Two Ontario brokerages – Vision Insurance Brokers and Steele & Ferraro Insurance Brokers – join BrokerLink

Two Ontario brokerages – Vision Insurance Brokers Ltd. and Steele & Ferraro Insurance Brokers Limited – announced on Thursday that they will join BrokerLink, one of the largest property and casualty insurance brokerages in Canada.

Terms of the transactions, finalized on March 1, were not disclosed. Staff at both brokerages will join BrokerLink.

Based in Vaughan, Ont., Vision Insurance will grow BrokerLink’s offerings for commercial group insurance, BrokerLink said in a press release. The acquisition of Steel & Ferraro, which offers expertise in farm insurance, will build on BrokerLink’s presence in the area.

“Vision Insurance is the exclusive insurance provider for the Ontario Opticians Association and we provide group coverage for home and auto to several professional associations,” Richard Ambler, president of Vision Insurance, explained in the release. “We look forward to contributing our affinity insurance expertise to BrokerLink and continuing to provide customers with excellent service.”

Bruce Kurtz, president of Steele & Ferraro, said that joining BrokerLink aligned with the brokerages values and insurance specialty. “It was the right fight,” Kurtz said. “As with BrokerLink, we strive to provide high-quality service and insurance products to customers. Our experience in farm insurance is a strong complement to BrokerLink’s Farm Advantage program.”

Paul Meyer, head of acquisitions at BrokerLink, added that welcoming both companies “will expand our expertise and service offerings. We look forward to integrating our teams and continuing to serve our local communities.”

Since 1993, Steele & Ferraro has offered expertise in farm insurance, as well as offering personal, business and specialty insurance solutions.

Vision Insurance began in 1970 when Ray Collins opened R.H. Collins Insurance Brokers Ltd. In 2003, the company expanded with the acquisition of Forfar Insurance Brokers Ltd. and was renamed Vision Insurance Brokers Ltd. In addition to traditional retail personal and commercial business, the brokerage offers specially tailored group home and auto insurance plans for several professional associations and occupations.

Established in 1991, the BrokerLink companies, which include Canada Brokerlink Inc., Canada Brokerlink (Ontario) Inc. and Macdonald Chisholm Trask Insurance, together constitute one of the largest Canadian P&C insurance brokerage operations with over 115 offices supported by more than 1,400 employees across Ontario, Alberta and Atlantic Canada. The BrokerLink companies are subsidiaries of Intact Financial Corporation.