If a traffic accident has left you with a physical disability that prevents you from gaining access to or using your home, the SAAQ can reimburse some of the costs incurred to adapt your home. However, all adaptation projects must first be authorized by the SAAQ.
You are eligible for the reimbursement of certain costs incurred to adapt your home if your physical disability:
A home adaptation must:
Before starting any home adaptation project, including the purchase of a new home, you must contact the person in charge of your file at the SAAQ. He or she is there to help.
Adapting your home will allow you to regain a degree of independence by helping you:
Only your principal residence—whether a house or an apartment—can be adapted.
We reimburse home adaptation expenses related to:
One of our accident victim counsellors will contact you in a timely manner in order to analyze your needs and provide you with additional information.
The SAAQ professional assigned to home adaptation will draw up a list of your eligible needs.
The architectural consultant of your choice will submit a report to the SAAQ so that the analysis of your application can be completed.
Upon receiving your documents, we will ensure that the home adaptation solution being considered is the most appropriate and least expensive solution.
A solution is appropriate if it meets the needs noted by the occupational therapist and if the cost of the alterations is covered by the SAAQ.
The least expensive solution is the one that costs the least among all those proposed by the architectural consultant in charge of your file.
Once the most appropriate and least expensive solution has been determined, a home adaptation project will be drafted and submitted to you by the architectural consultant.
If you choose a more costly home adaptation solution...
You must cover the additional costs.
The architectural consultant will prepare the specifications and send them to you so that you can obtain 2 bids from building contractors of your choice. Both building contractors must hold permits issued by the Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ).
You must send us the 2 bids so that we can inform you of the amount that can be reimbursed, which is usually based on the lowest bid.
You can hire the contractor of your choice from the two bidders to carry out the work. Note that we will not be entering into a contractual relationship with the contractor you choose.
The home alterations must comply with provincial and municipal regulations (website in French only), as well as the Construction Code.
Once the alterations have been finished, inspections by the occupational therapist and the architectural consultant must be conducted in order to ensure that the authorized alterations have been carried out and are compliant and safe.
We then reimburse expenses upon presentation of supporting documents.
To facilitate the search for and selection of professionals, visit the webpage Home Adaptation – Useful Information and References.
If you purchase a new home, you must take your physical disabilities and needs into account.
Last update: February 18, 2022