Insurance built around how your restaurant actually operates.
From cooking equipment and alcohol service to property and downtime, we’ll help you compare coverage for the risks behind the business.
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WHO WE INSURE
Restaurant types we place.
Every operation below is placed by a HIFA commercial broker. Not listed? Still worth a call.
Full-Service
Full-service restaurants
Kitchen fire, liquor liability and income lost while you are closed.
Cafés
Cafés and coffee shops
Burns, slips and equipment you cannot open the doors without.
Quick Service
Quick service and takeout
High volume, hot oil and the delivery risk most policies miss.
Bars and Pubs
Bars and pubs
Liquor liability is the risk that decides the whole placement.
Bakeries
Bakeries and dessert shops
Ovens, refrigeration and stock that spoils the moment power goes.
Catering
Catering operations
Cover that travels, and the venue certificates you will be asked for.
Food Trucks
Food trucks and mobile kitchens
Propane, generators and a kitchen that moves between sites.
Ghost Kitchens
Ghost kitchens and delivery-only
Shared kitchen space, courier partners and no dining room to fall back on.
NOT SURE WHERE YOU FIT?
Tell us how your kitchen runs. We will tell you what it needs.
Send us your menu, your hours and your licence status. A HIFA broker reviews the risk and comes back with what the market will write.
Want to talk now?
WHO THIS IS FOR
Is this you?
If any of these describe your business, a commercial broker is worth the conversation.
1
Independent restaurants, cafés and small local groups running their own kitchen
2
Quick service, takeout and delivery-led operations where most of the volume leaves the building
3
Licensed establishments serving alcohol, where liquor liability shapes the whole placement
4
Operators who have just signed a lease and need proof of coverage before the landlord hands over keys
5
Owners who have renovated, added equipment or changed the menu and never updated the values on the policy
WHAT CAN GO WRONG
The claims we see most in food service.
Common risks
Kitchen fire, particularly grease fires in the hood and duct system
Loss of income and ongoing rent while the premises are closed
Refrigeration or equipment breakdown spoiling stock
Customer injury on the premises, including slips and burns
Liquor liability arising from over-service
Food-borne illness allegations and the reputational cost that follows
Water damage from a neighbouring unit in a plaza or mixed-use building
Theft, vandalism or a break-in outside service hours
Coverage to discuss
Business Interruption
Equipment Breakdown
Liquor Liability
Tenant Improvements
Availability, limits and extensions vary by insurer and by operation. A broker confirms what applies to yours.
WHAT WE’LL ASK YOU
The questions that change the policy.
An online form asks what you are. We ask how you operate before approaching insurers.
01
What did the build-out cost, and what would it cost to rebuild at today’s prices?
02
How long would you realistically be closed after a serious kitchen fire?
03
When was the kitchen hood and duct system last professionally cleaned, and how often?
04
Do you serve alcohol, and is anyone with a Smart Serve certification on every shift?
05
What is the value of stock in refrigeration, and does the policy cover spoilage from mechanical breakdown?
06
Does your lease require you to insure the building, glass, or the landlord’s property?
Rather work through these with a broker?
REAL CLAIM EXAMPLES
Two situations worth understanding.
Kitchen fire and extended closure
A grease fire spreads into the duct work, causing structural and smoke damage. Commercial property may respond to the physical damage and tenant improvements, while business interruption may respond to lost profit and continuing expenses such as rent during the closure.
Illustrative only. Business interruption is limited by the indemnity period and the limit selected, and some policies exclude fire originating in an uncleaned duct system.
Refrigeration failure
A walk-in cooler compressor fails over a long weekend and the stock inside is spoiled. Equipment breakdown coverage with a spoilage extension may respond to the value of the stock and the repair.
Spoilage is usually an optional extension, not automatic, and sub-limits are common.
WHY HIFA
What a specialist broker does differently.
We value tenant improvements properly
A common underinsurance in restaurants is leasehold improvements. You paid for the build-out, your landlord’s policy does not cover it, and the figure on your policy is often the one from the day you opened. We look at this before renewal, not after a fire.
We size business interruption to your actual recovery time
A kitchen fire does not put you out for two weeks. Permits, insurer approvals, contractors and equipment lead times routinely stretch recovery into months. An indemnity period set too short runs out halfway through.
We handle the liquor and lease requirements together
Host liquor liability, full liquor liability for licensed premises, and the specific limits and additional insured wording your landlord’s lease demands — placed together as one program, not three afterthoughts.
WHAT AFFECTS THE PRICE
Two restaurants of a similar size can price very differently.
What affects your premium
Whether cooking involves deep frying, open flame or solid fuel
Presence, type and inspection record of fire suppression in the hood system
Building construction, age and whether the unit is standalone or in a plaza
Annual sales and the proportion derived from alcohol
Replacement cost of tenant improvements, equipment and stock
Hours of operation and whether there is late-night service
Alarm, sprinkler and security protection at the premises
Claims history over the past five years
What to have ready
Menu and cooking methods, including any deep frying or open flame
Replacement cost of leasehold improvements, equipment and stock
Annual sales, split between food and alcohol
Hood cleaning and fire suppression inspection records
A copy of your lease, specifically the insurance section
Realistic estimate of how long a full rebuild would take
Details of alarm, sprinkler and security systems
Current policy declarations and any claims in the past five years
WHERE WE WORK
The western GTA.
We work with restaurants across Burlington’s waterfront and downtown, Oakville’s Kerr Village and Lakeshore, Mississauga’s Port Credit and Square One area, and Hamilton’s James Street North.
Common questions
What restaurant owners ask.
My landlord insures the building. Why do I need property insurance?
How much business interruption coverage does a restaurant need?
Do I need liquor liability if I only serve beer and wine?
Does my policy cover food poisoning claims?
What happens if the unit next to mine floods and I have to close?
Are delivery drivers covered under my policy?
READY TO TALK?
Get a restaurant policy that matches how you actually operate.
Tell us how you cook, what you serve and what your lease requires. A HIFA broker reviews the risk before approaching insurers.
Want to talk now?