Quick Answer
What to know if your insurer asks for an electrical inspection:
- Insurers ask because of a specific risk — old wiring, a fuse panel, small service, or missing records.
- An insurance inspection is a contractor's written assessment of visible components — not an ESA inspection.
- A Licensed Electrical Contractor can assess, report, and remediate, filing an ESA permit where the repair requires one.
A letter or email from your insurance company asking for an electrical inspection can feel like a warning shot. It usually isn't. In most cases it's a routine underwriting step — the insurer sees something in the file that raises their risk of an electrical fire and wants a professional to take a look before they write, renew, or reprice the policy. Here's what's actually behind those requests, and how we handle them at Portman Electric.
Why Insurers Ask for an Electrical Inspection
Ontario has a lot of older housing stock — and Toronto especially, with entire neighbourhoods of century homes, wartime bungalows, and pre-war semis. Insurers know the failure patterns in these homes, and a handful of red flags almost always trigger a request:
- Knob-and-tube wiring. The original wiring in many pre-1950s homes. Its age, degraded insulation, and lack of a ground worry underwriters.
- Aluminum branch wiring. Common in homes wired in the mid-to-late 1960s and 1970s. Connections can loosen and overheat if not properly terminated.
- Fuse panels. Fuses aren't inherently dangerous, but they signal an older, smaller service and the temptation to over-fuse a circuit.
- 60-amp service. Often too small for a modern household and a sign the electrical system hasn't been updated.
- Federal Pioneer Stab-Lok panels. A specific panel line that draws underwriter attention due to long-standing concerns about breaker performance.
- Missing records. An older home with no documentation of past electrical work leaves the insurer guessing about what's behind the walls.
Not every insurer treats these the same way. Many insurers will happily insure an older home once the electrical system is documented or remediated; your insurer may have its own thresholds and its own form. That's why the first move is always to read the request carefully and, if anything is unclear, ask your broker exactly what they need.
What to Do When You Get the Letter
Don't panic and don't ignore it. An unanswered request can lead to a policy being declined or non-renewed, which is far harder to unwind than simply booking an assessment. A calm, methodical response works best:
- Read what they're actually asking for. Some want a general inspection report; some want confirmation that a specific issue (knob-and-tube, a Stab-Lok panel) has been addressed; a few want an ESA Certificate of Acceptance for permitted work.
- Note the deadline. Insurers usually give you a window. Book early so there's time to complete any repairs before it closes.
- Call a Licensed Electrical Contractor. You want someone who can both assess and fix, so you're not restarting with a new company if repairs are needed.
- Keep everything in writing. The report, invoices, and any ESA documentation become part of your permanent home record — useful again at resale.
What the Inspection Involves
A Portman electrical safety inspection is a non-destructive assessment of the visible and accessible parts of your system, backed by a written report. We look at the incoming service and meter, the panel and its breakers or fuses, grounding and bonding, and the wiring type wherever it's exposed — in the basement, attic, and open junction boxes. We test a representative sample of outlets and switches, and we flag anything that looks unsafe or non-compliant.
It's important to be honest about the limits of this: a non-destructive assessment cannot see concealed wiring behind finished walls. If your home has plaster over the original knob-and-tube runs, we can confirm what's present at the accessible points and note where wiring likely continues out of sight — but we won't pretend to have x-ray vision. That candour is exactly what a good report gives your insurer: a clear statement of what was verified and what couldn't be.
This is also where the difference between our work and an ESA inspection matters. Our assessment is a contractor's professional opinion of the system's condition. An ESA inspection, by contrast, is a review of specific permitted work carried out under provincial authority, ending in a Certificate of Acceptance issued by ESA. If you want the distinction spelled out fully, see our guide on the electrician's letter vs the ESA Certificate of Acceptance.
Portman's 3-Step Process
We keep this simple so you always know where you stand with your insurer:
- 1. Assessment. We inspect the visible, accessible electrical system in person and note the service size, panel type, wiring, grounding, and any hazards.
- 2. Risk report. You get a written report describing what we found, what couldn't be verified without opening walls, and a prioritized list of any recommended repairs — in plain language your underwriter can read.
- 3. Repairs with an ESA permit where required. If remediation is needed, we carry it out as a Licensed Electrical Contractor. Where the work requires it, we file the ESA Notification of Work and coordinate the inspection so ESA can issue the Certificate of Acceptance.
Two of the most common remediation jobs we see from insurance requests are knob-and-tube rewiring and panel and service upgrades — for example, moving from a 60-amp fuse panel to a modern 100- or 200-amp breaker panel. If you're weighing service size, our comparison of 100-amp vs 200-amp service is a good starting point.
Timelines
For most Toronto homes, the on-site assessment takes one to two hours, and the written report follows within a few business days. If your insurer only needs a report confirming the system's condition, you may be done at that point. If repairs are required, the timeline depends on scope — a panel upgrade or partial rewire needs scheduling, materials, and, where applicable, ESA involvement. Build in buffer before your insurer's deadline so there's room for the inspection to close out cleanly.
If the letter came with an urgent deadline or you've just discovered a hazard, treat it like the priority it is. For genuinely urgent situations — burning smells, sparking, or a lapse-of-coverage deadline hours away — reach out about our emergency electrical service.
Portman Electric
Got an insurance letter about your wiring? We assess, report, and repair.
As an ECRA/ESA Licensed Electrical Contractor, we give you a clear written report your insurer can read — and handle any repairs, including the ESA permit and inspection where required.
Common Questions About Insurance Electrical Inspections
Why does my insurance company want an electrical inspection?
Insurers ask when something about the home raises their risk of an electrical fire — usually knob-and-tube wiring, aluminum branch wiring, a fuse panel, a 60-amp service, a Federal Pioneer Stab-Lok panel, or simply missing records for an older home. The inspection helps them decide whether to write, renew, or price the policy.
Is an insurance electrical inspection the same as an ESA inspection?
No. An insurance inspection is a contractor's assessment of the visible, accessible electrical system, documented in a written report. An ESA inspection is a review of specific permitted electrical work carried out under provincial authority, resulting in a Certificate of Acceptance. They serve different purposes and are not interchangeable.
What does the electrician actually look at during an insurance inspection?
The service size and panel, wiring type where it's visible (knob-and-tube, aluminum, older cloth-covered wiring), grounding and bonding, the condition of connections and devices, and any obvious hazards. It's a non-destructive assessment, so wiring hidden behind finished walls can't be fully verified.
Do you need to open up my walls for the inspection?
No. A standard insurance assessment is non-destructive. We inspect what's visible and accessible — the panel, the attic and basement runs, junction boxes, outlets and switches. We can't see concealed wiring behind finished drywall or plaster, and we say so clearly in the report.
What if the inspection finds knob-and-tube or aluminum wiring?
We document it and explain the options. Many insurers will renew or write a policy once problem wiring is remediated by a Licensed Electrical Contractor and the work is documented. Depending on scope, remediation may require an ESA notification and inspection.
How long does the inspection take?
For a typical Toronto home, the on-site assessment usually takes one to two hours depending on size and access. The written report follows shortly after so you have something to send to your insurer or broker.
Will one inspection satisfy my insurer?
Often, but not always. Many insurers accept a detailed report from a Licensed Electrical Contractor; some want proof that specific issues were corrected, and a few request an ESA Certificate of Acceptance for permitted work. Your insurer may have its own form or checklist, so confirm what they need before you book.
Can Portman do the repairs after the inspection?
Yes. We're an ECRA/ESA Licensed Electrical Contractor, so we can assess, report, and carry out any repairs — filing the ESA Notification of Work and coordinating the inspection where the work requires it.
Does the inspection guarantee my premium won't go up?
No electrician can promise that — pricing is the insurer's decision. What a clear, honest report does is give the underwriter accurate information and a path to remediation, which is usually better than an unexplained old system with no documentation.