Flood insurance: How to get water damage coverage
Not every type of flood or water damage is covered by home insurance. Compare home insurance quotes with flood and water damage coverage to ensure you’re protected.
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What is flood insurance in Canada?
Matt Hands, VP, Insurance
In Canada, flood insurance is a coverage endorsement that policyholders can add to their homeowners’ insurance policy. It exists to protect against water damage that is not included in standard home insurance, such as from heavy rainfall.
Flooding is the most common and expensive natural disaster in Canada. It accounts for half of all home insurance claims and causes over $2 billion in annual insured losses. Without flood insurance, you’d be responsible for paying out of pocket for damage to your home. On average, it costs over $40,000 to repair a flooded basement.
There are three types of home insurance policies in Canada: basic, broad, and comprehensive. All standard policies will cover your home against water damage caused by a burst pipe, but exclude other forms of flooding. To protect your home from potential risks, you must add specific flood insurance endorsements to your policy.
| Coverage | Description |
| Basic coverage | A basic policy only covers "named perils." For example, you can buy insurance for a specific event like a lightning strike. But if your home is vandalized, you have no coverage. It makes it the cheapest, albeit the riskiest, form of home insurance. |
| Broad coverage | Broad insurance covers the structure of your home, but not its contents (unless you've named them as a peril). |
| Comprehensive coverage | This is the most inclusive policy; it covers the building and its contents from all risks, except for some optional coverages such as sewer back-up, earthquakes, or overland water flooding. |
What types of flood insurance endorsements are available?
There are three primary flood endorsements in Canada that cover you against water damage from multiple sources. These can include heavy rain that causes the city’s main drains to back up and flow into your basement or overflowing rivers and ponds that cause groundwater to enter your home. Here are flood insurance coverage options you may want to consider adding to your home insurance policy.
Sewer backup coverage
Overland water coverage
Coastal (or storm surge) flood coverage
How much does flood insurance cost?
The cost of flood insurance depends on the level of risk you bring as a policyholder, the location and size of your property and your insurance history. For instance, if you live in a high-risk flood zone and have multiple endorsements to cover you against all risks, expect to pay 40-50% more. But you can reduce that price by paying a higher deductible. If you are in a low-risk flood zone, you can add extended coverage to your policy for a smaller fee. Get a personalized flood insurance quote today.
get a free quoteHow can you prevent or limit flood risks?
To reduce your risk of making a home insurance claim, prevention is key. Below are flood prevention checklists to protect the interior and exterior of your property.
Water damage prevention inside your home
Water damage prevention outside your home
How does flooding impact insurance premiums in Canada?
As the frequency of natural disasters increases, so does the volume of claims and the amount of money insurers must pay. To recoup losses, insurance companies often increase the cost of premiums for all policyholders across Canada. Whether or not you live in a high-risk flood zone, it’s likely you’ve experienced higher rates due to severe weather.
In 2025, severe weather-related losses cost the insurance industry more than $2.4 billion. This makes 2025 the tenth most expensive year on record, with severe rain, hail and ice storms cited as the largest weather events. However, in comparison to previous years, 2025 saw a decrease in total insured losses.
The table below outlines Canada’s 10 most expensive years due to severe weather, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada:
| Year | Insured losses | Notable weather events |
| 2024 | $9.4 billion | Calgary hailstorm, Jasper wildfire, remnants of Hurricane Debby, Greater Toronto Area (GTA) floods |
| 2016 | $6.5 billion | Fort McMurray wildfire |
| 2013 | $4.2 billion | Alberta floods, GTA floods, GTA ice storm |
| 2023 | $3.8 billion | Nova Scotia floods, Okanagan and Shuswap–area wildfires |
| 2022 | $3.8 billion | Ontario and Quebec derecho, Hurricane Fiona |
| 1998 | $3.1 billion | Quebec ice storm |
| 2020 | $2.7 billion | Fort McMurray flood, Calgary hailstorm |
| 2021 | $2.6 billion | Calgary hailstorm, British Columbia floods |
| 2018 | $2.6 billion | Ontario and Quebec rainstorms and windstorms |
| 2025 | $2.4 billion | Ontario and Quebec ice storm, multiple Prairie wildfires |
As a homeowner or renter, being financially protected against the risk of floods could save you thousands in out-of-pocket expenses. To find affordable flood insurance coverage, compare home insurance quotes with flood endorsements today.
Is your home covered for water and flood damage?
Not all forms of water damage are covered by your basic home insurance policy. Make sure you're fully covered by comparing home insurance quotes with flood coverage today.
How does the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangement program work?
The Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangement (DFAA) program is run by the federal government and provides financial assistance to provinces and territories after large-scale disasters, such as floods. The federal government steps in when the costs exceed what the province or territory can cover on its own. Each province and territory has its own rules, limits and regulations on how the money is distributed. As of April 1, 2025, the government launched a modernized DFAA program with more resources dedicated to risk reduction and pre-disaster planning, as well as increased funding to rebuild with minimized future risks.
Below, we give a high-level overview of each province and territory's current financial assistance plan for when disaster strikes: