Lytton, B.C. woman says insurance at risk over delays to rebuild fire-ravaged village
Global News
A Lytton resident whose fire was destroyed in a wildfire in June 2021 says a two-year insurance deadline to start rebuilding is fast approaching but work remains delayed.
A Lytton, B.C., woman is calling on the province for help as she faces the potential loss of an insurance settlement over the loss of her home in the fire that razed the village to the ground.
Tiffany Callewaert Haugan’s home was among the scores of properties destroyed when a wildfire virtually wiped the community off the map on June 30, 2021.
That was more than 18 months ago, and the townsite has yet to be remediated for rebuilding. However, Callewaert Haugan says her insurance company has a two-year deadline to rebuild.
“For the first time I am feeling anger in the whole thing,” Callewaert Haugan told Global News in a Zoom interview.
With a deadline to get to work rebuilding fast approaching, Callewaert Haugan said the insurance company, CNS — now known as Intact Financial — has turned down a request for an extension.
“I think it is unbelievable the government has not stepped in and made these insurance companies do this, by now at least,” she said.
Callewaert Haugan can take the insurance company to court to fight for an extension, however the process would be both time-consuming and expensive.
Meanwhile, construction at the townsite cannot begin because archeological work is still underway.
