Class action lawsuits against Arch Insurance and Old Republic

Arch Insurance and Old Republic are facing class-action lawsuits launched on behalf of Canadian families who were forced to cancel their school trips this past year due to the pandemic.

Employment lawyer Sivan Tumarkin, at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP, represents the families involved. In speaking with CBC Radio Canada, Tumarkin notes that families have been waiting since March to be properly reimbursed and might like to get this money sooner rather than later as they are unemployed due to COVID-19.

Tumarkin believes there are thousands of families across the country who have been waiting to hear back from Old Republic and Arch Insurance. According to Tumarkin, the class-action lawsuit could run into several million dollars as the reimbursements for each high school graduate range from $ 5,000 to $ 12,000 depending on the destination chosen.

Families appear to be stuck between the insurance companies and the company who booked the trips, Explorica. “The two parties are each blaming each other on the other,” Tumarkin states, “to date, no one has been reimbursed and our clients say they have done everything they were asked to do, including providing information about each student’s trip.”

Tumarkin stresses the importance of making the insurance companies listen to reason about how and when they plan to reimburse their clients “otherwise, they will face punitive damages and costs. judicial.”

More coverage on CBC-Radio Canada regarding the class-action lawsuits can be found here.