MMA’s insurance coverage under the microscope
OTTAWA — Federal officials are uncertain about the limits of the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway’s ongoing insurance coverage, prompting new questions about the company’s survival and whether Canadian taxpayers will be on the hook for rebuilding a Quebec town decimated by this month’s runaway train disaster.
“My first thought is the Department of Justice better get on this very quickly,” said Liberal transportation critic David McGuinty. “There have to be, of course, assessments, legal opinions rendered ASAP as to what extent the Canadian people are going to have to (pay).”
McGuinty said that numerous spinoff costs could emerge, on top of cleanup and rebuilding efforts from the disaster that claimed the lives of dozens of people. He said the department would need to assess whether it can recover those amounts from either the company or its insurance providers.
The Canadian Transportation Agency, an independent regulator and tribunal that is responsible for issuing certificates of fitness, based on insurance coverage, that allow railways to operate, said the company confirmed on Wednesday it still had insurance for its operations.
But an agency spokeswoman said it needed to review whether insurance coverage was adequate.
The company’s president, Ed Burkhardt, said last week that the railway’s insurance limits would be tested by the disaster. But he didn’t elaborate and couldn’t be reached for comment Thursday.
McGuinty, an Ottawa-area MP, also said the federal government should consider updating plans for legislation to increase liability for companies that cause environmental disasters, by extending it — beyond pipelines, offshore spills and nuclear accidents — to include railway companies.
NDP transportation critic Olivia Chow told Postmedia News she planned to send out notice Thursday calling for the House of Commons transport committee to meet next week to review safety oversight and other related concerns that have been highlighted in recent audits.