Icicles that form during Northwestern Ontario’s never-ending winter may look beautiful, but they could be a symptom of something sinister – ice dams.

Ice dams are thick ridges of ice that build up along a home’s eaves. They block melting ice from escaping through the eavestroughs and they can spell it huge problems for your home, including a collapsed roof.

How do ice dams form?

When heat rises in your home, poor insulation and ventilation can allow this warm air to escape and heat your roof. The snow melts and causes water to flow until it’s far enough away from the attic’s warm air to freeze. As this process repeats itself, the melted snow continues to freeze in the same area to create a buildup of ice that eventually forms an ice dam.

Are ice dams damaging?

Fresh water ice weighs about 60lbs per cubic foot. When you consider that, it makes sense that ice dams can tear off gutters, loosen shingles, and cause water to back-up into your home causing peeling paint, sagging ceilings, and soggy insulation. On lower pitched roofs, even a thin ice dam can be problematic. At best, ice damming is a preventable, or at least fixable, situation. At its worst, it’s very damaging on your home and potentially dangerous.

How to prevent ice dams

The Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario (IBAO) has published these helpful tips to keep your home free of ice dams:

1. Check your roof once a week to monitor the snow and ice accumulation; if you can, remove the snow and ice with a roof rake before it builds up.

2. Insure that your attic is adequately insulated

3. From inside your home, seal any perforations in the ceiling

4. Ensure your soffit vents are not blocked by insulation

5. Draw more air into the attic through the gable and eave vents

6. Keep roof vents free of snow so cold air can circulate in your attic

7. Make sure that the ducts connected to the kitchen, bathroom, and dryer vents all lead outside through either the roof or walls, but never through the soffit.

8. If you are installing a new roof, have the contractor provide options for an ice and water shield.

We know that ice damming can happen despite your best efforts and intentions. Luckily, your home insurance policy could help to support you through any necessary repairs. If an ice dam has formed on your roof, do not climb up to inspect it or remove it yourself – leave that to the professionals.  Instead, check your attic for leaks.

If you do find a leak, give Jones & Associates a call to chat about next steps.

By IBAO

Beginning June 1^st, auto insurance policies in Ontario will change. The most significant update is the change in Accident Benefit coverage. If you’ve been injured in a car accident, Accident Benefits cover expenses like rehabilitation. Typically we assume medical expenses are covered by OHIP, but in the event of injury from a car accident, your insurance policy comes into play.

Arguably the most important Accident Benefit, Medical Rehabilitation covers necessary medical and rehabilitation expenses like physiotherapy. Under the current structure, non-catastrophic injury coverage is $50,000 (sprains, whiplash, broken bones) and catastrophic injury coverage is $1,000,000 (loss of limb, para/quadriplegia). A second benefit called Attendant Care covers the cost of a professional to look after you either at home or within a healthcare facility. Coverage is $36,000 for non-catastrophic injuries and $1,000,000 for catastrophic injuries. As separate benefits, it’s common for one benefit to be underutilized and the other over utilized (the Attendant Care benefit can’t be accessed unless a professional’s involved in your care).

As of June 1^st, these benefits will be combined into one. The (new) Medical, Rehabilitation and Attendant Care benefit is single coverage for everything that falls within this category. Under the new system, all funds are available, allowing greater flexibility – whether you have a family member, friend or paid professional taking care of you, funds can be accessed. But total coverage will be reduced: non-catastrophic injury coverage will be $65,000, and catastrophic injury coverage will be $1,000,000. Total. All medical, rehabilitation and professional care expenses included. There’s a very real possibility individuals will reach their maximum benefit level and exhaust available funds, especially in the case of catastrophic injury.

So how do you figure out if you’ll need more coverage?

For one thing, Accident Benefit coverage encompasses much more than you might think. Beyond rehab, it includes mobility devices like wheelchairs and crutches and transportation mediums like accessible vehicles; it also includes renovations in the instance your home requires modification to accommodate an injury. Becoming informed on what’s included might get you thinking about how you’d finance these items if your insurance policy didn’t. A few sample costs:

* Rehab Team Services: $3,500–$4,000/month
* Prosthetic Limb: $10,000–$20,000/3–5 years
* Manual Wheelchair: $5,000–$10,000/5 years
* Power Wheelchair: $15,000–$25,000/5 years
* Accessible Vehicle: $100,000+
* Professional Attendant Care (8 hrs/day): $7,000/month
* Home Renovations: $100,000–$400,000
  Source: Ontario Rehab Alliance

You can also ask yourself a few questions – how vulnerable are you to injury (consider your age, general health and any pre-existing conditions), and would you be more vulnerable to slower recovery? Do you have insurance from other sources (like employment benefits)? Be aware of any limitations you might have and get informed on how to work with them.

When the Ontario government altered auto insurance in 2010, 90% of consumers chose standard coverage instead of tailoring the product to cover their unique circumstances. With these changes, considering what’s available is crucial. It’s relatively inexpensive to increase coverage, so talk to your insurance broker about coverage gaps and how they might be avoided – they’ll ensure you have the right coverage so you and your family are covered in the event of an accident.

For more information click here

The theme this year is Our Kids Count Goes International.  Think about joining for either a sushi making party on May 21st, or a Nigerian feast on June 9th.  Only 10 spots available per evening, so book early!!  Tickets can be reserved and purchased on line at the link below.

The evenings are a casual learning experience, hands on and so much fun.  Bring a group or come out and make new friends.  And of course bring your appetite!

http://www.ourkidscount.ca/default.asp?pgid=14