Insurance Broker in Toronto: Compare & Save
Looking for an insurance broker in Toronto? Compare life, critical illness, disability, health and travel coverage from 30+ Canadian insurers through an Ontario family brokerage.
If you’re looking for an insurance broker in Toronto, the first thing worth knowing is what a broker is: a licensed advisor who can compare and place coverage with many insurers, rather than an agent who sells one company’s products. The second is that a broker’s advice costs you nothing, because the insurer that issues your policy pays the commission.
Hayes Family Insurance is a family-run, independent brokerage founded in Ottawa in 1996 and licensed across Ontario. We compare term life, whole life, critical illness, disability, health and dental and travel insurance from 30+ Canadian insurers, and we serve Toronto and GTA clients by phone, video and e-signature.
This page explains how brokers work, what Toronto households typically ask us about, what to look for in any broker you’re considering, and how working with an Ontario brokerage outside the city actually goes.
What an insurance broker does (and what we don’t)
A broker’s job has four parts: work out how much coverage you need, compare the market for the best fit, handle the application and underwriting, and stay on the file for changes and claims. For the coverage itself, brokers in Ontario are licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) and must act in your interest.
We should be clear about scope. Hayes Family Insurance is a life and health brokerage: life insurance, critical illness, disability, health and dental, and travel. We don’t place home, auto or commercial property coverage. If you need those, look for a property and casualty broker; many Toronto households use one broker for each.
Broker vs. buying direct in Toronto
You have three ways to buy coverage: through a broker, directly from an insurer (a bank branch, a captive agent or an online direct-to-consumer site), or through group benefits at work. The table compares the first two.
| Independent broker | Direct from one insurer | |
|---|---|---|
| Insurers compared | Many (30+ in our case) | One |
| Cost to you | None; insurer pays commission | None; insurer pays its own staff |
| Help with health conditions | Places the case with the most lenient insurer | You get that insurer’s decision only |
| Product range | Term, permanent, CI, disability, health, travel | Usually that insurer’s lineup only |
| After the sale | Same advisor for changes and claims | Call centre |
| Speed for simple cases | Similar; applications are electronic | Fast for simple, healthy applicants |
Buying direct is a fair option for a healthy 30-year-old who wants a basic term policy and doesn’t mind that the price wasn’t compared. For anyone with a health history, a larger need, a business, or a question about permanent, disability or critical illness coverage, the comparison is where the value is. Rates for the same person often differ by 30% or more between insurers. We’ve written more on this in insurance broker vs. buying direct and PolicyMe vs. a local broker.
What Toronto households ask us about
Toronto is one of the largest and most expensive cities in the country, and its insurance questions follow from that.
Downtown professionals with group benefits. Finance, law, consulting, tech and healthcare employers usually offer decent group plans, but group life is commonly 1–2× salary and ends when you leave the job. On a Toronto salary with a Toronto mortgage, that gap is often large. See group vs. individual life insurance.
Condo and house buyers carrying large mortgages. Whether it’s a condo in Liberty Village or a semi in Leslieville, the mortgage is usually the single biggest reason a Toronto household needs life insurance, and the lender’s mortgage insurance is rarely the best way to cover it. Our bank mortgage insurance vs. broker comparison explains why.
Self-employed, contract and gig workers. Toronto has a large workforce with no group benefits at all: consultants, real estate agents, tradespeople, creatives, drivers and small-business owners. For them, disability insurance and health and dental coverage are usually the first conversation, with life insurance close behind.
Newcomers and multigenerational families. Scarborough, North York and Etobicoke are home to many families who arrived in Canada recently or who sponsor parents and grandparents to visit. Questions here range from life insurance for newcomers to Super Visa insurance, which requires at least $100,000 of emergency medical coverage valid for a year.
Frequent travellers. With Pearson down the road, annual travel medical plans come up constantly, especially for people who cross into the US several times a year. See annual vs. single-trip travel insurance.
For the life-insurance-specific picture, including indicative rates by age, read our page on life insurance in Toronto.
What to look for in a Toronto insurance broker
Whoever you choose, ask these questions.
- Are you licensed with FSRA? Search the advisor’s name on the FSRA public registry. It’s free and takes a minute. Every legitimate broker in Ontario is listed.
- How many insurers can you actually place business with? “Independent” can mean two contracts or thirty. Ask for the list.
- Who pays you? The honest answer is the insurer, by commission. Be wary of anyone charging a fee on top for standard products.
- What happens after I buy? You want the same person available for beneficiary changes, coverage increases, conversions and, eventually, a claim.
- Will you tell me if I don’t need something? A good broker sometimes says your group plan and savings are enough, or that term is right and whole life isn’t.
- Can you handle my health situation? If you have a condition, ask which insurers they’d approach and why. A broker who can’t answer hasn’t shopped many cases.
How remote service works from Ottawa
Since we’re not in Toronto, here is exactly how the process runs.
- First call or video meeting, about 15 minutes, to understand your family, income, mortgage, existing coverage and health in general terms.
- A written needs analysis and a side-by-side comparison of quotes from the insurers that fit, emailed to you with a plain explanation.
- Application by video or phone, signed electronically. Healthy applicants under about 50 often don’t need a medical; when one is required, the insurer sends a nurse to your home or office anywhere in the GTA at no cost.
- Underwriting, which we manage, including chasing doctors’ records if the insurer asks for them.
- Delivery, electronically, followed by a review call. We’re then your contact for the life of the policy at the same number, 343-882-5216.
The policy you receive is identical to what a broker in Toronto would place with the same insurer at the same price, because insurers don’t price by who submits the application. What differs is the service, and our clients across Ontario, many of whom we’ve never met in person, seem to think ours holds up.
Indicative costs
Insurance is priced nationally, so a Toronto applicant pays what anyone else in Ontario would. As one reference point, illustrative monthly premiums for a healthy non-smoker buying $500,000 of 20-year term life are roughly $20–$30 at age 30, $32–$48 at 40 and $70–$110 at 50; women typically pay 15–25% less and smokers materially more. These are ranges, not quotes, and your rate depends on age, health, smoking status, coverage amount and insurer. For other products, see critical illness insurance cost, disability insurance cost and private health insurance cost in Ontario.
Why Hayes
We’ve been a family business since 1996, we’re independent, and we compare 30+ insurers including Canada Life, Sun Life, Manulife, RBC Insurance, Empire Life, iA Financial, Desjardins, BMO Insurance, Equitable, Beneva, Foresters and Canada Protection Plan. Our advisors hold CFP® and MSc Finance credentials, we’re regulated by FSRA, and we’ll tell you plainly when you don’t need what you’re asking about.
Next step
Compare quotes from 30+ Canadian insurers in about two minutes, free and with no obligation, or call 343-882-5216. If you’d like to start with the life insurance basics for the city, read life insurance in Toronto.
Frequently asked questions
What does an insurance broker in Toronto actually do?
A broker works out how much coverage you need, compares policies and prices across the insurers they represent, handles the application and underwriting, and stays on as your contact for changes and claims. Brokers are licensed by FSRA in Ontario and paid by the insurer that issues the policy, so there is no fee to you. The main difference from an agent is that a broker can place business with many companies rather than one.
Does Hayes Family Insurance have an office in Toronto?
No. Our office is at 343 Preston Street in Ottawa. We're licensed across Ontario and serve Toronto and GTA clients by phone, video and e-signature, which is how most of our clients prefer to work anyway. If a medical is needed, the insurer sends a nurse to your home or office in Toronto at no cost.
Are insurance rates higher in Toronto?
Not for life, critical illness, disability or health insurance. These are priced by age, health, smoking status, occupation and coverage amount, and the rate is the same across Canada for a given insurer. Home and auto insurance are priced by location, but we don't sell those products. What does differ in Toronto is the size of the coverage need, since mortgages and rents are larger.
How do I check that a Toronto insurance broker is licensed?
Search the advisor's name on the FSRA public registry at fsrao.ca. It shows whether their life and accident and sickness licence is active and whether any enforcement action has been taken. Any legitimate broker in Ontario will be listed and will be happy to point you there.