The Municipality of Chatham-Kent is hoping that some insurance companies reconsider their decision to not renew coverage for some homes and businesses in downtown Wheatley once the gas leak problem is resolved.
Chief Administrative Officer Don Shropshire said he has brought up the issue to the province and admits it's a private matter, but promises the municipality will keep pushing for a solution that works for everybody.
"Once the [gas leak] issue has been resolved, we're hoping that the insurance agents will be able to go back and reassess their risk," said Shropshire. "If those risks could be mitigated, the insurance companies would probably have a lot more confidence in saying, yeah, now we have some assurance there's not going to be reoccurrences we're going to be paying out claims for."
Shropshire said the province is the sole regulatory authority when it comes to abandoned gas wells and that the municipality doesn't have any say on insurance.
"It's a really big deal for people. We're going to try and continue to push the regulatory bodies at the senior level of government to deal with it," Shropshire said.
He said from the municipality's standpoint, the priority is to find the source of the gas, stop the leaks, and reduce the level of risk before allowing people to return to their properties.
Shropshire said he's been told by the Insurance Bureau of Canada that insurance is a business decision and it's up to the two parties involved on whether something is or is not insured based on risk.
He also mentioned that some insurance companies have stood by their clients and supported them throughout the multiple gas leaks, explosion, and evacuations.
