Under new federal rules introduced in August 2016, landlords have little recourse if a tenant is growing licenced medical marijuana in their unit. There’s a risk, though, that insurance policies will not cover damages from any activities deemed ‘high risk’, and, in most cases, the operation of a grow-op, whether legal or not, is still a high-risk activity (see CBC Go Public article).
While the use of medical marijuana is a very personal and sensitive matter, there are health and safety considerations for co-op housing staff and directors to keep in mind. The Agency recently consulted with the Cooperators Insurance, and prepared a few tips and suggestions to avoid problems with insurance coverage.
Do Regular Inspections: All co-ops should be doing regular annual inspections of all units, so the co-op is aware of any marijuana growing operation on the co-op’s property.
Establish Legality: If a co-op becomes aware that a member is growing marijuana in their unit, they should first establish whether the individual has a permit from Health Canada to grow medical marijuana. The permit will state the number of plants allowed. The number is usually quite small.
If the member doesn’t have a permit, the co-op needs to advise the police. Illegal operations can be much more dangerous, because they often involve a large number of plants, and improper wiring and ventilation. Someone with appropriate expertise should also review the situation to make sure there are no obvious fire or health hazards that need to be addressed immediately.
Talk to Your Insurance Company: Let your insurance adviser know that marijuana is being legally grown in one of the units. They will likely send out an inspector to observe the set-up and see if everything is being done safely.
If the number of plants is small, and if the set-up is safe, it’s possible that your insurance provider would not impose any additional conditions. Further, the inspector may make recommendations for small changes that would allow an unsafe operation to become safe.
Depending on the number of plants and the type of housing unit (is it a small apartment or a single family house?), it may not be possible to grow the marijuana in a safe manner. An insurance provider cannot condone any activity that would pose a health or safety hazard to the occupant of the unit or to the other occupants of the co-op. In this case, Cooperators recommends having a sensitive discussion with the member/members. They have options to purchase their product from a commercial marijuana grower, or to designate another person to grow their marijuana for them.
Ultimately, a housing co-op needs to consider the overall wellbeing of the co-op and its members, and the final option would be for the member to find a more suitable place to live and grow their marijuana, which will mean moving out of the co-op.