Saskatchewan Woman Fights Insurance Companies Over Deducting Premiums Despite Son’s Addiction

A Saskatchewan woman, Val Jantzen, is angry after two insurance companies deducted insurance premiums from her son, Josh Jantzen, despite knowing that he had a problem with cocaine addiction. They also refused to compensate his heritage, after his death in 2018.

These societies knew full well what his lifestyle and addictions were.she says. police d’assurance.","text":"Elles n’ont rien fait et ont continué à prendre des paiements. Elles n’ont jamais adressé ce problème et n’ont pas ajouté d’addenda à sa police d’assurance."">They did nothing and continued to take payments. They never took care of this problem and did not add an endorsement to his insurance policy.

Josh Jantzen had two insurance policies, one mortgage insurance and another for his line of credit.

The latter had struggled with a drug addiction for more than 10 years before his death, according to his mother. He worked in a potash mine and had tried to seek treatment three times, but without success.

Val Jantzen says his son was aware of his issues and told him he had addiction issues when he signed the insurance contracts.

Josh Jantzen died at the age of 37 on 1^is February 2018. An autopsy concluded that there were fatal levels of cocaine and alcohol in his system.

After having suffered refusals of compensation from these insurance companies, Val Jantzen tried to make them pay by resorting to justice, but judges from the Court of King’s Bench and the Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the insurance companies.

The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal decision indicates that insurance companies were entitled to deny compensation, because Mr. Jantzen died as a result of a crime of possession of cocaine which he had consumed.

“We are criminalizing a health problem”

The general manager of the help center Prairie Harm Reduction, Kayla DeMong, deplores this judicial decision.

I think this is another example that highlights how we continue to criminalize addiction issues in our country and around the world.she says.

We are aware that there are many reasons why people use drugs, but in the end, we pass judgments on these people and we criminalize a health problem.

CBC/Radio-Canada attempted to contact the insurance companies Canada Life and TD Insurance, but they refused our interview requests.

In an email, a Canada Life spokesperson said he could not comment on Josh Jantzen’s case.

What we can say is that it is very common for life insurance policies sold across Canada to contain provisions that exclude or limit compensation in cases where death has occurred under certain specific circumstances.he wrote.

With information from Dan Zakreski