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British Columbia Insurers Question Green Roofs
Insurers of residential buildings in British Columbia are wary of unfamiliar technologies that may put buildings at risk, particularly since the region experienced the “leaky condo crisis” in the 1990s, when design flaws led to widespread moisture problems. Those problems led to the creation of the Homeowner Protection Office (HPO), a government agency that oversees insurance regulations for new residential construction, as well as provincial legislation requiring builders to provide third-party warranty insurance for any new residential unit. Although warranty terms vary, the builder must be able to guarantee materials and labor for two years, the building envelope for five years, and the building structure for ten years.
Green roof advocates and developers in British Columbia recently came into conflict with warranty insurers and HPO when some insurers declared they would not insure green roofs on residential buildings until they knew more about their long-term reliability. “When [green roofs] began to be mandated for residential construction,” said HPO CEO Ken Cameron, “we checked with the warranty providers, and only one of them was willing to provide insurance for green roofs.”
In a letter sent to municipalities outlining insurers’ concerns, HPO argued that in condominium buildings, maintenance of the roof falls under the authority of the condominium association, rather than any individual, and the roof might not receive the attention it needs. The letter warned municipalities that requiring green roofs could lead to conflicts with insurers unwilling to cover the roofs; without warranty insurance, the projects could not be built.
Based on information provided by HPO, Vancouver rescinded its requirement for green roofs on residential buildings in April 2007, including those in Millennium Water, the athletes’ village being developed for the 2010 Olympic games. Merrick Architecture, which is overseeing the project design, had to convince its warranty insurer to approve the project with the green roofs intact. After dialogue with the project team, the insurer decided in May 2007 that it would cover the green roofs, allowing the project to move forward.
This sort of dialogue is just what Cameron hoped for: “The interests have not [historically] been in close communication with each other,” he said. Merrick’s Roger Bayley agreed, adding that the insurers’ perception of the green roof industry might be part of the problem. “From our point of view, we’ve been building green roofs for 30 years,” he said, but from the insurers’ point of view, “the green roof industry has just sprung up overnight.”
– Allyson Wendt
For more information:
Homeowner Protection Office
Vancouver, British Columbia
800-407-7757, 604-646-7055
www.hpo.bc.ca
June 1, 2007
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Photo: Merrick Architecture
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