Ontario proposes to change consumer protections, double fines for businesses
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/10/2023 (1027 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
TORONTO – Ontario plans to give people a new way to exit timeshare agreements, make it easier to get out of a gym membership, and prohibit businesses from making false claims about prize offers, under new legislation.
Public and Business Service Delivery Minister Todd McCarthy introduced a new consumer protection bill Monday, saying the laws haven’t been comprehensively updated since 2005, and in that time practices have changed a lot, including the use of apps and increasing online shopping.
McCarthy says most people know someone who has dealt with an unscrupulous business, in the home renovations, appliance installation, and timeshare industries, and the rules need to be simpler, clearer and “reflective of a dynamic and increasingly digital-first marketplace.”
The legislation would allow owners to exit a timeshare contract after 25 years, if they want – no mandatory exit right currently exists – and would also set new rules for long-term leases for heating, ventilation and air conditioning appliances, setting limits on termination costs if a consumer wants to end the contract early.
It would also ban businesses from using language in contracts to deter consumers from publishing negative reviews, prohibit businesses from “creating unnecessary barriers” when people try to cancel a subscription or membership, such as for a gym, and give consumers the right to three times the amount of a refund owed by a business if they’re forced to take that company to court to get their money back.
The maximum fines for a person or business convicted under the Consumer Protect Act are $50,000 and $250,000, respectively, and the new legislation would double those amounts.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2023.