Square One Insurance Home Insurance Reviews

Don't listen to the commercials about policies being as low as $12 a month...
I contacted them to discuss ways to reduce what I pay monthly, as I was paying over $108 a month for a 600 sqft condo that I had never ever made a claim on. I had no choice at the beginning, but now things are tough for me financially.
As we went through my policy, their suggestions were only going to cut costs by a dollar here and there. They stated my fees per month were high because of some "condo owner's protection". I kept asking them, why are other insurance companies providing me with quotes as much as $60 cheaper -same deductibles, the same level of insurance coverage, etc. I did not receive a response and there was no budging despite me being clear that I was going to close my policy if they couldn't make a substantial reduction in monthly fees. I signed up with another insurance company for $50 less and cancelled my policy within the same day. In fact, the new policy provides me with the protection that Square One doesn't.
Please pay attention to what is listed in your policy. As a result of the phone call I had with them, I discovered they were charging me for auto-related liability insurance despite me not requesting it, as I do not have a driver's licence nor a car. I did not see this when signing up. I would have caught it. I will be contacting management and seeing how much money I paid in the last year for insurance coverage I did not need nor requested and will be demanding a refund.

After giving all of my personal information, including that we sell eggs to friends and family, we were told that we aren't eligible for insurance at all because we have "commercial farm activity". I asked to have the information I submitted removed from their database and they refused. Waste of time. Don't give them your info!

Denied my water claim even though I have full coverage. Scam bam bunch of dishonest people. The other reviews say it all. Good prices are good for nothing.

I learned the hard way that less is not more. I was sold a policy by their staff by a woman who seemed to lack little knowledge on insurance in general. She failed to fully describe in detail what improvements meant. What it really meant was we won't cover anything in your condo that isn't your contents. I should have listened to my friends when they laughed at who I was insured with

After being insured with them for years, they called me out of the blue and said they cannot cover me any longer because of the type of property I have. I have always at every renewal been upfront about exactly what type of property I have. They then act like they're being SO nice (I call this arrogance) that they're giving me 60 days to find coverage elsewhere. Do they not understand this is their error?

Don't bother if you prefer to have insurance that is reliable and won't throw you to the curb if they make a mistake.

Zero information of what your policy actually is and no customer service. Watch out for what your policy ACTUALLY covers. Found out nothing was covered. IT'S A SCAM. You pay for what you get people!!!!

I was with Square One for several years. One reason I went with them was their competitive rates. When I signed with them you were able to choose ( within a window) the insured value of your home. They said that was what made them different. Slowly this insured value began to increase until it was 25- 30 more than other Brokers. My renewal last year had an increase of over 100 %. Also, the staff do not have the knowledge to answer simple questions. It is like they are reading from a prgrammed set of answers. For example, I installed a sump pump. I got numerous email questions on what was powering the pump, etc. After they finally made the change to my policy my rate INCREASED! I could not get a reasonable answer as to why so I deleted the pump and my rate when back DOWN. I had too many problems to mention. I just cancelled my policies and went with another Broker.
Stay away from Squqre One!

I purchased house insurance when I started renovating my home. After one year, they decided to cancel my insurance because they said the renovation was taking too long. When I purchased the insurance they never told me or stipulated in the agreement that I could only insure for up to one year while renovating. I explained to them that we were waiting for 6 months just to get the permits and regardless they should have told me before selling me their insurance product. Now they want to dump me with no insurance. Jas S. was rude from the start. As soon as I spoke to her for the first time she was talking to me as though I was dirt under her shoe. To speak to someone in that tone is bad enough, but to speak to a customer like that is beyond unprofessional. I am now getting my lawyers involved and will refuse to sign the consent of cancellation. Avoid this company at all costs, especially Jas S.

I read some reviews, and it would seem that I have had the very same experience with reviews. I originally purchased insurance from Jas S. now a Manager. I was speaking to a gentleman named Igor, and I found out that I no longer have insurance.

I sent all my information only being a customer of 4 years & no claims to find out that after 1 day, I am no longer insured.

There are many insurance companies out there, and Square One Insurance is out for money, however, in return are under no circumstance willing to work with you.

Thank God, I never had a claim, since I cannot imagine what sort of crap would be involved with Square One Insurance.

I would rather spend double and have insurance elsewhere.......

My tenants experienced water damage from a dishwater leak. The bottom of the kitchen wall needed to be replaced as it was wet despite emergency cleaning. Square One/All Perils Claims told me not to do anything until they decided what was covered. Almost a month later, they denied my claim because of "mould growth" inside the kitchen wall, which somehow they had seen when they visited the suite 4 days after the incident. After 3 weeks had passed, the project escalated as there needed to be mould remediation and the entire wall had to be replaced along with the kitchen cabinets. I also had to prorate rent for my tenants who moved out as the kitchen became unusable during the repairs.

My claim was wrongly denied because Square One/All Perils Claims conducted a flawed and inaccurate assessment. The insurance's contractor did not do any assessment (e.g., no thermal camera to assess water damage, did not open up the walls, did not look behind the kitchen cabinets) but decided somehow there was mould INSIDE the kitchen walls without having seen it. Moreover, the contractor stated that this mould was not from the dishwasher leak but "had been there from other previous leaks." He lied as there was no way to determine this. However, it was not surprising to find mould once the kitchen wall was opened up during the repairs 3 weeks after the incident as these were ideal conditions for mould growth (mould grows after 48 to 72 hours in damp dark spaces). It is my opinion that Square One/All Perils Claims knew the high likelihood of mould growth in this situation and delayed their decision making to make sure that mould would grow in the 3 weeks.

After 4 months of going back and forth, I settled with Square One for half of the project costs. They offered me a settlement "on good faith." My only option was to take them to small claims court, which was not feasible for me as I work full-time on Vancouver Island. I am also so completely worn down by this process, that I needed to settle the matter for my own emotional wellbeing. However, I am greatly dissatisfied with their service, the inefficiencies in handling my claim, and the lack of accurate evidence they provided. I hold Square One and All Perils Claims entirely responsible for the full extent of the damages. My claim was initially denied given a poorly conducted and grossly inaccurate assessment. Insurance must cover all damages, not just part of the damages, especially if damages were aggravated by the length of time taken to deal with the matter. If this had been dealt with in a timely and efficient manner, there would have been no mould growth and my tenants would not have had to move out for an extended period of time. This issue has caused me and my tenants significant stress. I have also spent a considerable amount of my personal time coordinating services to ensure that the repairs were expedited, especially as the 3 weeks following the water damage incident were wasted waiting for their decision.

If you carefully read these reviews, you will see that most of them refer to customers valuing the lower deductibles compared to what is offered by other providers. Reviews also refer to the "great" customer service offered by this company when convincing people to buy their insurance. There are NO reviews of big claims being positively resolved. Although going through insurance providers will likely always be a stressful experience, stay away from this small company who will do whatever it takes not to pay up when it counts.