N.B. announces more details on Disaster Financial Assistance program following Fiona
The New Brunswick government announced more details on its Disaster Financial Assistance program for residents in need of help following post-tropical storm Fiona.
The program, which was announced on Sunday, was designed to provide assistance for eligible damages and losses that "threaten the health and safety of individuals and communities."
“There is a lot of work to be done in the coming weeks and months to recover. We expect hurricane Fiona’s damage total will exceed the $35 million paid out for hurricane Dorian in 2019,” said Public Safety Minister Bill Hogan in a news release Thursday. “We are committed to making sure disaster financial assistance helps our friends and neighbours get back on their feet as fast as possible.”
RECOVERY PROCESS
The province says the first step New Brunswickers must take is reporting any damage to the government as soon as possible. Residents affected by property damage related to Fiona on Sept. 23 or Sept. 24 can report it by calling 1-888-298-8555 or by registering online.
The Service New Brunswick TeleServices line is available to receive calls between 8 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.
"The Damage Report Line program allows residents, tenants, small businesses and not-for-profit organizations to receive information and register their hurricane-related damage with a single phone call," read the news release.
"Damage assessments will be reviewed, and health and safety inspection teams will be dispatched if required."
As of Wednesday, the province says it has received 164 damage reports in areas from the Nova Scotia border, along the Northumberland Strait to the Acadian Peninsula, including inland areas.
Health and safety teams are already in the field inspecting homes and businesses. The province says these inspections are free but a damage report must be filed first.
There are 112 requests for inspectors, 13 of which were completed on the first day of operations.
New Brunswickers are reminded to:
- Contact their insurance companies immediately to report damage.
- Take photos of damage to their homes or properties.
- Keep receipts of any repairs and replacement purchases.
- Log the number of hours of work undertaken for residents who are cleaning their own properties, or family members or those who have assisted in the cleanup of their property.
Satellite offices will be set up in affected areas in the coming days for people who want help in person with the application process.
The deadline for homeowners, small businesses and not-for-profit organizations to submit an application is Jan. 31, 2023. Anyone with questions can call 1-888-553-8558.
In case of issues with the insurer, the province says residents may call the Office of the Consumer Advocate for Insurance at 1-888-283-5111.
DISASTER FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
New Brunswick says residents, small business owners – including those in agriculture and aquaculture – and not-for-profit organizations are eligible for the Disaster Financial Assistance program.
Eligible claim limits include:
- maximum claim limits by individuals for structural damages will be $200,000
- maximum claim limits for small businesses and eligible not-for-profit organizations will be $500,000
- maximum monthly housing rental costs will be $1,500
- advance payments for eligible claimants will be up to $20,000
The province says advance limits are issued when individuals could get back in to their homes more quickly with early financial support after initial damage assessments.
The province reminds residents that the Disaster Financial Assistance program does not pay for any damage or loss that is covered by an insurance policy.
"Claimants must contact their insurance provider first to determine if coverage will be provided. If affordable coverage was available and not purchased, the Disaster Financial Assistance claim cannot be approved," wrote the province in the news release.
The program will assist with covering the costs of basic-needs items, like basic repairs to structural damage to a family home or small business.
It will also cover costs for essential items such as:
- appliances that could not be removed from flood danger (for instance, a refrigerator, stove, washer or dryer)
- clean up (labour to remove damaged materials and contents from basement)
- removing trees and objects that pose a safety threat
- driveway repairs
- retaining wall repairs
The news release says the program does not cover items such as:
- seasonal residences – like cottages or camps – or recreational equipment such as boats, all-terrain vehicles or travel trailers
- outbuildings, such as sheds, barns and detached garages
- decks
- erosion or landscaping
- luxury items, such as jewellery
Eligible not-for-profits and small businesses – including farms and others in agriculture and aquaculture – can also receive disaster financial assistance for damage to buildings, inventory and furnishings.
Salaries, lost profits and insurable loss are not covered.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Liberal MP says she's leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Concerns about Plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglass barriers.
Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Ont. woman who faked pregnancy to defraud doulas arrested again on similar charges
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Construction begins on LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa
Shovels have hit the ground for constuction on Canada's LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa.
B.C. man awarded $5,000 in damages in first-of-it-kind intimate image case
In a first-of-its-kind case, a B.C. tribunal has ruled on a dispute involving the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, awarding damages and issuing orders that the photos be destroyed and taken offline.