Do Ontario home inspectors need errors and omissions insurance?

No law in Ontario requires home inspectors to carry errors and omissions insurance, or any other insurance. Ontario.ca states that inspectors are currently not required by law to have insurance coverage, though many do have policies that can include general liability or errors and omissions coverage.

So whether a particular inspector carries it, and what kind, is something to ask directly and get in writing before the inspection begins.

Ontario passed a Home Inspection Act in 2017, but it has not been brought into force, so there is no provincial licence today and no mandated insurance standard attached to one. If the Act is ever proclaimed, it would require a written contract disclosing any prescribed insurance, but that condition does not apply now.

The federal Office of Consumer Affairs suggests checking whether the inspector has professional liability insurance, and notes that members of a professional association or order may have liability insurance included as part of membership, though it attributes that as a possibility rather than a guarantee. Ontario.ca's advice is straightforward: ask if they choose to have insurance. Neither source gives a minimum coverage amount for Ontario, and neither says association membership guarantees a policy is in place.

When you speak with an inspector, ask for the details in writing: what type of policy they hold, who the insurer is, and what the coverage limits are. If you have questions about what an insurance gap would mean for you if something were missed, that is a question for a lawyer.

Put the insurance question to every inspector you call, and compare the written answers side by side.