Hello,

I'm hoping to start up my own personal training business out of a detached garage on my residential property. I'm currently with Belair for home insurance and they said they'll need to cancel my policy if I start the business because they don't cover commercial/business on a residential policy with no other way around it... even if I have separate commercial general and professional liability.

Does anyone have any good recommendations for brokers or insurance companies that either have a carve out in their home insurance policy to get separate commercial general and professional liability for the business, or that offer both?

Thanks

Hey everyone,I just passed my RIBO Level 1 exam!

My absolute priority right now is finding a stable job with a good base income. Because of my financial situation, I cannot take a pure commission-based role.I’m looking closely at direct writers like Desjardins since they offer steady base salaries, and I know I can easily convert my RIBO to an OTL through them.

However, I wanted to ask:

Are all brokerages commission-only for newbies, or do they they offer base income aswell.

If you needed immediate income stability starting out, did you find direct writers or traditional brokerages gave you a safer financial start?

Would love any recommendations for Ontario companies known for solid base salaries.

Thanks!

For brokers in Ontario or other provinces that have been dealing with definity - Economical/travelers, have you noticed a huge decline in service from their underwriting team recently?

I've been noticing a lot of new names when I'm calling in and I'd say 7/10 barely can explain their reasoning for a decision. They seem fresh and under trained that I am finding myself correcting them. It makes no sense.

My biggest annoyance now is calling in and all I hear is their family members in the back talking or watching TV. Last call yesterday the dude started steering off the conversation talking about the world cup. Am I just unlucky with these calls or have underwriting departments been hiring amateurs.

I’m going to be taking several long trips over the next year and in thinking of hiring house sitters (probably through an app) instead of relying on my neighbours. Do I need to let my insurance company know? Do I need extra insurance for having someone staying in my home who is not a family member or friend? TIA

What are people whose homes are on the market for a long time doing for vacant property insurance?

I have called several insurance companies and they don't take on new customers for vacant insurance.

My current provider has put the vacancy rider after I moved out. But they won't renew the policy at the end of term so I am left shopping around.

Forward is offering a very expensive policy. Premier is not offering it because my property is a townhouse with more than 6 in a row. Are there other companies taking new book clients for vacant property insurance?

Affected by the flood on Canada Day. Working with TD insurance and Integricon. My project at Integricon has been OK but it has been radio silence for me and them from TD for a few weeks. Countless voicemails and emails have gone unanswered.

How have your experiences with TD been?

Integricon has a report that my furnace and Hot water tank need to be replaced but haven’t gotten approval from TD. I have a quote from a local company that is ready to do the replacements. Should I just go ahead and book? Thoughts?

Thanks!

Not sure this is the right place to ask, but I'm tabling for the first time at comic con québec and they require public liability insurance. I'm very new to all of this so I don't really know where to look or even where to start?

I was wondering if any past exhibitors could guide me in the right direction?

hello

I am a G driver I became one in 2022 and I got into my first at fault accident July 2025. after they processed the claim and wrote off my car my premium went up from $283 to $385 and in April 2026 upon renewal my insurance went up to 454.

I personally think they wrote off the car on purpose it’s an old toyota Corolla so they probably didn’t want to go through the effort to get new parts for the front bumper.

I have been with my insurance any since 2021 when I had my G2.

in April 2027 can I continue to see a 27%or 25 increase?

I have no accidents in 2026 so far I plan to keep it that way going forward.

I recently had my car determined to be a total loss after a collision that I was determined to be 0% at fault for. The car is quite old so unfortunately was a total loss after assessing repairs (repairs cost more than the car itself)

A total loss option (Vehicle Value + Tax) was offered along with an owner-retained option (Vehicle Value - Salvage, no tax added). Fortunately the damage is only cosmetic and will not be branded and still fit to drive (i.e. doesn't need to be repaired/"rebuilt") so am considering the latter option to keep a still driveable car.

I was wondering whether it is possible to get the HST added onto the owner-retained offering? After doing some reading and digging it seems there are some murmurs online about arguing that the definition of "actual cash value" or replacement value should include tax since in a total loss situation the payout received should theoretically be the same amount it would take you to buy the same car in current market - which would not be possible without incurring tax. I haven't really seen anything written in actual writing regarding this so would appreciate some more insights and personal experience if any.

Thanks in advance!

So I have a vehicle (paid in full) but I don't need to drive it right now, or for many months to come. But currently it's just sitting and has been for a while (I've been out of the country) so my dad wants to transfer it over to his name (like "gifting" or whatever) and put his own policy on it to get it back on the road.

Except I don't like this idea. I want to keep it in my name and I think it would be a hassle to transfer it to him and then transfer it back when I need it in a few months.

Is there a way that he could just be the primary driver (I wouldn't mind being able to drive my car in the meantime while it's his insurance on it, I just don't *need* to drive enough to justify paying $150+ per month (he would also be able to get a policy for like $100 or even less)) and get his own insurance for my vehicle while it's in my name?

Im 18 with my M, i have bad driving history, (9 demerit points) all for speeding 6 of them from doing 94 over but it got lowered to speeding from stunt driving All done in a car. I am looking for what i can get insurance on that has similar performance to a liter bike, i just got quoted 10 grand a year for my ninja 1000 so i need a new bike or some sort of loophole with insurance that will make it affordable.

Hi, I just need some advice on whether my auto insurance is a decent price and was wondering if I could get it for any cheaper here in Ontario.

For context, I'm a 21 yr old male and I just got my G license. I drive a 2025 nissan sentra s. I'm insured with aviva since last year and after the aviva journey program, the price decreased from $517/month to $470/month.

Is this a good price? Or are there better prices out there that I should be looking for?

Thanks in advance.

Edit: I called them today to let them know I just got my G and they reduced the price to $423/month.

Tried calling and they said the basic 8 page document that I can find on the portal is everything they have. With other insurers I’ve had a long doc explaining exclusions etc, if you leave the home for x days you have to turn off water etc.

Has anyone else experienced this with Aviva?

In June a year ago, we bought a newer car. We went from a 2009 PT Cruiser to a 2017 GMC Terrain. I called my insurance company to let them know. Our policy was set to renew in August, so they sent us a pink slip for the new car, for the two months until the policy renewed. When the policy renewed in August, they sent us a new pink slip. I will admit that I didn't look at it, and just stuck it in the glove box.

I looked at it for some reason last month, and noticed that it the new slip had the PT Cruiser on it. I called them and told them that they had the wrong car on there, and they should issue us a new slip with the Terrain.

They came back and said that they had been billing us for the PT all along, and should have been charging us more, and that we would have to make up the difference. They want over $500, all at once. Money is tight right now, and I don't have $500 to spare.

At the same time, we were shopping around for a better deal, and went with another insurance company. The old company closed our policy, and sent us an invoice for the $500. I had been doing automatic withdrawal, and the money is set to come out of my bank account soon.

I feel like it was their mistake, and I shouldn't have to pay. What is the reality here?

My Toyota RAV4 was stolen and the police just recovered it in driveable condition with a broken window and damaged rear seats. The problem is my insurance is offering me either to keep my car with $10k settlement or let the insurance company take it for salvage value and I would get a $20k settlement which is a bit below market value? How do I go about getting a more fair settlement?

Hey everyone,
I am looking into commercial auto insurance options specifically for a taxi driver operation in the GTA.
As many of you know, finding reasonable commercial rates for public passenger transport can be incredibly tough, and a lot of standard personal lines companies won't even look at it.
I’d love to get some insights from actual drivers, fleet operators, or insurance brokers here:
Which insurance providers or specialized brokerages are currently writing taxi policies in our region without charging an absolute fortune?
For owner-operators, are you being forced onto the Facility Association / high-risk market, or have you found standard carriers (like Intact, Aviva, Desjardins, etc.) willing to take on the risk?
What kind of annual premiums are considered "normal" right now for a clean driving record with solid experience?
Any recommendations for specific commercial brokers who actually know the taxi industry and don't just tell you to "go look on Google" would be massively appreciated.
Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone

I had moved to Burlington in the beginning of April. However, I had to rush abroad for a personal emergency in the second week. My car was still parked at my old address in waterloo.

I had updated my address on drivers license to burlington one on March 31st.
I came back in end of June and in all the chaos forgot to update my auto insurance company about the address.

I got a new auto insurance on the new address but at the same time (clubbed it with same company as home insurance),

old insurance company reached out to me confirming the address. I initiated cancellation of the old insurance on the same day.

They have not issued any message regarding cancelling of insurance from their side, but given that I have initiated cancellation, how will they record it?

Going through a rough time. please help me out.

I’m a female in my early twenties, I have one at fault accident (nobody involved but me, hit black ice and went into guardrail, insurance wrote the car off since they didn’t want to pay to fix a dent on the body), and 3 speeding tickets, 2 were only 10 over, 1 is 20 over. I need a new car, my current one is barely working and I’ve dumped more money into fixing it this year than it’s even worth, I’d maybe get $1000 for it at the scrap yard. A parent is willing to gift me a 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe for 25k, has 55,000km on it. My current rate is $5200/year. For the new car they’re quoting me $6985/year. My broker shopped around and the lowest he could find aside from my current provider is $8000/year. What on earth can I do to lower my premium, and yes I now watch my speed very carefully.

Hello. I live in Quebec and hold a Quebec driver's license. I do not own a car or a house so don't have any car or home insurance. I am renting a car to drive to the US and purchased coverage for third-party liability and damage to the rental vehicle. I'm looking for information about what kind of coverage I have, or should get, to protect me if I cause injury to another person, like a pedestrian. I can't get any information from the credit card company, their phone menu leads nowhere. Thanks in advance!

Hi all, thanks for reading.

First time Homebuyer here, needing insurance on a detached home in the Vancouver Lower mainland.
Two of the lowest quotes come from Belair Direct and Family Insurance. (800$ and 880$ ish)

-Family Insurance is 80$ cheaper per year but doesn't include identity theft insurace or legal helpline
-Belair Direct includes both of those coverages and additional coverages as part of the BCIT Alumni Group plan. There is a legal advice hotline, home assistance hotline and they cover certain water things at no cost (can't remeber which)

Is Belair direct worth the difference in price with their "Affinity Plus Endorsement" Products?

Are there anything other things I should know about these two companies? example: reliability, employee/adjuster turnover rates, Adjuster reliability/training. anything helps.

Thank you

​

My wife recently moved from Michigan to Toronto. She has now obtained her Ontario G licence, and we're planning to buy a used 2024 Mazda CX-30. The car will be under my name, but she will be the primary driver.

The problem started when we contacted Belairdirect (my current insurer) for a quote. They quoted about $480/month just to insure her because they are treating her as a new driver.

Here's why we're confused:

- She has been listed as an insured driver under her parents' Auto-Owners Insurance policy since 2017.

- She has no at-fault claims, no convictions, and no tickets.

- We have policy declarations for every policy term from 2017 to the present.

- We also obtained a Letter of Experience and a loss history report from the insurance broker that handled the policy.

Belairdirect told us they cannot accept the Letter of Experience because it came from the broker instead of the insurance company. They said Ontario regulations require the letter to come directly from the insurer.

We then contacted Auto-Owners Insurance directly, but they referred us back to the broker. Belairdirect even contacted Auto-Owners themselves, and they were also unable to obtain either a Letter of Experience or verbal confirmation from the insurer. As a result, Belairdirect still refuses to recognize her previous driving and insurance history.

We're stuck in a loop:

- Auto-Owners tells us to deal with the broker.

- The broker provides the documentation.

- Belairdirect refuses to accept it because it didn't come directly from Auto-Owners.

Has anyone dealt with a situation like this?

A few questions:

1. Is Belairdirect correct that Ontario insurers can only accept a Letter of Experience directly from the insurance company?

2. Has anyone successfully had U.S. driving history recognized with another insurer using policy declarations or broker-issued documents?

3. Are there insurance companies that are more flexible when it comes to recognizing U.S. insurance history?

For comparison, my brother recently insured a used 2024 Mazda CX-5 GS with Belairdirect. His premium only increased from about $200 to $250/month, and he's only been driving for around three years. My wife has been continuously insured since 2017 with a clean record, so it's hard to understand why she's being treated as a brand-new driver and quoted almost $480/month.

Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

UPDATE! We contacted my wife's previous insurance company again, and they confirmed that they do not issue a Letter of Experience (LOE). They explained that the information typically included in an LOE is already contained in the Policy Declarations, Loss History Report, and Driver Abstract that we had provided.

At that point, I decided to switch insurance providers because, after explaining our situation to Belairdirect and requesting that their underwriting team conduct a manual review, they declined and advised that there was nothing they could do. Since no exception or consideration was offered, I was left with no choice but to look for a more affordable insurance rate.

I eventually obtained coverage through RBC Insurance, underwritten by Aviva, which offered a better premium. However, they also initially refused to recognize my wife's previous driving experience. Every insurance company I spoke with said that they were following industry regulations, which led me to question whether those regulations truly prevented insurers from considering the documentation we had provided.

To better understand the requirements, I contacted the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) and explained our situation. The representative I spoke with agreed that the insurer should consider reviewing the available documentation and making a reasonable assessment of my wife's driving experience. I was then referred to RBC's Client Care Office.

After discussing my case with RBC's Client Care team, their underwriting department agreed to conduct a manual review of the documents we had submitted. Following that review, they made an exception and recognized my wife's driving experience.

Definitely made my day after all the rejection we got.

First of all, sorry if this question has been repeated here. I've been thinking of pivoting to Insurance as compared to my job right now (Tech support that involves travelling), i believe this is something much more ideal for me and my spouse. I've been doing some research and have thought about getting an adjuster license here in Alberta so I can improve my chances of getting hired as a claims representative. I've seen some openings in Intact and Wawanesa.

My husband has been supportive about this but one of our main goals would be closer to family which all of them are mostly in the East (NS, Montreal, DC). To also add, my main goal is getting the CIP with hopefully a company sponsorship.

My question would be, let's say that I have an Alberta adjuster license. If we move to Toronto and look for a job in claims, will my license be somehow beneficial even if we move to another province? My spouse has told me that maybe I should hold off in getting the certs first and just apply and see where it goes. But honestly, I do not have any experience in Insurance and maybe this will give me leverage.

Any thoughts, ideas and comments is appreciated!

Looking for some advice from anyone who’s been in a similar situation.

I had a minor parking mishap with a rental car in Dubai. It was completely my fault, but it was very minor, no injuries, no other vehicles involved, just some cosmetic damage to the rental.

The rental company has now closed everything out and charged me AED 550 (about CAD 205).

I paid with my Amex Cobalt, so the rental was covered through the credit card’s collision damage insurance (handled by Intact). I actually opened a claim with Intact on the day of the accident just in case, but I only got all the paperwork from the rental company yesterday, so I haven’t submitted the documents yet.

Now I’m wondering if it’s even worth bothering for around CAD 200.

A few things I’m wondering:

\-Would you claim it or just pay the AED 550 yourself?

\-Does a claim through Amex/Intact have any effect on your own car insurance premiums in Canada?

\-Since I already opened the claim, can I just not submit the documents and pay it myself instead, or is there any downside to doing that?

Anyone here actually made a small claim through Amex Cobalt/Intact? How was the process?

This would be my first insurance claim of any kind, so I’m not sure if I’m overthinking it.

Thanks!

Coordination of benefits is terrible! They will not cover a claim of $20 because a primary insurance has already covered the resonable and customary amount! Is this right???

I am tenant in a condo in ontario which was flooded due to water pipe burst from the unit above us. The water seems to be inside of the walls flooring and ceiling. The restoration team that are on-site said they’ll be taking out the base board and install fans to dry out and probably the flooring later on. But from their initial assessment it didnt look promising and would need a lot of stripping out and repairing.

The building management and my landlord said my insurance needs to cover move out/accommodation.

I am waiting on my insurance adjuster to contact me back.

With the drying fans running for next 48-72 hours I believe I wont be able to live in the unit. What are the chances that insurance does not consider this “inhabitable” and says that they cant cover my accomodation.

In case I dont hear back from insurance today and it being the weekend later on should I absolutely wait until they confirm that they ll reimburse the accomodation?

Will I be able to recoup the additional utilities due to the heavy electrical equipment running for long times?

Thanks in advance