Intact Financial Corporation recently recapped its 2020 performance, mentioning in passing the results for BrokerLink, its Canadian brokerage network. In turn, BrokerLink announced that it had finalized six acquisitions in Alberta and Ontario.  

As of February 1, 2021, the brokerage network acquired:  

  • Gougeon Insurance Brokers, based in Sudbury, Ontario, which offers commercial insurance and risk management solutions.  

Effective December 1, 2020, it also acquired:  

  • J.G. Rivet Brokers Limited, known as Rivet Insurance, which offers home, auto, commercial and life insurance through its nine branches located in Northern Ontario;  
  • John F. Smith Insurance Brokers Inc., based in Arthur, Ontario, which specializes in commercial and agricultural insurance;  
  • All City Insurance Ltd., based in Calgary, Alberta, offering home, auto, business, travel and life insurance;  
  • Air-Alta Insurance Ltd., based in Airdrie, Alberta, which provides home, auto, farm, travel and life insurance;  
  • and Centre Street Insurance Inc., which provides auto, home business, travel, life, farm and group health insurance to six communities to the north, east and south of Calgary, Alberta.  
18 acquisitions in 2020  

BrokerLink bought out 23 brokerage firms in Canada in 2019, and fewer in 2020. “We continue to be active on the acquisition front with 18 transactions closed this year," Intact said in its financial statements for the fourth quarter of 2020.  

The company announced 14 of these acquisitions: In addition to the five completed as at December 1, 2020, the brokerage network had listed nine completed earlier in the year.  

When asked by the Insurance Portal about the four undisclosed acquisitions, Marie Harrison, BrokerLink's Director of Marketing and Communications, said, "We did not disclose the other acquisitions and will not provide further information than what is publicly available.”   

To date, BrokerLink reports having more than 150 branches and 2,000 employees.  

BrokerLink exceeds $2 billion in DPW 

In the same financial documents, Intact states that “on August 31, 2020, BrokerLink reached a significant milestone, surpassing $2 billion in DPW” (direct written premiums). It adds that “the growth story remains robust, and we have set a new premiums target of $3 billion for BrokerLink by 2025.”  

The Insurance Portal asked what percentage of this amount represents the Intact premiums sold by BrokerLink in 2020. In response, Harrison repeated that the company "cannot comment beyond what is publicly available.”  

In 2019, Intact reported that out of $11 billion in direct written annual premiums, 8% was sold by BrokerLink, or $880 million. In that year, BrokerLink accounted for $1.8 billion in direct written premiums from all insurers, Intact states. Approximately 49% of the premiums sold by BrokerLink were therefore Intact premiums, according to the Insurance Portal’s calculations. 

BrokerLink declined to comment on this calculation. “As a publicly traded company we can’t provide any additional information or breakdown of numbers that isn’t already publicly disclosed,” Harrison said.