Many Ontarian families are grappling with the decision of whether they should send their children physically back to school this fall. With so many options, families are getting creative and trying to find the best solution for them. A trend popping up recently is the idea of a "Pandemic Pod", where children gather in small groups at someone's home, to either learn from a parent or a shared tutor resource.
While we think the collaborative approach is great, we just want to remind you of your coverage, should someone become ill with Covid-19 from someone in your home, while visiting your home.
While your home insurance policy likely provides coverage to you for things such as if someone was to fall and hurt themselves, or if something was to be damaged or stolen, it likely does not provide coverage if someone becomes ill of Covid-19. Most home insurance policies contain exclusions for the transmission of any illness or disease. This means that if someone was to contract Covid-19 while at your home, and then sued you for it, your insurance company would not provide coverage to you.
Of course, this warning applies for all activities that you may be hosting on your property, not just a "pandemic pod". Even though you are allowed to host people in your home, we would caution you to take a risk-management approach. You should consider taking the necessary precautions to prevent transmission of disease and keep your participant number under the provincial guidelines. But just know that no matter the precautions, you likely do not have coverage under your home insurance policy if someone contracts Covid-19.
If you are a teacher or tutor: You may also want to exhibit a risk-management approach when being hired to teach students in their home. If you were to contract covid-19 and want to sue for damages, the homeowner will be settling the claim out of pocket (if applicable). Minimize your exposure by following provincial safety guidelines and reducing the number of different families/ children that you are exposed to.
No matter what education path you choose for this September, we know that you will make the best decision to keep your kids, and yourself, safe!