Last year, the average Canadian household spent $1,400 on expenses at Christmas. Keith and Susanne Phillips can only dream of a holiday season so cheap.
The Saanich couple was left with a $48,000 cleanup bill when their home heating tank failed mere days before Christmas 2011, pouring upwards of 1,000 litres of oil into the soil on their property.
B次元官网网址淲e had the tank topped up, around 800 litres, on (Dec. 21). By the next morning (the tank) was dry and the furnace wouldnB次元官网网址檛 turn on,B次元官网网址� recalls Keith. B次元官网网址淭here was a hole in the tank smaller than my little finger. You couldnB次元官网网址檛 even see a hole, at first.B次元官网网址�
Nobody knew the age of the steel oil tank aside the house on PhillipsB次元官网网址� Ambassador Avenue property. Keith says it couldB次元官网网址檝e been anywhere between 20 and 50 years old. Either way, it had been sitting long enough that oil corroded the tank from the inside, ultimately rupturing on Dec. 21.
B次元官网网址淲e had a platinum protection plan where (our oil company) would do sonic testing of the tank to check the thickness of the walls. We were also using their oil thatB次元官网网址檚 supposed to have additives in it that retards corrosion,B次元官网网址� Keith says.
B次元官网网址淲e were sort of relying on that plan, to some extent, to give us a headB次元官网网址檚 up if something was up. At the end of the day that didnB次元官网网址檛 help us out. WeB次元官网网址檙e kicking ourselves now B次元官网网址� it was an old tank, why didnB次元官网网址檛 we just replace it? For $2,000 we couldB次元官网网址檝e avoided a ton of grief.B次元官网网址�
Cleanup of the property began immediately after the spill. Crews and backhoes dug out oil-saturated earth, and trucks, tractors, hazmat vehicles and cement mixers used their property as a parking lot. And on Day 1 of remediation, the PhillipsB次元官网网址� insurance company delivered the bad news.
B次元官网网址淥ur insurer said, B次元官网网址楾his is the escape of pollutants clause in your home insurance.B次元官网网址� They wouldnB次元官网网址檛 cover any of it,B次元官网网址� Keith says.
Most insurance coverage for homes with oil heating includes a pollution exclusion clause, which states the insurer wonB次元官网网址檛 cover losses or damages caused by contamination or the release of pollutants.
B次元官网网址淒o you carefully read all the clauses before you sign your (home insurance) policy?B次元官网网址� asks Elizabeth Adjin-Tettey, an associate dean in the faculty of law at the University of Victoria and an instructor of insurance law. B次元官网网址淢ost of us donB次元官网网址檛 even know that we have those clauses in our contract.B次元官网网址�
Insurance companies have pollution exclusion clauses to avoid being exposed to costly oil spill scenarios, but some policies cover homeowners in the event oil leaks onto a neighbouring property.
Naomi Kovak, with UVicB次元官网网址檚 Environmental Law Clinic, says re-examining such clauses and changing insurance requirements would be a step toward proactive spill prevention.
B次元官网网址淓ven where they do not have such an exclusion clause, recent case law would suggest that property owners might still find themselves without coverage,B次元官网网址� Kovak wrote in a recent report, co-authored with fellow student Trevor Johnson.
B次元官网网址淥ther jurisdictions have passed regulations requiring the insurance companies to at least offer pollution coverage, though they still leave it up to the individual homeowner whether or not to purchase it.B次元官网网址�
Kovak and JohnsonB次元官网网址檚 report, entitled Preventing Home Heating Oil Spills in British Columbia, focused on seven suggested provisions. Their recommendations would, overall, protect the environment through prevention, and take part of the onus off homeowners, should a spill occur.
Among the recommendations are: improved physical requirements for tanks and equipment; limiting the length of time a tank can be in use; regulating oil delivery; inspection and monitoring requirements; tank decommissioning requirements; and direct economic incentives for homeowners to change heating fuels.
B次元官网网址淚 think the ultimate solution here is provincial changes. This is not a Victoria problem, itB次元官网网址檚 not a Saanich problem, itB次元官网网址檚 a B.C. problem,B次元官网网址� Kovak says.
Kovak and JohnsonB次元官网网址檚 research found that B.C.B次元官网网址檚 legal protection surrounding oil spills is reactive, as opposed to preventative. The Environmental Management Act, the B.C. Fire Code and the federal Fisheries Act all come into play only after oil hits the ground.
B次元官网网址淵ou can charge people, you can sue people, you can get money out of people, but what the lawB次元官网网址檚 not doing is preventing the accidents from happening,B次元官网网址� Kovak says.
The simplest steps that can be taken, the report says, is creating inspection requirements so oil companies arenB次元官网网址檛 refilling old or corroding tanks.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e suggesting by regulating oil delivery, which is a better preventative system, oil shouldnB次元官网网址檛 be delivered to tanks that are old or that arenB次元官网网址檛 in good shape. Oil companies, once given the tools to measure that, can be held responsible once they spill,B次元官网网址� Kovak says. B次元官网网址淎s deliverers of oil, the oil companies are in a unique position to reduce the risk of spills from poor tanks.B次元官网网址�
Adjin-Tettey suggests that until legislative changes are made, a homeownerB次元官网网址檚 best protections are vigilance and seeking to secure better protection through oneB次元官网网址檚 insurance company.
B次元官网网址淪ay to your insurer that you want to have a modification of the terms to include certain things that are normally excluded. The insurer will likely say B次元官网网址榥o,B次元官网网址� but if they do say B次元官网网址榶es,B次元官网网址� be sure itB次元官网网址檚 reflected in your premium B次元官网网址� which may not be worth it,B次元官网网址� she says.
B次元官网网址淵our options are to live with it or try to negotiate to have it covered at a much higher premium. Monitor the oil tank and make sure itB次元官网网址檚 replaced when it needs to be.B次元官网网址�
The PhillipsB次元官网网址� new tank is much more B次元官网网址渟kookumB次元官网网址� than their last, they say, and itB次元官网网址檚 now located in their garage, as opposed to on a rarely frequented side of their house. It also has failsafe technology B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 essentially a tank within a tank with an emergency gauge to sound an alarm if thereB次元官网网址檚 a leak in the main bladder.
The couple says at least four of their neighbours replaced their old heating tanks when they saw the destruction to the PhillipsB次元官网网址� front lawn and learned of the cleanup costs. Keith says he hopes other Saanich residents will also learn from his familyB次元官网网址檚 misfortunes, and take action to prevent themselves from landing in a similar situation.
B次元官网网址淚t was one of those things that was out of sight, out of mind, and in retrospect we shouldB次元官网网址檝e been more proactive,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淣obody wants to go through what we went through. We were one of the lucky ones, really, when you think how bad it couldB次元官网网址檝e been.B次元官网网址�
Cleanup costs associated with home heating oil spills can easily reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 hard on us B次元官网网址� my retirementB次元官网网址檚 been pushed back a few years, but it could be financially devastating to a lot of people,B次元官网网址� Keith says. B次元官网网址淎nd these old tanks are all destined to fail, just by the effluxion of time.B次元官网网址�
The Phillips are optimistic Christmas 2012 will be a different story for them compared to last year, and hopefully one thatB次元官网网址檚 a lot less stressful and less expensive.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檒l be better, this year,B次元官网网址� Keith says. B次元官网网址淚 hope itB次元官网网址檒l be much less memorable.B次元官网网址�
To read the full report from the Environmental Law Clinic, visit .
kslavin@saanichnews.com
