Company overview
Founded in 1871, Definity is the parent company to some of Canada’s most long-standing and innovative property and casualty insurance companies, including Economical, Sonnet, Family, and Petline. By investing in businesses and innovation, the companies in our group help our customers, broker partners, employees, and communities adapt and thrive now and in the future. Serving brokers and customers nationwide, Definity has a strong focus on modernising distribution and making it easier for brokers to quote, bind, and service business efficiently in an increasingly digital market.
The project
Definity worked with Acturis to deliver a digital quote‑and‑bind solution for its small commercial property and casualty business, enabling brokers to place risks quickly and accurately with Economical.
The initiative centred on the launch of SME Pathway, a web‑based platform designed to streamline small commercial placement while integrating effectively into brokers’ existing workflows.
The primary objectives were to:
- Provide brokers with a fast, intuitive digital quoting experience
- Enable efficient quote-to-bind capabilities for small commercial risks
- Improve accuracy and consistency in underwriting and placement
- Support broker adoption at scale through a modern user interface
The challenge
As expectations for digital trading continued to rise, Definity identified the need to enhance how brokers accessed and placed small commercial P&C business.
Existing approaches did not provide the speed, usability, or self‑serve capability required to support high‑volume broker trading.
Definity needed a solution that would:
- Be easy for brokers to adopt and use
- Deliver a modern, web-based experience
- Support fast and accurate quoting and binding
- Scale across a broad broker network
The solution
Definity selected Acturis based on prior experience with proven solutions already in use with major carriers in the UK, and the opportunity to adapt that capability for the Canadian P&C market.
Working in close partnership, Acturis and Definity:
- Designed a web-based user interface with a modern look and feel
- Delivered underwriting and segmentation aligned to Canadian small commercial risks
- Delivered SME Pathway as a digital quote-and-bind solution built on Acturis technology
The Acturis team supported the project through collaborative design, nimble development, and creative problem solving to meet Definity’s specific market requirements.
The outcome
SME Pathway launched in June 2021 and saw strong adoption from the outset. Brokers were able to quickly engage with the platform, benefiting from its ease of use and clear workflows.
Initial and sustained success was driven by:
- Close collaboration between Definity and Acturis teams
- Practical design decisions focused on broker usability
- Ongoing responsiveness to feedback and refinement
Since launch, the platform has continued to evolve, supporting Definity’s broader digital distribution strategy.
The impact
SME Pathway has delivered clear and measurable results for Definity:
- More than 1,400 brokers per quarter actively quoting and binding business
- Faster, more efficient placement of small commercial risks
- Improved broker experience through a streamlined digital interface
- Strong alignment between underwriting intent and broker risk selection
The solution has become a key part of Definity’s small commercial distribution model.
Looking ahead
Definity continues to invest in digital innovation with Acturis as a strategic partner. Future priorities include:
- Expanding digital self-serve capabilities
- Strengthening integration with broker management systems
- Enhancing connections between Acturis technology and Definity’s broader P&C platforms
- Exploring emerging opportunities such as AI-driven data capture
As Acturis continues to grow its footprint in Canada, Definity sees increasing value in the closer alignment between Acturis enabled broker workflows and insurer distribution capabilities.
SME Pathway was truly the result of best‑in‑class technical expertise and proven solutions from Acturis, combined with Canadian P&C segmentation and underwriting to create a winning offering.
Acturis and Definity partnered to deliver a market-leading small business solution to Canadian brokers. Together, we leverage each other’s expertise, creativity, and innovation to expand and extend SME Pathway’s leadership in this space, and we look forward to continuing to do so for many years to come.