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Class Action

Who is eligible for the class action ?
The purpose of the class action is to compensate consumers whose principal place of residence(house or apartment) became uninhabitable during the ice storm of 1998 and whose insurance contract included coverage for additional living expenses. These consumers must have been insured at the time of the ice storm by one of the 19 insurance companies sued.

Which are the 19 insurance companies ?

• Allianz du Canada
• Allstate du Canada 
• AVIVA (Général accident, compagnie d’assurance du Canada) 
• AXA 
• Bélair 
• Desjardins 
• Assurances générales
• ING (Groupe Commerce et Guardian)
• Industrielle Alliance
• La Capitale Liberté mutuelle, Compagnie d’assurance
• Missisquoi, Compagnie d’assurance
• Optimum (Société nationale d’assurance)
• Promutuel Verchères
• Sécurité Assurances générales
• SSQ Traders générale, Compagnie d’assurance
• Union canadienne
• Unique compagnie d’assurances générales
• Wawanesa

The name of my insurance company does not appear in the list of 19 insurance companies being sued. Can I still be a class action member ?

No. At the present time, you cannot be a class action member. We encourage you to follow the progress of the case on our Web site. 


I dealt with an insurance company that bears the name "Promutuel," but it was not Promutuel Verchères. Am I a class action membe ?
No. Currently, only those who dealt with PROMUTUEL VERCHÈRES are class action members. 

I no longer remember the name of the insurance company I dealt with at the time of the 1988 ice storm. What can I do to obtain this information ?
We suggest you : Verify your cheque book or the cheques returned by your financial institutions. You perhaps recorded the name of your insurance company there, along with your policy number. Check your bank statements. The names of insurance companies paid by pre-authorized debit generally appear on the bank statement. Contact your mortgage creditor. Mortgage creditors require their customers to be insured. This information may be recorded in your file. Contact your insurance broker. Certain brokers save this information. Perhaps this applies to you.

My children were living with me at the time of the ice storm. Can they be compensated ?
Probably. In our opinion, anyone who usually lived under the policy-holder’s roof and was covered by the insurance is eligible for compensation.
To check this, we suggest you read the definition of the word "insure" in the text of the insurance policy that was in force at the time of the 1998 ice storm
Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling. We are therefore unable to say at the present time who will be entitled to compensation and how payment will be made, if applicable. 

The insurance policy was in my spouse’s name. However, we got divorced since the ice storm of 1998. Am I a class member ?
Probably. In our view, anyone who usually lived under the policy-holder’s roof, and was covered by the insurance, is eligible for compensation.
To check this, we suggest you read the definition of the word "insure" in the text of the insurance policy that was in force at the time of the 1998 ice storm.
Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling. We are therefore unable to say at the present time who will be entitled to compensation and how payment will be made, if applicable.
The policy-holder died since the 1998 ice storm (or since the class action was introduced).

Will his or her heirs be able to obtain the compensation in the event that that there is a favorable ruling (or an amicable settlement) ?
Probably. When a class action member dies, his rights are generally transmitted to his heirs, who may receive the compensation paid to the deceased. If a class action member has died, we ask you to send us the following information, by mail or fax: the name of the deceased his/her address and telephone number at the time of the ice storm the date of death the name of the executor or liquidator the address and telephone number of the executor or liquidator

Please safeguard all documents related to the deceased’s estate (e.g. will). 
Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling. We are therefore unable to say at the present time who will be entitled to compensation and how payment will be made, if applicable.

I lodged people in my home during the 1998 ice storm crisis. Can I be compensated for that ?
No. Only those who usually lived under the insured person’s roof at the time of the 1998 ice storm are class action members. The insurance policy generally protects the insured person’s spouse as well the dependent children of either of these. The people whom you accommodated during the ice storm could very well be class action members if they were themselves insured with one of the 19 companies being sued.

I lived outside Quebec at the time of the 1998 ice storm. Am I a class action member ?
No. The class action is addressed to those who, in January 1998, lived in Quebec and were insured by one of the 19 insurance companies being sued, and whose principal dwelling became uninhabitable because of the ice storm. 

I was not insured during the ice storm of 1998. Am I class action member ?
No. At the time of the 1998 ice storm, you had to be insured with one of the 19 insurance companies being sued. A person is insured if he or she has personally subscribed to an insurance policy or if he or she is covered by the insurance policy subscribed to by another person, for example a spouse or a relative.

As of when does a dwelling does become "uninhabitable" or "unusable" In our estimation, a dwelling (a house or an apartment) becomes uninhabitable or unusable when, for example, it no longer offers any of the customary comforts such as heating, running water or toilet facilities. Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling.

I remained in my home despite the evacuation order. Can I be class action member ?
Yes. Currently, any person insured with one of the 19 insurance companies being sued and whose house became uninhabitable is a class action member. For the moment, any person who remained in their home during the period when there was no electricity, whether or not that person was subject to an evacuation order, and whether or not that order was obeyed, is a member of the group. Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling.

How much compensation can I expect ?
In the procedures, we are claiming a lump sum of $75 per day for anyone insured for the period during which the residence was considered uninhabitable as a result of the events of the ice storm of 1998. We are also claiming a sum of $250 per class action member by way of exemplary damages. Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling at a later date. The court will decide the amount of the compensation to which you are entitled. If it rules in our favour, obviously! 

I was compensated by my insurance company and I signed a receipt. Am I a class action member ?
Yes. Any person who was compensated by an insurance company is currently a class action member, even if he or she signed such a document. Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling at a later date.
 
I did not claim living expenses from my insurance company following the ice storm of 1998. Am I a class action member?
 Yes. Any person who was insured by a policy taken out with one of the 19 insurance companies being sued and whose house became uninhabitable is eligible for compensation. In our opinion, you are eligible too, even though you did not claim living expenses. Please note: The court, however, will study this question and make a ruling at a later date.

When do I have to register for the class action ?
You should not register for the moment. You will have to do so only when the court makes its final ruling or when an amicable settlement has been reached. You will therefore have to be vigilant and follow the progress of the case in the media and on our Web site. It may also be that the court will require the insurance companies to contact customers affected by the class action. In order to ensure that the greatest possible number of people are contacted, the court has already ordered the insurance companies to keep the names of the people they insured during the 1998 ice storm. If you have moved and changed insurance companies since the ice storm of 1998, we will make a note of your name, address and telephone number. However, this is not an "official registration." You be responsible for registering for the class action only when the court makes its final ruling or when an amicable settlement is reached.

How can I be excluded from the class action?
From now until May 23, 2006, you must advise the Clerk of the Superior Court of the District of Longueuil that you wish to be excluded from the class action by quoting the file number 505-06-000006-002. You must send your notification by registered or certified mail to the following address: Cour supérieure, district of Longueuil
1111, rue Jacques-Cartier Est Longueuil (Québec) J4M 2J6

When will there be a final ruling (or an amicable settlement) ?
It could last many years – 4 to 5 years on average – from the moment when a class action is authorized until the final ruling. This suit was authorized in November 2005.

How can I follow the progress of this class action ?
It is impossible for us to communicate with each of you individually. You can follow the progress of this class action in the media or on our Web site.