Restaurant Insurance in Ontario
Ontario restaurant insurance explained with CGL, commercial property, equipment, spoilage, business interruption and worker coverage context.
Restaurants combine public-facing liability with property and equipment exposure
IBC's commercial coverage framework includes liability, property and business interruption protection. Restaurants can combine those risks with cooking equipment, refrigeration, food inventory, customer traffic and employee exposure.
Insurance Bureau of Canada — Types of business insurance coverage →A restaurant shutdown can create both property loss and lost-income exposure
Fire, water damage, equipment failure or another insured event can damage property while also interrupting revenue. Property, machinery breakdown and business interruption should therefore be considered as separate coverage questions.
Commercial coverages to review
What can change the premium?
Insurance checklist before comparing policies
List the operations you actually perform instead of relying only on a broad profession label.
Identify licensing, WSIB, lease and client requirements before comparing optional private coverage.
Include portable tools, stock, equipment, premises, vans, trucks and trailers.
A lower premium can reflect a lower limit, higher deductible or different coverage wording.
Frequently asked questions
There is no single answer based only on the profession name. Ontario requirements can come from trade licensing, WSIB rules, vehicle law, a lease or a client contract. The official context on this page identifies the profession-specific rule we can document; private commercial coverage should be reviewed separately.
Common questions include commercial general liability, tools or property, commercial auto, business interruption and contract requirements. Professional-service businesses may also need to consider E&O and cyber exposure. The right combination depends on actual operations.
Canada Rate Lab does not publish one generic profession premium because operations, revenue, payroll, workers, locations, tools, vehicles, claims, limits and deductibles can materially change the price. Cost ranges will be published only when the business profile and source data can be documented.
No. WSIB is Ontario's workplace insurance system and private CGL or professional liability are commercial insurance products. A business can have WSIB obligations and still need separate private coverage for third-party, property, vehicle or professional risks.
How Canada Rate Lab will build cost ranges
We will not publish one generic small-business premium and apply it to every profession. Future ranges will identify the business activity, province, revenue/payroll assumptions, number of workers, liability limit, vehicles and other meaningful variables. Statutory workplace requirements will be shown separately from the private premium estimate.