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Home Flood Assessments – Toronto

Location: Toronto, Ontario
Client: City of Toronto
Date: 2018

Over the last few years, Southern Ontario has experienced a series of severe storms, bringing millions of dollars of destruction and an increased concern of urban flooding among homeowners. In July 2018, the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) joined forces with the Intact Centre on Climate Change Adaptation at the University of Waterloo, AET, and the City of Toronto to launch a Toronto-specific adaptation of the Home Flood Protection Program called the Toronto Home Resilience Program. AET offers GTA homeowners local emergency preparedness resources, emergency management resources, and a confidential Home Flood Protection Assessment that addresses over 50 potential ways water might enter their home and cause flood damage.

Client Testimonials:

After experiencing a flood in January, frustrated new Toronto homeowner Lindsay Bunce was looking for practical information about how to reduce her risk of future flooding and how to re-finish her basement in a way that would be more resilient to water damage. When she learned that the Toronto Home Resilience Program was available, she jumped at the chance to receive one-on-one feedback from a trained home flood protection assessor.

Lindsay describes participating in the program as a truly eye opening experience. “The assessor spoke to us about several simple, low-cost measures that we can take to protect our home. We finally learned how to use our sump pump!” Lindsay exclaims.  “This is our first home and we didn’t know what the sump pump was, how it worked, where it drained to, or how to maintain it. Considering sump pump failure is a leading cause of basement flooding, we were very happy to receive some professional guidance in this area.”

“After participating in the assessment, my family and I will be taking steps to regularly clean and test our sump pump. We are sealing small cracks in our foundation and repairing the seals around our basement windows. We will also extend our downspouts and correct our grading to ensure water flows away from the home at all times.”

“Overall, the program is so informative and revealed many issues that did not come up during our standard home inspection. It has provided us with a road map to follow as we prioritize upgrades and repairs for our home. We now have peace of mind knowing that we are doing everything we can to protect our home from flooding.”