Do ontarians have rights when it comes to water damage insurance claims?

Question

We have a lot of water damage from a washing machine that rotted out and leaked. We are being told that we have to pick our new tiles from the samples given to us by the insurance adjuster's contractor,but we do not like anything he has. Are we obliged to go with his contractor. Also, we think the contractor is ripping off the insurance company, because he's charging a fortune for doing very little. Do we have rights as a person stating a claim in Ontario?

Answer 1

You are under no obligation to use that contractor. While the insurer has the right to refuse certain contractors if they have had bad experiences with them in the past, the insurer cannot force you to use someone you do not want. At this point the best thing to do is figure out which contractor you wish to use, and then contact the adjuster handling your claim and inform them of the change. Keep in mind an insurer may be willing to offer guarantees on the work done by their preferred contractors, so if you decide to switch keep in mind you may lose this benefit. If the insurer gives you any grief ask them to point out  where in the policy wordings it states that you have to use their contractor/repair facility (trust me, it's not in there).