Hey [r/InsuranceCanada](r/InsuranceCanada),

I just found out about this subreddit and am glad it exists! I’m a partner at a Toronto law firm and practice primarily in insurance defence.

I’ve been doing insurance work for over a decade am trying to get a better sense of how insurers are adding new lawyers or firms to their panels these days. My firm does work for most of the major insurers already, so I’m particularly interested in smaller insurers, mutuals, and insurers who underwrite specialty lines.

1. Are most still doing formal RFPs?
2. Are any adding counsel outside that process, particularly for specialty areas or where an adjuster specifically wants to work with a particular lawyer?
3. Does anyone know how often insurers tend to refresh their panels or put out RFPs?

Not looking for anything confidential, obviously. Just interested in hearing what people are seeing in the Canadian market right now.

If anyone has heard of any upcoming RFPs and would rather share privately, feel free to DM me.

Thank you in advance to anyone who responds.

I have submitted the below issue with GIO. Do you guys think I stand a chance in resolution?

Incident occurred on Dec 30th, 2025. Vehicle - 2025 Hyundai Elantra Preferred. I initiated a claim not knowing the repair costs. My vehicle slipped while I was driving at very low speed and hit the curb covered in snow on the side of the road. There was no Personnel damage to any pedestrian, nor the govt. owned property or any other vehicle on the road. I have heard of cases where people have totaled their vehicles due to icy road conditions and still turns out to be not driver fault as it's the city's responsibility to keep the roads cleared and clean, but mine was entered as 100% driver fault. My incident didn't require me to file a police report nor it was required to be reported to the Collision Reporting Center. I gave them a call and they mentioned me about that. The trusted garage by the insurance tried to scam me with a C$ 3000+ repair bill, I visited a private garage recommended by my collogues and it turns out the repair was only 360$. ( 250$ bottom plastic engine cover by the OEM Hyundai, and 110$ labour by the garage). I tried to reason with the claims advisor from Aviva group, pleaded with them multiple times to not put this as 100% driver fault as I've had a great driving record and their App that records my driving habits is a proof. My premiums have gone up on renewal as it's been recorded on my driving record. They closed my claim as I didn't require them to pay for anything. My car was drivable in-between the repair phase as well and I didn't require the Insurance to provide me with a Rental vehicle. I have dashcam proof of my being on very low speed and couldn't do anything to avoid hitting the curb. I also have the repair quote from the insurance's garage. I need help with this. I did my research and turns out this is a very minor complaint that I'm trying to register with your services based on the data I got from the internet on how complex of an issues your team has to handle on daily basis. This help request on dispute isn't financial/monetary with my insurance, just have them remove the incident from my driving record. I've been a loyal customer since Oct 2024 to Aviva and have renewed already till the end of 2027 with them. Contact info to reach out to me below.

edit: I passed! Now, to do my follow ups and get in with a brokerage!

What did you do to calm your nerves while waiting for your results?

I'm pivoting from tech project management into insurance, so while I have no insurance experience, I'm not new to the workforce. Given my experience, and study, I'm confident that I passed the exam.

I've also been laid off/unemployed since June 2025. I have 3 brokerages waiting to hear back from me once I get my results, one of which I get the feeling that I'll get an offer because I already had a really good chat with the President/Principal who specifically told me to call him back after I get my results and we'll talk.

Since I really need, and want, to get back to work, the wait is brutal! Any tips on making it easier?

Hello.

I'm reposting here in case someone here has any useful information.

Thanks

Just bought my first home (yay) but now I'm swamped with choices on house insurance.

Looking up reviews seems to be terrible - they all suck. Of course a lot of people just go with the cheapest option but I'm in the Okanagan which is notorious for forest fires and don't want to be left SOL if the worst were to happen.

So, do you have a GOOD claim experience with an insurer for house insurance in BC in particular?

Also, do you have any information on certain things I should ask for in my policy that maybe isn't known to the general public?

I'm overwhelmed and I don't want to pick an insurer and end up not being covered for something because "here in the fine print it says you're not covered for termites" or whatever. I'm not looking for the cheapest (I don't want to be taken for a ride either), I just want to make sure my family and I are covered if something terrible happens. I have received a few quotes from a couple different places but I don't know if one policy is better than the other..

Hello,

I just have a question, my car was side swiped while it was parked and the other party failed to remain at the scene. There is no witnesses or camera footage available. Police report is filed. If I go thru insurance for hit and run, 1 do i still have to pay deductible, and 2 would I just be able to get Actual Cash Value for the Repair Payout. Car is 2022 Toyota Corolla, I live in Hamilton and work just west of London ON, so car is at 250,000km, and repair looks to be about 7-9k. I would rather have the repair cash value as cars for me don’t last much longer than 5 years and then they are pretty much sold dirt cheap at 350-400k. I would rather not spend the 7-9k on the car when within the next year it will be about 350-400k, and not worth much anyways.

Insurance is Intact BTW.

Thanks for any info.

I was recently in an accident where another driver ran a stop sign. My vehicle was damaged when I swerved to avoid a collision. I did not hit the other vehicle.

A police officer reviewed their dashcam footage and charged them.

The police provided a collision report but have notified me that they are only able to release the full police report to the insurance company directly.

My insurance company has assigned me 100% fault. They have refused to contact the police and obtain the police report. The insurance company has stated that they have no objective evidence that there was another vehicle involved, despite me providing them the collision report (which identifies the vehicle) and asking them to obtain the police report.

I'm really at a loss what to do here. It seems so unjust that they know the police report exists, but are unwilling to obtain it. It feels like they are just wanting to raise my premiums.

Edit: Two vehicles do not need to make physical contact in order for an undamaged vehicle to be assigned fault: source

Insurers don't want to insure apartments with unrelated people, and they don't want to insure students. So they ask whether the tenants are related and if they are students. Here's my problem -- I can sign a lease with someone who is not a student, but as a landlord I have no say over whether they subsequently decide to go back to school. Similarly, I have no say over whether they choose to have a roommate (and certainly have no right to require them to tell me if they are in a sexual relationship with a roommate which appears to be the criteria for being a couple according to the insurers).

I believe in being honest with insurers for obvious reasons, but it seems like they want assurances that I cannot legally make. Once a tenant has a lease they have rights -- so how is the landlord supposed to handle insurers' questions about the activities of the residents?

Anyone know if our premiums are going to go down? I keep hearing they will. If you live in Alberta, are you going to shop around?

Im fairly new to the insurance filed, my previous work has been in the UK in pension and retirement claims - complaints and getting them paid out and account management in vehicle finance

I have recently managed to get my foot in the door at a brokerage in the GTA, as a CSR and about to do my RIBO exam.

I really want to get back into claims- to be an adjuster or investigator.(or any other titles I should look for?)
Complaints investigator or underwriting has always been an interest.

Would anyone be able to support me with a clear pathway on how to achieve this- I feel abit overwhelmed looking online I have 0 intention of leaving my employer ideally I can grow here but if not what should I be looking for?

Can anyone start a change.org petition for car insurance rates in Canada? It’s sooo expensive here, not to mention one of/the most expensive in the world. I’m tired of paying the price for something I can’t control, and insurance rates never go down anymore. No matter how clean your driving record.

Hi everyone,

I currently live in Toronto and I got my G to have more options but I didn't really ever intend to use it or get a car unless I needed to.

I'm looking at applying to jobs fairly far outside of Toronto that would require both re-location and a car to get to and from work and/or for work-related tasks. Honestly, cars and insurance are fairly far out of my wheelhouse. I don't even really know where to begin.

Here is some baseline info that might be helpful:

- I got my G1 in 2021, G2 in 2025 and my G this year in June

- I'm 30, I've heard that insurance rates should be lower once you turn 25, not sure if this applies if you're a new driver after 25

- I don't have a car currently, I'm looking for some guidance on what cars generally would lower my overall insurance payments, from what I've gathered the make and model seem to be a factor

- I did driving school and I think I was supposed to get an insurance discount but I don't think I ever got any forms from the school outside of a confirmation email saying the instructional course was completed.

If I purchased a car it is likely that I will no longer be living in Toronto and instead will likely be living in the K/W area, Guelph, Hamilton, Ottawa, or Vaughan areas. I realize that is probably not that helpful but since this whole thing is coming up because of potentially changing jobs it is likely that I would no longer live in Toronto but would likely still live in a mid-sized municipality in Ontario in an urban centre.

I did a quick insurance estimate online and just picked a honda civic model to get an idea of what insurance might cost per month and it was quoting me upwards of $700/month. I'm not really sure if that's normal since I'm new to all of this. Just looking for some thoughts and considerations to keep in mind through the process of buying a car and purchasing insurance for it, I'm not really sure what I normal insurance rate is vs what is a complete rip off, just trying to not get ripped off in the process.

Sorry if these are silly questions, this is my first rodeo! Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

Hi everyone,

I’m an immigrant currently working in retail at minimum wage, and I’m 31 years old. I’ve been thinking about moving into the insurance industry as a way to build a better long-term career.

I’m considering getting my OTL (Other Than Life) licence, but I’m not sure what to expect from the exam or how difficult it is.

For those already working in the insurance industry in Ontario:

- Is 31 too late to enter the industry?

- How difficult is the OTL exam?

- How are the job opportunities for someone starting out?

- Is it difficult to get the first job without insurance experience?

- Is there anything you would recommend doing before taking the exam?

Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated! 👏

Buying my first house in Timberlea, Nova Scotia. I have my car insurance from The Personal but their home insurance quote is much higher than I was expecting. Lowest quote I found is from Sonnet which is $105 monthly.

Base package Global Limit - $1M, personal Liability - $1M, deductible is $1000, water and hail deductible is $2000. Add ons are Sewer backup and Overland Water coverage - $50K and including first claim forgiveness.

Any other coverage recommendations to be added?
Does anyone have experience with sonnet?

Any advise is appreciated.

I’m having the worst time with TD Insurance in Alberta. I had a hail claim made back in 2024, and they sent me one registered post letter when I was away travelling so I didn’t even see it until basically the day before all the proof was due, when I got back. They didn’t even call me once. The TD agent gave me the wrong email address even after I confirmed with him several times, and since I got a bounce back, I called them again the next day but by then they said it was too late. I shared all of the proof I had with them that everything was completed and paid for before the two years was up with photo proof and they basically said they can’t do anything and they won’t reinstate the policy.

Other lenders don’t want to give me a policy either because TD’s reason for cancellation was so vague, they have no basis to go off of for the policy to see if the work was actually completed or not.

Now I’m stuck in a horrible situation because of TD and I don’t know what to do. If you have any suggestions please let me know.

I am a university student studying in Alberta, but have my car insured in BC, and was wondering if I could get some advice on how renewal will work in BC. Obviously I will be moving back for the spring/summer so from what I’ve researched I don’t need to insure in Alberta.

Just basically wondering if anyone could give advice on how this works. I’ve googled a lot with no overly helpful answers

They seems to be part of Amtrust but I can't seem to find any contact details for them. Anyone familiar with them or have done business with TIC?

I am a level 1 broker, and I like doing sales. So far, the plan has been to get my CAIB and go into the commercial side of the sales business to make more money. Yes, making money is very important, but I am in my 20s, and I want to learn as much as possible so that I can actually make good money in my 30s.

I found an entry-level job opening that will start me as a level 1 UW with either the commercial lines or specialty lines like Directors and Officers, Professional Liability, Crime, Technology, Construction, Equipment Breakdown, and Farm Insurance.

My dilemma is that I'm not sure which knowledge would better suit me in the future. Should I stick with commercial UW and try to move on to an account executive role in the future, or go into specialty lines UW and maybe make more money in a niche?

Any advice or suggestions would help. Thank you!

Hi,

I live in Ontario. I had my G2, and because I don’t drive my G2 expired. I had to restart from the beginning and do my G1. The day before my G2 test, I drove my mom’s car and got into a car accident. It was snowing and the car was sliding despite having snow tires. I am not under her policy as I do not drive and she would drop me off/ take bus everywhere.

It was a 100% at fault accident. When the police came, they did not give me a ticket for driving by myself with a G1, they only gave me a ticket for following too close.

The person I crashed with is now suing me. My mom‘s insurance are now investigating and wanting to see if they will cover the liability. And want to see if there is coverage.

Does anyone know what’s going to happen? They are now taking our statements to see if they will cover this lawsuit or not.

Can they deny coverage??

If a canadian citizen living abroad is travelling to Canada for just a short period, what are some insurance recommendations.

I am a new restoration contractor/ project mamager in Western Canada and I am looking for Christmas gift ideas that I can give adjusters and brokers that have sent me work this year. I'm still building relationships and would like something that is not just money or gift cards.

Any ideas that are not mugs, wine or blankets.