Difficult access to insurance policies on aboriginal reserves

Whether you are a deputy or a private citizen, accessing an insurance policy seems to be a challenge for an Aboriginal person. In 2018, Alexis Wawanoloath wanted to insure his car. At the time, he was living on a reserve. When he gave his address to the insurer, Industrial Alliance, he was told: “Oh, it's on a reserve; we don't insure.”

A member of the Atikamekw community in Manawan who preferred to remain anonymous explains that he pays twice as much for his car insurance because he lives on a reserve.

“As soon as insurance companies see that the mailing address is in reserve, they raise their price. We all have the same problem with that. We pay a lot for our insurance; it costs me $2,000 per year for a Ford 150. I did some research; one of my children lives in an urban environment and, putting in his address, my insurance cost me $1,000 less.”

Daniel G. Nolett, executive director of the Abenaki community in Odanak, confirms that insurance is more expensive for those living on reserves.

“Sometimes you get called by companies, then when you give the postal code, you get the answer: “Oops! It's in a First Nations community; sorry, we don't cover.” They don't want to insure if it's a First Nations community, urban or isolated, because they're afraid of vandalism... So some companies don't make a distinction and simply don't cover anyone on reserves. This is a problem that has been reported on a number of occasions. It is more difficult for some to find insurance, and the premiums are often higher as well.”

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Redlining: place of residence as a ground of discrimination?

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1. Wawanoloath, a former Parti Québecois deputy, sees this as redlining,a discriminatory practice consisting in refusing or limiting loans to populations located in specific geographical areas.

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Michel Morin, a law professor at the University of Montreal, explains that the principle of non-discrimination applies to individuals and not to the place of residence. Therefore, it is conceivable, although surprising, that in some sectors it could have happened that insurers refused to insure certain goods. In trying to understand the reasons for refusing to grant car insurance, the law professor hypothesized that the vandalism potentially present in some communities could be the cause of a refusal.

“If there has been a lot of vandalism against cars, it may be a legitimate reason, but the insurer must be able to demonstrate it if you file a complaint against it to the Commission des Droits de la Personne et des Droits de la Jeunesse (CDPDJ), because if the real reason is that the insurance application comes from an Aboriginal person, it is not acceptable; it is discriminatory. The insurer must base its decision on objective criteria. There really needs to be very, very compelling data, and not just isolated incidents.”

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Complaint to the Human Rights Commission

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At the time, Alexis Wawanoloath was a law student. He talks about his situation to one of his professors, Daniel Proulx, who teaches human law. “It falls into the category of illegal discrimination. File a complaint with the Human Rights Commission,” he told him. The student follows the recommendation of his professor and files a complaint with the CDPDJ.Ten months after the complaint was filed, the Commission proposes mediation to Mr. Wawanoloath.

The latter asks that the mediation take place in his reserve. His request was refused. The mediation finally took place in the Commission's offices. Mr. Wawanoloath goes to the mediation alone, while the vice president of the insurance company and her lawyer attend by video conference.Although a law student, he feels aggrieved during the mediation. “It's a very, very unfair process, it's a very unfair process, it's useless, it doesn't work, the mediator knows nothing about systemic racism,” he laments.

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A dubious procedure

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While Alexis Wawanoloath is finishing the bar and taking care of his pregnant wife and two children in the midst of a pandemic, the Commission is threatening to close his file if he does not provide certain information about his current insurance. Mr. Wawanolaoth does not understand being asked for information that is not relevant to his complaint.

“My file includes a complaint of systemic racism for acts that I suffered at the hands of Industrial Alliance. The investigation therefore concerns the actions of this company against me and with respect to Aboriginal people living on reserves in Quebec, who are refused to insure. I don't see how my insurance file with another company is relevant to advance such an investigation.”

By not transmitting this information quickly enough, the former MEP saw his complaint file closed to the Commission on 25 August 2020, three months after he was assigned an investigator. A decision that he considered hasty and suspicious. He then asked himself questions about the investigator responsible for his file at the CDPDJ.

“This man also had a business that offered services to insurance companies. It was therefore a claims specialist who treated my case like a claims specialist,” he laments.The former deputy then required that an independent investigator take care of his case. He also called for an independent investigation into the investigator's apparent conflict of interest.

Finally, he wanted an introspection to be carried out on systemic racism within the CDPDJ.

When asked about this, the Commission stated that it was not aware of the professional activities of its investigator prior to his arrival at the Commission. But she defended herself by saying that he had not been working as an insurance specialist since then. A new investigator has been assigned to Mr. Wawanoloath's case.

With regard to the closure of his file, the Commission told the former MEP that he should file a new complaint with his authority or go to the ordinary courts in order to obtain redress.

“I found the Commission's response astonishing and disrespectful. The Commission should treat the people it is supposed to defend with greater consideration.” In the end, the original complaint file was reopened and a new investigator was put in charge of the file.

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Commission policy called into question

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2001. Wawanoloath has researched complaints filed with the Commission, and has identified only 17 complaints from Aboriginal people since 2001. A figure that he considers to be too low considering systemic racism in Canada.

“Do you have the right approaches with communities? Do you have Indigenous employees who understand the sensitivity of these communities? Mr Wawanaloath asked the Commission. Seventeen cases in almost 20 years! While we know that Aboriginal people are victims of discrimination! ”

‍The former MEP is also outraged by the difficulty of working with the Commission.

“You would have to be assisted by a lawyer to do business with the Commission. I will have to take my case and defend it myself in front of a common law court. I have a law degree, I have already been a deputy, but I am discouraged,” he laments.In addition to the changes that have been made within the insurance company targeted by his complaint, he is asking the Commission to review the treatment of Aboriginal cases.

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The Commission singled out by CRARR

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Fo Niemi, co-founder of the Center for Research and Action on Race Relations (CRARR), is following Mr. Wawanoloath's case closely. “There is discrimination in the sale of insurance policies on Aboriginal reserves, and it's something we've heard for a long time. But we don't know how widespread it is in the insurance industry. The other issue is how Mr. Wawanoloath was treated when he filed his complaint.”

The specialist in access to equality for minorities in Quebec knows the Human Rights Commission well, since the CRARR often deals with it. “There have been quite long, sometimes inexplicable, delays in dealing with complaints since the start of the pandemic. Since March, there has been a lot of pressure from investigators, who are looking to speed up the processing of complaints. We wonder if this acceleration of processing is intended to carry out investigations more quickly or to bring down complaints in order to close more complex files.”

According to Fo Niemi, the Commission lacks training on systemic racism, although the organization's raison d'être is to investigate situations of discrimination and exploitation under the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. He condemns the Commission, which, in his opinion, does not have the necessary expertise to deal with sensitive cases such as that of Mr. Wawanoloath, which is harmful for indigenous communities. “In this case,, the Commission has lost all its credibility with indigenous communities”, deplores the co-founder of CRARR.The Commission did not want to answer our questions — it “does not comment publicly on complaint files, since they are confidential”.

However, she wanted to tell us that her “investigative work is done rigorously, impartially and without conflicts of interest.”

We also wanted to know the policies of Industrial Alliance insurance company with respect to Aboriginals as well as its conditions for obtaining an automobile insurance policy, particularly in the case of Alexis Wawanoloath.

Industrial Alliance did not answer our questions and refused our interview requests. She only stated that she had chosen to be present in certain regions of Quebec and not in others. Beyond the changes he would like to see made in the insurance company at issue, Mr. Wawanoloath requested that changes be made to the Commission in the treatment of Aboriginal cases.