Most homeowners today are so gung-ho on doing their own home renovations, they rarely think of any accidents that could occur while working on them. An even scarier scenario for homeowners who hire contractors to work on their renovation projects is to be told that they are legally liable because one of the workers got seriously hurt while working on the job in their home. Most homeowners are likely to say quite flippantly, ‘not my problem, they should have adequate insurance’. Ah! that’s where you may need to read the following two articles to know that you may be more liable than you think.Most homeowners today are so gung-ho on doing their own home renovations, they rarely think of any accidents that could occur while working on them. An even scarier scenario for homeowners who hire contractors to work on their renovation projects is to be told that they are legally liable because one of the workers got seriously hurt while working on the job in their home. Most homeowners are likely to say quite flippantly, ‘not my problem, they should have adequate insurance’. Ah! that’s where you may need to read the following two articles to know that you may be more liable than you think.
If you are contemplating having some renovations done to your home in the near future, I suggest you do some research. For starters, here are two articles that will get you started on this process.
"homeowners incorrectly believe that if a contractor is hurt on their property, they will not be liable" - Christina Pellegrini – Financial Post
By knowing what you are covered for by your own home insurance can certainly temper your gusto to do certain projects, and if you hire a contractor, you need to be satisfied that you won’t be held legally liable should an accident occur in your home to one of the workers. Ask your contractor for proof of insurance before you sign up for any work....WSIB especially.
You definitely don’t want something like this to affect you. “Forty-one per cent of homeowners incorrectly believe that if a contractor is hurt on their property, they will not be liable. But that’s not true: you could be liable for their medical bills, lost wages or damages for pain and suffering.” (Christina Pellegrini – Financial Post article)
Photo credit: massless / Foter.com / CC BYPhoto credit: massless / Foter.com / CC BY
Wow! I am sure you will not want to be presented with news that one of the contractors working on your renovation fell and got very badly injured. Not only would you personally feel badly that this happened in your home, you certainly wouldn’t want to be liable for financial compensation. Can you see the $$$$$ signs piling up if you were liable? If the law thinks that the contractor deserves damages for pain and suffering, just know that your pain and suffering as a result of shelling out several thousands of dollars in compensation doesn’t factor into this issue. Ignorance, in this case is definitely not bliss. So, keep that famous adage in the back of your brain – buyer beware - and plan for your home renovations wisely.