Get Cheap Home Insurance in North York

How home insurance works in North York

Home insurance in North York (or anywhere in Ontario) is not mandatory. However, most financial lending institutions require it as a prerequisite for obtaining a mortgage. Home insurance in North York also provides benefits such as protecting your family, your possessions and the potential for future losses in case of lawsuits or damages.

Most insurance policies for North York homeowners will cover the following items:

• Property: Coverage for your home or surrounding structures on your property, such as a garage or shed.
• Contents: As the name suggests, this covers your possessions, if damaged by named perils. Higher-priced items like fine art or jewellery can be protected with add-ons that provide further coverage.
• Liability: This protects you if someone happens to injure themselves on your property and decides to sue you. It also protects if you unintentionally damage someone else’s property.
• Additional living expenses: In cases where damage to your home or a mass evacuation forces you to move out temporarily, this will cover some basic living expenses such as rent and food. Check with your North York insurance provider to learn how much is covered.

Home insurance policy types

There are four main types of North York home insurance policy to consider when selecting one that’s right for you. They are:

• Basic: This is the cheapest coverage and provides protection for only stated or named perils in your policy.
• Broad: Broad coverage is a middle compromise between basic and comprehensive coverages. It goes beyond the named perils by covering all risks that may damage your house’s structure. However, it also comes with several exclusions.
• Comprehensive: This is the most coverage a North York homeowner can acquire, which includes all named perils, the structure and its contents for all risks, except two exceptions. First exception is uninsurable perils, which are predictable events, such as damage caused by poor maintenance. Second is optional coverage, which provides protection against things like earthquakes or sewer back-up.

Commonly covered perils

All North York home insurance policies will look different for individual needs and locations. However, some of the more commonly covered perils include:

• Fire, smoke, lightning and explosion
• Windstorm and hail
• Theft and attempted theft
• Rupture, freezing and water escape
• Vandalism or malicious acts
• Civil disturbances and riot
• Impact by vehicles, watercraft or aircraft
• Falling objects

Additional coverage

Because North York home insurance policies provide only basic protection, homeowners wanting more will often take out additional coverage that includes non-named perils. Some of the events that additional coverage can be purchased for are:

• Flood: So-called overland water issues occur from melting snow, overflowing rivers and so on. North York home insurance companies distinguish between different types of water issues, so check with your provider to make sure you are getting the coverage you need/want.
• Sewer back-up: This provides coverage for damage caused by overflowing toilets or drains. North York and surrounding area homeowners may have experienced this type of sewer back-up problem in 2013 and again in 2022. In the first instance, a rainstorm caused about $1 billion in insured damage in Toronto/North York, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. More recently, in 2022, a thunderstorm produced 72 mm of rain over Toronto/North York, with 51 mm falling in just one hour, causing more than $875 million in insured damage.
• Earthquake: While not common in the North York area, it will cover damage to the home and its contents caused by earth movement.
• Windstorm: According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, wind is typically covered for losses caused by flying debris or falling branches or trees as well as losses to your home and contents from water or snow entering through sudden openings caused by wind or hail.
• Valuable items: Expensive items, such as fine art and jewellery, are not covered as part of the normal contents of your home. You’ll need to get additional coverage for those. Talk to your provider about your options.
• Home-based businesses: This coverage expands on your regular homa insurance coverage to protect you from liability and property damage if you run a home-based business. If you are only interested in protecting equipment or supplies for your business, you can add a ‘floater’ for items such as computers, for example.
• Identity theft: This covers the cost of replacing stolen documents such as a passport or driver's license. It may also cover lost wages, if you take time away from work to replace the stolen items.

Looking for the cheapest home insurance rate in your area? It all starts with comparison shopping on sites like InsuranceHotline.com.

How much does average home insurance cost in North York?

The average annual price for home insurance in North York is roughly $1,300, according to the RATESDOTCA Insuramap data.

Not many natural disasters affect North York homeowners. However, severe winter weather in this area can wreak havoc on parts of the home, such as roofs, pipes, foundations and concrete, leading to leaks and floods.

North York homeowners should account for weather when deciding on which insurance plan works best for them.

Cheapest home insurance in North York

According to the 2016 Toronto Census, North York has a population of more than 644,000. That population is scattered across a huge 176.9 km squared geographic area. There are a multitude of postal codes that span different home insurance rates.

According to the RATESDOTCA Insuramap data, the most expensive home insurance in North York is tied to areas with postal codes starting with M4N, at roughly $1,523 per year (on average).

On the flip side, the cheapest home insurance is associated with postal codes that start with M2P, at $1,203 per year on average, which is 18% lower than the Ontario average.

Top home insurance companies in North York