Tenant insurance works much the same across Canada, but Quebec’s legal framework is different. Leases and insurance contracts in Quebec are governed by the Civil Code rather than by common-law rules, the policy is usually sold in French as assurance locataire, and its liability coverage is called responsabilité civile (civil liability). Quebec also has a traditional moving day on July 1 and a history of spring floods and ice storms. How tenant insurance works in general is covered in the tenant insurance guide; this page covers what is specific to Quebec, and the home insurance hub links to every province.
Civil liability: why it matters to Quebec tenants
Under the Civil Code, a tenant can be held responsible for damage to the dwelling that they, their household or their guests cause. A kitchen fire, an overflowing bathtub or a washing machine hose that bursts can therefore lead to a claim from the landlord, or from the landlord’s insurer after it pays for repairs. The civil liability part of a tenant policy is what pays for that claim and for claims from neighbours whose units are damaged. It is also the part a landlord most often asks for in the lease.
A liability claim for fire or water damage to a building can run far beyond what a tenant policy costs, which is why many landlords ask for this coverage.
The lease and tenant insurance
Every new residential lease in Quebec must use the mandatory lease form of the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL), which was called the Régie du logement until August 31, 2020. A landlord can include a clause in the lease requiring the tenant to carry insurance, usually with a minimum amount of civil liability coverage, and to provide proof of it. Once the tenant signs a lease with that clause, it is a condition of the tenancy.
Moving day and your policy
No law sets a moving date any more, but most Quebec leases still end on June 30, so many tenants move on or around July 1. Where you live is one of the factors a tenant policy is priced on, so a move means updating it:
- give the insurer your new address and moving date before you move;
- ask how belongings are covered while in a moving truck or in storage between leases;
- expect the premium to change if the new unit is in a different area, building type or floor.
Flooding and ice storms
The spring 2017 floods in Quebec and eastern Ontario flooded more than 5,000 residences, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada, with Quebec regions including the Montérégie, the Laurentides, Montreal and Laval among those hit, and in 2019 the Ottawa River flooded communities such as Gatineau and Pontiac. Overland water from a river is excluded from a standard tenant policy and available as an endorsement with its own premium, which matters most for ground-floor and basement units near rivers and lakes that flood in spring. Sewer backup is a separate endorsement.
Ice storms are the other Quebec-specific risk: the January 1998 ice storm is one of the costliest insured weather events in Canadian history. Whether ice-storm damage to your belongings is covered depends on how it happened and on the policy wording, and some policies pay for food spoiled during an accidental power outage, up to a set limit.
What Quebec tenants pay
The insurer dataset used for provincial averages in the tenant insurance guide excludes Quebec, so this page does not quote an average for the province. Your price depends on where you live, the building, the contents and liability limits, the deductible, your claims history and the add-ons you choose, so comparing quotes for the same coverage is the practical way to find out.
Quebec insurers to compare
Quebec-based insurers that sell tenant insurance include Desjardins, which offers a discount for insuring both your car and your home with it; Promutuel, a network of mutual insurers; and Beneva, which La Capitale and SSQ Insurance became on January 1, 2023. National insurers also sell in the province. The best tenant insurance companies page compares providers.
Tenant insurance in other provinces
Renters elsewhere face different questions: the standard lease clause in Ontario, earthquake coverage in BC, and hail in Alberta. Quebec renters who buy can compare Quebec home insurance.