January 25, 2024 – A new survey of 1,500 Atlantic Canadians, conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights on behalf of the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), found that 71% of respondents support the federal government’s introduction of a national flood insurance program. IBC commissioned the survey to gauge interest in a high-risk flood protection insurance solution through a partnership between governments and the property and casualty insurance industry. The results from the survey are clear, with the majority of Atlantic Canadians calling for the federal government to act on flood protection.
Flooding is Canada’s greatest climate threat and puts millions of people at risk each year. The national flood insurance program would protect Canadians from flood risk with little or no additional cost to governments, as homeowners at high risk would be able to purchase affordable flood coverage rather than receive limited, unpredictable and taxpayer-funded disaster financial assistance. As demonstrated with similar programs in the U.K., U.S. and France, this approach to flood recovery is more cost-effective and addresses the financial and emotional toll of disasters on Canadians.
“After recent catastrophic events such as Hurricane Fiona in 2022, flooding has devastated communities across Atlantic Canada. Yet the residents at greatest risk continue to be unable to obtain affordable flood insurance,” said Craig Stewart, Vice-President, Climate Change and Federal Issues, IBC. “IBC understands why so many Atlantic Canadians support the National Flood Insurance Program. They need the federal government to move forward with this cost-effective solution and announce details of the program in the 2024 Federal Budget. By getting the National Flood Insurance Program up and running, the federal government can help protect those at greatest risk.”
At a glance, the survey found:
- 59% of Atlantic Canadians believe the federal government must do more to protect Canadians from flooding
- 43% of Atlantic Canadians disapprove of the federal government’s efforts to prepare Canadians for natural disasters
- 76% of Atlantic Canadians believe flood protection should be a priority for the federal government.
The online survey was conducted from December 21, 2023, to January 9, 2024, amongst a randomly-selected, reliable sample of N=1,500 adult (18+) Atlantic Canadians. The dataset has been weighted by the latest Census age, gender, and region statistics to be representative of the actual adult population of Atlantic Canada and its individual provinces. Online samples cannot be assigned a margin of error. However, as a guideline, a probability sample of N=1,500 carries a margin of error of ± 2.5%, 19 times out of 20.
For additional results for the survey, see IBC’s associated press release and infographic summary of the study’s key findings. For more information about IBC’s perspectives on a national flood insurance program, visit FundFloodInsurance.ca.
