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awyers are being left to weed out the
legal wrangles that arise with new
marijuana cultivation laws that send
homeowner policies up in smoke.
Already a major fallout exists. Land-
lords, facing tenants growing their own
pot for medicinal purposes, find insur-
ers are balking at coverage. Recently, a
Kelowna, B.C. landlord was tipped by a
neighbour that his Kamloops tenant was
growing dozens of marijuana plants in
the home and outside. The tenant had
a Health Canada licence to grow pot,
but there is no requirement to tell the
landlord. When the landlord called his
broker to see if he was covered, the insur-
er immediately yanked coverage on the
property.
"He did the right thing," says David
Hutniak, CEO of LandlordBC. Failure to
notify the insurer of changes in the prop-
erties' use may have voided his insurance
in the event of an incident. "So, it's really a
catch-22."
The 2016 Federal Court of Canada
Allard v. Canada decision gave medic-
al users growing rights. According to
marijuanalaws.com, a consulting firm
on Health Canada's guidelines, up to 300
plants can be grown, depending on the
individual's daily requirements. In 2018,
the federal government will allow personal
\ AT L A N T I C \ C E N T R A L \ P R A I R I E S \ W E S T
REGIONAL
WRAP-UP
Canada's new marijuana
laws causing uncertainty
for homeowner policies
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