Economical changed its name to Definity, and older policies kept going
An Economical policy is still a live policy; only the name on the company has changed. Some North York drivers still have “Economical” on renewal letters or the liability card in the glovebox. Economical demutualized in 2021, its parent became Definity Financial Corporation, and the insurance company was renamed Definity Insurance Company. The Economical branding has been moving over to Definity in stages, and existing policies and claims continue.
So if your documents say one name and the website says another, you are dealing with the same insurance company. Report the claim using the claims contact on your current policy documents or on Definity’s site, and keep your policy number handy.
Definity Financial is also the parent of Sonnet, Family and Petline, and on January 2, 2026 it closed its purchase of Travelers’ Canadian personal and most commercial insurance operations. Those are separate brands with their own customer-facing processes, so a neighbour insured under Sonnet or Travelers may describe a claim differently from yours. This page covers the Definity and Economical side.
What a Definity Repair Partner offers, stated without the sales gloss
Definity Repair Partners are a network of repair facilities. Work done there carries a warranty on body, parts and paint for as long as you own the vehicle, and Definity says its satisfaction guarantee applies only with those partners. For a driver who plans to keep the car a long time and has a partner nearby, that is a fair reason to take the recommendation.
The limits follow from the wording. The warranty is tied to Repair Partner work, so it does not reach a repair done anywhere else, and it is written around your ownership, so it is not something to promise a buyer when you sell. Neither point makes the network a bad choice. They only mean the warranty belongs in your comparison next to whatever the other shop puts in writing.
At an independent shop, the shop’s own warranty does that job. Ours covers paint and refinish for as long as you own the car and is issued by the shop, so it does not depend on Definity or on any future insurance company.
How Definity sends its assessment to the shop you choose
Definity describes the non-network route in three moves. The company provides your chosen shop with your coverage information. A claims representative completes a damage assessment. You take the car to your preferred shop, and the repair goes ahead from that assessment. Ask the representative to confirm the shop name on the file before the assessment is sent, so the coverage information and the assessment reach the right place. In practice the shop also writes its own estimate, and the two are reconciled.
The reconciliation is where most of the real work happens. An assessment made from photos or a quick look in a parking lot cannot see under a bumper cover or behind a headlamp. Once the car is apart, the shop documents what it finds, and any added work goes back to Definity as a supplement with photos and, where it matters, the manufacturer’s repair procedure. Expect that on any hit hard enough to push the bumper into the headlamp or the grille.
Modern cars add one more line. After bumper, windshield or mirror work, the radar, camera or parking sensors may require recalibration, and that step needs to be on the estimate, not discovered at pick-up. A diagnostic scan before and after the repair is often how those questions get answered.
Bringing a Definity or Economical claim to Sheppard and Don Mills
Whether the paperwork says Definity or Economical, the steps before the claim are the driver’s own. Injuries call for 911 from the scene. Without injuries, report at the nearest Collision Reporting Centre promptly if the damage to both cars together could pass the provincial reporting threshold, or if the other driver took off. Then tell Definity within the seven days the policy expects.
Not at fault, with the other vehicle identified and insured in Ontario, means Definity pays for your car under DCPD. At fault, your collision coverage pays, less the deductible, if the policy includes it. A rental is covered when the fault was not yours, or through OPCF 20 if you carry it.
Tell Definity the car is coming to Crash Consultant at Sheppard and Don Mills and send us the claim number. We take the assessment, write our estimate, and handle any supplement directly with the claims representative. If the car came off the 401 on a flatbed, tell the tow operator our address; you decide where it goes.
Parts are where an older Economical-era car can slow down. If the assessment lists an aftermarket or recycled part, you can ask for the original and pay the difference, and on anything tied to safety, such as a bumper reinforcement or a headlamp housing that holds a sensor, we make the case for the original part with photos. If a part has to be ordered from the manufacturer, and the car is safe to drive in the meantime, we can book the drop-off for when the part is in, so rental days are not used up on a car waiting for a box.
Questions people ask
My policy documents still say Economical. Is my coverage still valid?
Yes. The insurance company was renamed Definity Insurance Company, and existing Economical policies and claims continue. Report the claim through the contact on your current documents or Definity’s website.
Is a Sonnet or Travelers policy handled the same way as a Definity one?
They belong to the same parent company, but each brand runs its own customer-facing claims process. The Sonnet and Travelers Canada pages cover those in detail.
Does the Definity Repair Partner warranty apply if I use another shop?
No. Definity ties that warranty, and its satisfaction guarantee, to Repair Partner work. At another shop, ask for the shop’s own written warranty and check what it covers.
Who looks at the car first if I choose my own shop?
A Definity claims representative completes the damage assessment, and your shop works from it and its own estimate. Ask the representative how the assessment will be done, by photos or in person, so you know whether to bring the car anywhere first.