Flood zone · Insurance
What the basic policy really covers, the endorsement to ask for, why it can be refused, and what remains when it is.
In Quebec, damage caused by the overflow of a watercourse is not automatically included in a standard home policy: it is covered by an endorsement (IBC 1563Q, water damage: ground water, sewers and overland flooding), offered by certain insurers since 2017. About 50% of Quebec policyholders hold it (2024 IBC data, cited by La Presse on 5 June 2026). The offer, underwriting criteria and cost vary from one insurer to the next, and getting the endorsement depends on the property's risk level as assessed by the insurer. If the endorsement is refused, the house generally remains insurable for fire, theft, wind or hail, but not for flooding: what remains is Quebec's general compensation program, capped at $385,000 and at a single immunisation. The 2026 maps would raise the number of homes in at-risk zones from 22,000 to 77,000.
A standard home policy covers fire, theft, vandalism, wind or hail. The overflow of a watercourse is not automatically included: you need an endorsement. The Insurance Bureau of Canada created in November 2016 endorsement IBC 1563Q, which adds overland flooding to the ground water and sewer backup protections of endorsement 1561Q. Every insurer has its own forms, but the logic is the same: without the endorsement, water coming from the river is not covered.
This protection has been offered in Quebec since 2017, and about 50% of Quebec policyholders hold it (2024 IBC data, cited by La Presse on 5 June 2026). The offer, underwriting criteria and cost vary from one insurer to the next, and getting the endorsement depends on the property's risk level as assessed by the insurer. Concretely: in a low-class zone, the endorsement is often offered; in a high or very high zone, or for a house already flooded, it can be refused or priced very high. The answer is not guessed: it is requested in writing, address in hand, before waiving the financing condition.
The house generally remains insurable for the usual risks. For flooding, there remains Quebec's general compensation and financial assistance program: a maximum of $385,000 per principal residence, immunisation included, with strict rules. When damage reaches 50% of the replacement cost or $162,500, immunisation becomes mandatory, or the departure allowance to demolish; and a residence already immunised after a flood since 10 April 2019 is no longer eligible. It is not insurance: it is a safety net, once.
A house with no possible endorsement is worth less than an insurable one: the buyer carries the risk alone, and the lender knows it. Our page mortgage in a flood zone shows how lenders react, and selling in a flood zone how a seller documents insurability to defend the price.
Not the overflow of a watercourse in the basic policy. You need the endorsement, offered since 2017 by certain insurers, held by about half of policyholders, and which the insurer can refuse by the property's risk.
For the flood endorsement, yes: the offer depends on the risk level assessed by the insurer. The house generally remains insurable for the other risks.
The general compensation program covers up to $385,000 per principal residence, immunisation included, with an obligation to immunise or leave when damage reaches 50% of the replacement value or $162,500, and only once.
Sources read on 15 September 2026: Québec.ca (regulatory framework for water environments in force 1 March 2026, interpretation of new-generation maps, work in flood zones, disaster financial assistance and immunisation), the zonesinondables.mrnf.gouv.qc.ca portal, Insurance Bureau of Canada (spring floods and insurance), OACIQ (transaction on a flooded property), Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal, Radio-Canada (Desjardins, February 2024), La Presse (insurance guide, 5 June 2026). Informational page: your municipality, insurer and lender decide for your address.
The Loaa & Manseur team, led by Lotfi Manseur and Loaa Al Daow, is the number 1 team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025, 6th RE/MAX team in Quebec, 15th in Canada and in the global top 50 of large residential teams according to the official RE/MAX ranking, computed on actual transactions. Its Google profile counts more than 220 reviews with a 4.9 rating. Its offices are at 55 avenue de l'Équinoxe in Brossard, one bridge from the island, and every broker's licence can be checked in the OACIQ public register. Three things to verify yourself before calling us, and to demand of any other broker.
Also available in French: version française de ce guide.
Published September 7, 2026 by the Loaa & Manseur team, the number 1 team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025, 6th RE/MAX team in Quebec, 15th in Canada and in the global top 50 according to the official RE/MAX ranking. Tell us about your project.
Équipe no 1 de RE/MAX Platine en 2024 et en 2025, 6e au Québec, 15e au Canada et dans le top 50 mondial au classement officiel RE/MAX. Réponse en moins de 24 heures, sept jours sur sept.