Commercial auto insurance covers vehicles used for business in Ontario — from a single contractor van to a full fleet. It differs from personal auto because it rates on vehicle use, radius of operation, cargo, and who drives.
If the vehicle earns income or hauls tools, cargo or paying passengers, it needs a commercial auto policy. A personal policy can — and often does — deny the claim when the vehicle was being used for business at the time of loss.
Roughly five or more units under common ownership may qualify for a fleet-rated policy in Ontario. Fleet rating swaps individual driver and vehicle rating for a rate based on the fleet's own loss history.
For fleets with clean loss runs, that usually means meaningful savings — and one renewal date, one certificate call, one contact for adds and deletes across the entire operation.
Under five units, we individually rate each vehicle and stack them on one commercial auto policy. I'll quote both structures whenever you're near the threshold.
Commercial auto underwriting is more detailed than personal. Getting these four pieces right up front gets you accurate pricing on the first quote instead of a revised premium after binding.
A current abstract for every listed driver — convictions, at-fault claims and licence class all affect the rate.
Local, provincial, cross-border or long-haul. Radius drives both premium and which carriers will quote.
What the vehicle carries and what it does day-to-day — general freight, hazardous goods, tools, or paying passengers.
3–5 years of loss history, plus any safety programs, GPS tracking, dash cams and driver training in place.
These are the gaps that turn a routine claim into an out-of-pocket loss. I audit every commercial auto file for them before renewal.