Insurance companies regard smoking weed in your Toronto home in a similar fashion to smoking cigarettes. Just as smoking cigarettes increases the risk of fire, so can the regular consumption of cannabis. it is, therefore, incumbent on your to let your insurance company know if you consume marijuana on a regular basis. Although this might negatively impact your insurance rates, in the event of a fire you might not be covered if the cause of the fire was due to smoking.
Along with the legalization of cannabis in Toronto, came the ability to grow small amounts of marijuana for personal consumption. Here again, this new ability can increase your insurance risk. Growing a limited number of marijuana plants in your home can increase your risk for theft and can also increase your risk for mold. If you rewire your lighting and/or heating systems to accommodate your growing plants, that could also pose a fire risk. So, if you do decide to grow marijuana plants in your home, you should take the necessary precautions to ensure that you are doing it properly and with all possible safeguards in place.
It is possible that your insurance company will cover cannabis products, however, you would have to check with your insurer to find out just how much and what, if anything, falls under that coverage. In fact, many policies change depending on the province you live in as well as on your insurers coverage.
Lastly, the smell of cannabis is very strong and can permeate the walls, furnishings, floors and finishes of your home – making it very hard to get out. Although this doesn’t not pertain to your insurance, it can very significantly impact your home’s resale value should you wish to sell. In fact, in extreme cases you would have to replace the interior finishes completely in order to get rid of it – a costly exercise that would affect any profits you could make on the sale of your home.
Whether you are happy that cannabis is now legal in Canada or not, it is a good thing to understand how the use of the product can affect your home insurance rates prior to you or anyone else smoking it while in your home.
