Hotel & Motel Insurance in Ontario

Any Ontario business that rents rooms to the public on a nightly or short-stay basis, including:

• Independent and family-owned motels and roadside inns
• Limited-service and franchise hotels
• Boutique hotels and bed-and-breakfasts
• Resorts, lodges and cabin rentals
• Motels with long-stay or extended-stay guests

Many of these are owner-operated, sometimes with the owner's family living on site. That mix of commercial and residential use needs to be set up correctly on the policy.

Coverage depends on the property and the insurer, but a typical Ontario hospitality package includes:

• Building: the structure, on a replacement-cost basis, subject to policy terms and coinsurance.
• Contents and FF&E: furniture, fixtures, beds, linens, TVs, kitchen and laundry equipment.
• Business interruption: lost income and continuing expenses (payroll, mortgage, utilities) while you rebuild after a covered loss. This is often the coverage that decides whether an owner survives a major fire.
• Commercial general liability (CGL): injury or damage claims from guests and visitors, such as slip-and-falls in the lobby, parking lot or pool area.
• Guests' property: coverage for guests' belongings in your care; Ontario has specific legal rules on an innkeeper's responsibility for guest property, and the policy should be set up with them in mind.
• Liquor liability: if you have a bar, restaurant or serve alcohol at events.
• Equipment breakdown: boilers, HVAC, elevators, commercial laundry and electrical systems.
• Crime and employee dishonesty: theft of money and securities, cash-handling losses.
• Cyber liability: you store guest names and payment details, which makes a data breach a real exposure.
• Sewer backup and flood: usually optional, and important for properties with basements or in low-lying areas.
• Umbrella liability: extra liability limits above your CGL and auto policies.

Underwriters look closely at:

• Construction type, age and updates to roof, electrical, plumbing and heating
• Fire protection: sprinklers, monitored fire alarm, fire separations, distance to a hydrant and fire hall
• Number of rooms, occupancy rate and average length of stay
• Long-term residents, extended-stay contracts or government or agency room contracts
• Amenities: pool, hot tub, restaurant, bar, fitness room, conference space
• Kitchen type and cooking exposures (commercial hood and suppression systems)
• Housekeeping and maintenance routines, and how inspections are documented
• Claims history

A well-maintained property with clear documentation is easier to place and usually rates better. We help owners present their property properly to underwriters.

Older buildings, frame construction, limited fire protection, high proportions of long-term stays, vacant wings or deferred maintenance can all narrow the market. Many standard insurers have limited appetite for motels, which is exactly when an independent broker earns their keep. We market the risk to multiple insurers and specialty markets and explain what improvements could open up better options at renewal.

Lenders will require proof of property and liability coverage, often with specific limits and the lender named as mortgagee, before funding. Start the insurance process early in your due diligence, not the week before closing. Inspection findings, the building's age and the property's fire protection can affect both price and availability, and those answers can influence your purchase decision.