehicle and fleet insurance.
Shops, cafes and offices
Contents, the limit written into the lease, and the certificate a landlord is waiting on. Small business insurance.
Declined after a water claim
A claim follows a property rather than an owner. Bring us the letter and we will read the file. Water damage history.
Where it came from decides what answers.
This is the part people find out too late. A policy does not treat water as one thing, and the difference is in where it came from, not in how much damage it did.
One
From the plumbing
Water escaping suddenly and accidentally from a pipe or an appliance inside the building. This is the kind property policies deal with as standard.
Two
Back up the drain
Sewer and septic backing up into the building. This is normally its own added cover, not part of the base policy.
Three
Over the ground
A river, a ditch, snowmelt or runoff arriving across the surface. Cover for this is separate again, and whether it can be arranged depends on the property.
Four
Up from below
Seepage and groundwater working up through a floor or a foundation. This is not standard, and it is a separate cover from overland water. Some water packages include it and many do not, so it is worth knowing which yours is before a wet spring.
And then
What stopped trading
If the building is out of use, the lost income is a different question again, with its own clock. Business interruption insurance.
Where each kind of water is usually answered
A policy does not treat water as one thing. What answers depends on where the water came from, not on how much damage it did.
Three of the four are not in the base policy. That is the part people find out after a wet spring.
| Where the water came from | In the base policy | Bought on top |
|---|---|---|
| From the plumbingWater that escapes suddenly and accidentally from a pipe or an appliance inside the building. Most property policies deal with this one as standard. | In the base policy: Usually answered here | Bought on top: Not what this part of the policy is built for |
| Back up the drainSewer or septic backing up into the building is normally its own added cover, not part of the base policy. | In the base policy: Not what this part of the policy is built for | Bought on top: Usually answered here |
| Over the groundWater coming across the ground from a river, a ditch, snowmelt or runoff. This is a separate cover again, and whether it can be arranged at all depends on the property. | In the base policy: Not what this part of the policy is built for | Bought on top: Usually answered here |
| Up from belowWater working up through a floor or a foundation. This is not standard, and it is not the same cover as water over the ground. Some packages include it and many do not. | In the base policy: Not what this part of the policy is built for | Bought on top: Sometimes bundled, often not |
These sentences say what each cover is built to do. They do not say a claim will be paid, and they do not say one will be refused. Your own wording decides.
General information only, and the wording of the policy issued to you is what governs. Send us what you hold and we will tell you which of the four you are actually carrying.
Three things that catch people out here.
A claim on the property, not on you
Past water damage attaches to the address and follows it to the next owner and the next renewal. Water damage history.
How long the income cover runs
The indemnity period starts at the loss, not at the day you are trading normally again. Drying out a building is slow. How long it pays.
What it pays to put back
Actual cash value pays what it was worth on the day, not what it costs to rebuild. On a barn or a shop that gap is wide. Replacement cost or actual cash value.
General information only. What is covered is decided by the wording of the policy actually issued to you.
You do not have to come to us.
Chilliwack is a drive from any of our counters, so most of this is done by phone and email. Everything below is there if you want it.
Nearest counter
104A-19151 Fraser Hwy, Surrey. Monday to Friday 9:00 to 18:00, Saturday 10:00 to 17:00, closed Sunday.
Open seven days
Our Delta office at 2-8195 120 St is open every day, until 9pm Monday to Saturday and 8pm on Sunday.
Rather not drive at all
Call 604-319-1000 or send us what you need and choose how we reply.
From owners, farmers and businesses in the valley.
Is flooding covered by my insurance?
It depends entirely on where the water came from. Water escaping suddenly from plumbing inside the building is dealt with by most property policies. Sewer backup and overland water are separate covers that are added on, and whether overland water can be arranged at all depends on the property and its exposure. Groundwater seeping up is normally excluded. Send us your policy and we will tell you which of those you hold today.
What is the difference between sewer backup and overland water?
Sewer backup is water coming into the building through the drains. Overland water is water arriving across the surface of the ground and getting in. They are different events, they are sold as different covers, and holding one does not mean you hold the other.
My property has flooded before. Can it still be insured?
A past claim makes the file harder, not automatically impossible. What matters is what happened, what has been done since, and what the exposure looks like now. Bring us the history and we will read it and tell you honestly where it stands.
Does my farm policy cover the barn and the equipment?
A farm policy is built for exactly that, and it is a different contract from a home policy. Outbuildings, machinery, livestock and farm liability sit inside it. What matters is that the limits still match what is actually on the property, because equipment values move.
Is there an insurance broker near Chilliwack open on a Sunday?
Our Delta branch at 2-8195 120 St is open seven days a week, Sunday 10:00 to 20:00. It is a drive, so calling is quicker.
Do your brokers speak Punjabi?
Yes. Our team speaks Punjabi and Hindi, as well as English, Italian, Cantonese and Mandarin.
The guides that matter most here.
Water is the fussiest peril
Some water, not all of it, and the differences are larger than the word suggests. What water damage cover does.
How long the income cover runs
The clock starts at the loss, and a wet building dries slowly. How long it pays.
How your property is valued
Two ways to value the same building, and a wide gap between them at claim time. Replacement cost or actual cash value.
Pumps, motors and cold rooms
A property policy answers for the machine, not for what happens inside it. Why property skips the motor.
Tools off the yard
What a policy asks of you in return, and where cover stops once the tools leave. Tools and equipment theft.
What liability does not do
The exclusions people are most surprised by, in plain words. What general liability does not cover.
Why water is the first question in Chilliwack.
The City of Chilliwack publishes its own record of flood works. It lists roughly 5.3 kilometres of East Dyke upgraded near Jesperson and Gill Roads and about 4 kilometres of West Dyke along the Vedder Canal, both in 2010, a further kilometre of East Dyke along Young Road in 2015 at $2,340,000, 80 new relief wells on the West Dyke in 2008 and 14 more by the Camp Hope Intake, and pump station rebuilds at McGillivray and Collinson at $4.7 million and $2.5 million. The City also runs a five stage flood response keyed to the river gauge at Mission.
Sources: City of Chilliwack, flood protection infrastructure and Fraser River flood protection. Each opens in a new tab. The figures are the City’s, not ours.
A community does not spend that on keeping water out unless water is the thing to plan for. An underwriter reads the same landscape you do, which is why the water section of a policy here deserves more than a glance at renewal.
Not sure what you are carrying and what you are not? Run the Risk Snapshot, or read the insurance guides.
Call us, or send it over.
No appointment, no ticket, no call centre. You do not have to drive in to get an answer.
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