RSS FeedMotor Vehicle Lemon Laws in Canada
Every state in the U.S. has a lemon law that gives consumers redress when they find that they’ve purchased a defective car and the manufacturer can’t (or won’t) fix it. In addition, there are a number of U.S. federal laws (like the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act) that can be used to fight on behalf of consumers who have lemon vehicles.
In Canada, there is no national lemon law, but each province has some consumer protection statutes. Ontario tried to pass a lemon law in 2002, but the efforts were not successful. Consumers can, however, submit disputes to the Canadian Motor Vehicle Arbitration Plan (CAMVAP) for neutral third-party resolution.
According to the CAMVAP website,
CAMVAP covers most domestic and imported passenger cars, light trucks, sport utility vehicles, vans and multi-purpose passenger vehicles purchased or leased in Canada, as long as the vehicle is the current model or one of four previous model years.
Unlike U.S. arbitration, which is typically binding for the manufacturer but non-binding for the consumer, CAMVAP arbitration is binding for both parties. In other words, once the arbitrator has reached a decision, that’s the final word on the matter.
CAMVAP arbitration also limits the kinds of refunds and reimbursements that consumers can receive. For example, it can’t reimburse expenses to buy or lease a vehicle, void a purchase or lease agreement, or award exemplary or punitive damages.
As with any arbitration, if you enter into CAMVAP, you should have a lawyer at your side. Although it’s not mandatory to do so, keep in mind that car manufacturers have teams of lawyers who do nothing but fight lemon law claims. You’ll only be on equal footing if you have legal representation.
The bottom line? Canadian consumers seem to have far fewer protections than their U.S. counterparts.
Sergei Lemberg of Lemon Justice is sitting in the guest blogger’s chair today. He has some great info about what you can do if you wind up with a defective new or used vehicle.
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28 Responses to “Motor Vehicle Lemon Laws in Canada”
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Motor Vehicle Lemon Laws in Canada – Mr. Lemberg missed the mark with respect to his analysis of CAMVAP. The program does include awards where the arbitrator orders the manufacturer to buyback the vehicle. The arbitrators can order the manufacturer to buyback the vehicle; repair the vehicle at its expense; reimburse the consumer for repairs that have been paid for by the consumer; and, reimburse the consumer up to $500 for limited out of pocket expenses. Buybacks average about $22,000 with most vehicles that are ordered to be bought back usually being in their 2nd or early 3rd year of operation. One recent and very exceptional buyback was for just over $250,000.
The program covers vehicles that are from the current plus 4 model years old. Up until September 30th of this year, that means vehicles that are 2004 and newer are eligible. After September 30, 2008 program eligibility will be limited to vehicles from the 2005 and newer model years with program eligibility extending to 160,000 kilometers (100,000 miles.) Unlike many U.S. lemon laws CAMVAP covers used vehicles.
The CAMVAP process is free to the consumer. The hearings are held in the consumer’s home community. Manufacturers send district service staff or retired service staff to the hearings. Manufacturers do not send a lawyer. Unlike the U.S. lemon law system in all but a few states, consumers do not need lawyers. The program and its agreement for arbitration are more practical than the lemon laws.
When pre-hearing settlements, consent orders and contested awards are added together, consumers are successful about 70% of the time. Aside from the other awards, 87 vehicles were bought back by the manufacturers for a total value of 2.04 million dollars.
CAMVAP is governed by an independent board of governors that include consumer, government, dealer and manufacturer representation. All of the provinces and territories in Canada are members of CAMVAP and senior representatives from these governments participate in CAMVAP’s overall governance.
Canada’s approach to dispute resolution is considerably different than the U.S. model. The fact that the order is binding on both the consumer and the manufacturer is considered a benefit of the program. The fact that the program is free to consumers makes access available to all consumers that have a dispute with the manufacturer of their vehicle and becausethe program is Canada-wide, consumers are treated the same no matter their jurisdiction. This is significantly different from the patchwork quilt of lemon laws that exist in the United States. Many states have excellent well administered lemon laws, but in other states the laws are on the books with no funding, staffing or practical availability to the consumer.
For those interested in CAMVAP, please see our website. General consumer information as well as the programs annual reports is available to be viewed and downloaded.
I must disagree with Mr. Lemberg’s bottom line. CAMVAP provides consumers with an excellent program that is fast, fair, free, friendly and final. Canadians have a program that works for consumers and in many ways exceed many of the U.S. models.
Stephen Moody
General Manager
Canadian Motor Vehicle Arbitration Plan
Mr. Moody,
Thank you for your comments.
That is true Mr Moody, CAMVAP is doing a really great job at looking for consumers interests. Thank you for your correction.
As I pointed out on my blog today (www.LemonJustice.com/blog) I have no basis to doubt Mr. Moody’s assertions about the fairness of the arbitration process in Canada, but I will say that most arbitration programs run by Attorneys General in the United States lay similar claims which I don’t believe are fully accurate.
For instance, as I pointed out on the Lemonjustice blog in March, statistics don’t bear out these arbitration programs’ claims to neutrality.
Just look at the New York Lemon Law Arbitration Program’s statistics available online. The program screens applications — that is, to be accepted into the arbitration program, a consumer has to document 4 repairs or 30 days out of service for a vehicle, which are the New York Lemon Law requirements. However, it turns out that only 50% of all cases admitted into the program turn out in favor of a consumer. In contrast, virtually 100% of cases with 4 repairs/30 out-of-service days in which we represent consumers turn in the consumers’ favor.
How come? Well, there is an easy answer. In my experience, most manufacturers will vigorously defend cases in arbitration, sending one or two lawyers to each hearing, usually accompanied by the dealer and dealership service representatives. These folks know the law, know the facts, and can easily out-argue a consumer who shows up on his or her own.
I have a MARK V111 lincoln 1965. The air ride suspension is leaking. The cost to repair is $2800 at all the dealers I have had it priced including 2 full repair shops.
I see other Mark v11 and v111 with the same problem. I have entered my request for a fair price from the marketing department of Ford in Oakville where I live. They refuse stating the age and of course over the 100,000 kms.I think a fair price to repair is the same as replacement shock absrobers. I have a number of issues with Fords since about 1990 all around leaking gaskets from the power steering $1200 times 2 to engine and transmission gaskets failing. Each job about 10 hours to 30 hours at shop labour around 100$ per hour
I will not buy another Ford and this Lincoln just lies in my drive a monument to the lack of DUTy OF CARE from Ford to fix. I have had many fords before the 90s with never a serious gasket problem.
to anyone who can help. i recently bought a car from a canadian citizen, through ebay. upon getting the car home i am finding there are an endless number of problems. all of the problem areas were questions asked directly of the owner. (i do have documentary emails.) the owner lied about several aspects of the car. do i have any recourse through canadian law? any help would be appreciated. thanks.
Dear Mr. Landry:
Unfortunately, we are not lawyers. We are law students, and as such, we are actually prohibited from giving legal advice.
If you have legal questions, you should contact a local lawyer for advice.
Best of luck to you.
[...] Motor Vehicle Lemon Laws Every state in the U.S. has a lemon law that gives consumers redress when they find that they’ve purchased a defective car and the manufacturer can’t (or won’t) fix it. [...]
[...] here to see the original: Motor Vehicle Lemon Laws in Canada : Law is Cool Mail this [...]
Can anyone tell me if there is an organization like CAMVAP that helps people who have purchased lemon commercial vehicles?
Friends of mine recently moved here from England. They purchased a Volvo truck for the husband to become an owner/operator. The truck is such a lemon that it broke down before the odometer hit 200 kms. It rarely makes a full trip without breaking down. It doesn’t stay on the road long enough to earn enough to even make the truck payment, never mind to make a living with it. They are soon going to be on the verge of losing their house. Their marriage may not be able to last if this continues. Volvo is willing to fix the truck and keeps trying, but clearly they can’t because it keeps breaking down. They did not finance the truck through Volvo because the interest rate was way too high. The finance company they used has paid for the truck in full, so because Volvo has all their money, they are not being very helpful at all. What will happen when the warranty runs out and everything is still breaking down? They may lose their house even before the warranty runs out, because they have to use all the money they have to make the truck payment and there is nothing left over to pay the mortgage, etc. They just want a new truck, but so far, Volvo is unwilling to replace it. Everytime the truck goes into the shop to be fixed, they are losing money because it can’t be running down the road making money when it is in the shop. This is crazy. Does Canada really not have any laws to protect people from this kind of thing? I read on the website that CAMVAP deals basically with passenger vehicles. Is there someone out there who helps people with commercial vehicles? Someone needs to help these people before they lose their house.
Can anyone tell me if there is an organization like CAMVAP that helps people who have purchased lemon commercial vehicles?
Patricia Smith I am wondering if you have any help in your commercial vehicle problem. I have a new Peterbilt that they and CAT can not fix, more time in the sop then working for the last 1 1/2. Losing my company now because of this unit. The dealer makes good on warranty, and will not even take unit back as a trade in now. Finding out the dealers do not even need dealer licenses to sell commercial vehicles. I have found no help, looking for a good lawyer now. Have heard others are in thesame boat as me with this model motor. A Cat C15 600 hp model. Piece of junk that will not keep operating. In fact Cat has spent over $200,000 dollars trying to fix their problems.HELP Canadian owner operators!
Law is Cool: As law students, we cannot provide legal advice.
We would, however, direct your question to AdviceScene, one of our partners who is staffed by practicing lawyers and judges who would be more than happy to help you out.
Does CAMVAP also cover motorcycles? We purchased a new motorcycle from a dealer that has since gone under. The bike has had problems ever since we got it. The national distributor does warranty repairs, but with the amount of time the bike has spent in repair shops, we simply want our money back.
Any assistance would be appreciated.
I bought a 2009 Highlander with absolutely everything you can imagine. Day 1 the radio was not working well…long story short, I replaced 5 radios since Mid-January and now I realize that Toyota cannot fix this problem they are offering me the same solution as previously to take the car for 10 days test the radio and give it back to me. WHat can I do? I really don’t want to try the same proposed solution again, they want to remove the IPOD interface and reimburse me the $350 on a $50,000 car, one of the many reasons I bought this car was for the IPOD interface. I’m a little upset to say the least!
We bought a 2005 Buick LeSabre Ltd new and starting in early spring 2006 we had problems and since then we replaced the intermediate shaft 3 times,power steering rack once and the clunking in the front end of the car still presisted.Would that be classed as a LEMON?We asked the manager of the dealership about the Lemon Law and he claimed that he did’nt know anything about such a law.The clunking was still there and very loud and being scared of not being able to deal with anyone else we traded for a 2009 Buick Lucerne and they gave us only $14,000 and we had to pay $28,000 difference.Our 2005 Buick only had 57,000 KM and it still looked new.Is there anything we can do now as we did’nt know anything about the Lemon Law until after the trade which we discovered on the computer.
Law is Cool: It sounds like you’re asking for legal advice for a personal legal problem. We are not positioned to provide legal advice or legal information for specific cases on this site, but please do check out AdviceScene.
We are only asking if this problem could be classed as a LEMON according to your LEMON Law
I have purchased a 2008 ford f150 xlt plus used on december 31.2008. I have had nothing but trouble since i bought it with trim parts falling off, they tell me due to the previously owner. Lately i have been having more serious problems from the vehicle shimmying back and forth while driving, to the rpm’s not going reving up or down just being stuck on 1200 and not moving, with the transmission jumping in second and third gears, there is a squeaking coming from up in under the vehicle and i continously have starter noises when i start my vehicle. I have contacted my dealer on these issues and all i get is that it will cost me money unless they can find out the problem. I cannot afford to pay $150 an hour for their services if they don’t diagnose the problem, they tell me that they can’t guarantee that they will find what is wrong until my engine light comes on. I drive my two children in this truck as it is my only vehicle and i would hate to break down in the middle of nowhere with them aboard. Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.
not impressed.
While there is no statutory lemon law, there is the common law of fundamental breach which is the equivalent. A finding of fundamental breach nullifies any limitation of liability clause. So in each case, he purchaser could sue to for damages. File a jury notice, which should even the odds.
Unfortunately, without the statutory protection the manufacturer may try to fight.
A better tactic is to bring bad publicity to them. Think creative: example-paint a large yellow lemon on the side of the truck, put the manufacturer’s name in the centre, park it near the dealer, manufacturer’s local offices. Get media involved, etc.
I bought a 2005 blazer le. new . there have been lots of problems with this suv .this year i was looking for some parts , ran my vin number and it came up as a blazer 2005 zr2 . checked the wheel wells and sure as hell there were drill holes for the zr2 wheel well flares . i am scared that the dealers sales rep has sold me a demmo or a repo or a returned lemon. dealership never wanted to fix anything it was like pulling teeth to get them to fix any thing…any recourse on my part … my 4 years are coming up….
after doing some higher math i see that my 4 years are up . do i have any chance . i feel really ripped of .
To Anselmo,
Yes, you have 2 years from discovering the alteration to sue under the Limitations Act.
Good idea to get a mechanic to review and give a written opinion on the alterations.
What be my best action of this NEW 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. CamVap or Sue? I lost my brakes pulling into a gas station the day we took home our 4 day old daughter. Damage to the driver door and fender WOULD NOT be fixed because it “would admit fault” yet they fixed the defective brake booster hose. Since I had Standard brakes (not power assisted) and no reaction time to realize so…I still had brakes to Chrysler’s TOP BRASS…even the president R. Bigland could care less. Since being an employee and paying cash for the car There really is no concern now as I see fit. Since then I have lost pressure2 more times as well as ESP brake light comes on while driving and again tonight. I kept wondering why I was almost hit in the back several times today/tonight while driving with our NOW 4 month old daughter and 4 1/2 year old son in vehicle. There are a lot of transport truck on the routes I have to take to get home…There was a close call but I pulled over to the side of road as I noticed this transport was not stopping…THANK GOD I pay attention even behind me. I feel VERY UNSAFE FOR MY FAMILY any longer to be in this vehicle…which was purchased to travel around for the FAMILY! There have been COUNTLESS other Problem/Repairs and the list is still growing for the less Safety issues…What is the best recourse I have since I WANT a NEW vehicle in replacement plus costs out of pocket for the body damage I HAD TO PAY for since CHRYSLER’s would not fix it as well as FULL AMOUNTS of monies for this van…or replace it and minus the several months we have already paid for the NIGHTMARE we have NOW that is extremely UNSAFE…Thanks
BTW the 2009 Grand Caravan has only 3500 km’s since it has been in the shop most of the time we have paid for it the last several months…
I traded a car even at night in an AS IS WHERE IS deal, now the person who i traded cars with even. wants to trade back, i have already had the car changed over to my name & done a saftey and etest. i dont want to trade again
I bought a 2005 GMC Envoy used with 52000km. I noticed a lifter or a ticking noise comming from the engine and we brought it back to the used dealership for inspection. He looked the engine over and said there was nothing wrong with it. Now 9 months after the purchase I am left with a motor defect that another mechanic from a different garage has told me is a broken valve or cracked motor and states would cause the same problems in the future and eventually if not fixed properly would cause a blown motor. This was caused by antifreeze mixing in with the engine oil. Which leads me to believe the dealership sold me a defective vehicle with a cracked motor. What should I do
I have been having problems with my 08 Nissan Sentra. Its a intermitent stalling at idle or when braking. I have brought the vehicle in numerous times, going on 6 and they havent resolved the problem, stating that they can not find the issue as it doesnt register an error on their computer. So only 1 shot in the dark repair has been done, but generally nothing happens when I bring it in. I get shrugs and I dont knows, while we are driving what I consider a unsafe vehicle at this point. Only takes on stall on the highway or during a left turn and a serious accident can be caused.
Do I have case here, even though physical repairs are not being done?
I have absolutely everything documented, including service invoices, phone calls, faxes and complaints registered with Nissan Canada.
Thanks
Dear Nissan Canada,
I am disputing your final inspection report that has required me to pay for a portion of two new tires and a tunnel cover which you removed off my bill because someone else complained they didn’t receive it with there vehicle from the Sarnia Nissan Dealership. Nice to see there complaint got fixed!!!!!There are many reasons why I have yet to pay the tire charge, in which I have tiresomely explained too numerous departments, people and dealerships over and over and over again and year after year after year but these reasons are certainly not why I am disputing this charge. First and foremost, I am disputing this charge because as requested by the dealership upon returning the vehicle on its lease date I was to call ahead to make an appointment to drop the vehicle off so they can have an inspector on-site to access and damages/issues.
As requested, I made the appointment had and when I dropped it off there I thought there would be a licensed inspector to look at my vehicle before handing it over. To my surprise there was no license inspector I just signed the vehicle over and than to my shock again I received a bill in the mail of an inspection that was done without my presence for a vehicle I am fully responsible for. Very Very Very poor customer service!!!! The sad thing is all I get is the run around from Nissan Canada, Nissan Finance and the dealership explaining why they are not responsible unfortunately it’s the dealership you initially purchased it from who closed down because of poor management, that’s who’s responsible but yet Nissan Canada is requested the payment…hmmmm
Now, I have been trying to dispute the issue with Nissan Canada and as usual nothing but the run around and now my file has been sent to a third party company who has been trying to contact my co-signer on the lease but the third party company has been continuously calling my house looking for her. Every time they call I say you have the wrong number for the person you’re looking for I am the leaser of the vehicle and she is the cosigner that you are looking to contact. I think they need to get proper phone numbers so they can notify the co-signer of outstanding amount before they threaten me with sending it to credit bureau under the cosigners name without the cosigner’s knowledge. I was thinking maybe Nissan Canada should contact Sarnia Nissan dealership for the correct contact information since they are the selling dealership and should have correctly documented the information since they are responsible.
Previous issues that according to everyone I speak to at Nissan no one is responsible for…..
Upon purchasing my leased vehicle in 2005 I had intentions of buying it out since by the end of my lease I would have put in around 31, 000. In the whole 4 years of my lease I have never missed a payment so the $200 dollars or so you are requesting, it’s not about money, its principle. Where do I begin……
Nissan needs to start taking some responsibility when leasing vehicles and the dealerships they come from. Nissan receives my payment, but yet every time I call they take no responsibility for their end of the lease agreement. Is Nissan not responsibility for making sure that my vehicle is in working order in accordance the warranty details and timeframe, I highly feel, they did not abide by it and I have struggled on numerous occasion to get them to help me or compensate me.
Since day one I have had nothing but problems with the vehicle which upon numerous times brought into the dealerships was fixed or they just shut the red engine light off. I have on numerous occasions had to get other mechanics to look at it as I feared my safety when they would just shut off lights.
The thing that is sad was I had a new 2005 Nissan Xterra “off-road” not the “off-road” which my vehicle in 4 years never saw in fear it would fall apart. Just some of the things that constantly happened were.
1. Dealership I lease from closed down for poor management “shock” the way I was mistreated.
hood latch
seatbelt
day one – stereo shorted (never fixed)
clicks and clatters everywhere
engine lights – off and on
an much more but the worst of it all I put 30,000 into a vehicle where I had to explain to my passengers constantly that when the stereo would play and short out after and a few hours was… I called and brought in numerous times to Nissan and I would get the same response…if we can’t duplicate the problem we can’t fix it. How fair is that??????
I can go on with more but I think I will finish this off good enough to send into the papers, (Toronto sun, new anywhere possible) even if I have to pay this would sure make me feel better. I’m so sick of how I was ignored and taken advantage of especially how I lost out on 30,000 of lease money when I wouldn’t have paid 15,000 for the time I had it. It was embarrassing!!!
Since the CSR from your third party company said to talk to his manager would be difficult because there BUSY!!! And he stated that Nissan Canada would not do anything and I have no claim and should contact my family lawyer if I feel like it
I think this is the route we need to take to settle this principle matter so I think I will contact (CAMVAP) with my documentation and dispute first and our lawyers can proceed through CAMVAP. If anyone would like to contact please feel fee but I certainly wouldn’t be expecting it, than again the only time I did hear back from Nissan was to collect money never just good customer service when I was in need of help and direction.
F150 Ford . On July 28th 2009 I took delivery of this truck. I was thrilled as it was a dream truck. Sometime in September 2009 we noticed a musty smell in the cab but thought it would go away. I do not use the truck often and as of today it has 4000 Kilometers. The dealer has been great and I mean really great. The trouble is that they have had my truck for more than a month (I have a dealer paid rental)(problem was water leak thru satelite radio antena)I visited saturday February 13th and found my truck stripped , no seats,consol headliner,carpet. All that was left was the seat belts,dash and door panels and the smell. The smell was not as bad as before but still there.I NEED HELP ! When the smell was at its worst I drove the truck about 6 miles return trip and my wife made me change my clothing as she said I stunk and I did. If they should get rid of my stink, do I have to take back a disasembled truck? I am concerned that the factory installs things to certain tourques and the dealer does not have this available. AGAIN!!! The dealer has been bending over to try to fix my problem but as of yesterday I,m not sure I want this truck back after seeing it stripped out interior.
Lawrence Gridin: As law students, we are prohibited from giving you legal advice. You can seek free legal information at advicescene.ca. Alternatively, for specific advice, we recommend that you contact a local lawyer who specializes in consumer protection law.
At what point can someone seek compoensation. Since December 26, 2009, I have had to had my 2009 Vibe towed back to the dealer three times after it refused to start. Ther forth time it returned to the dealer, I drove it in after it hesitated to start four times in a row. Each time the dealer informed me it could diagnos the problem, though it appeard to be electronic.
I cannot rely on the car because I do not know when this electronic bug is about to bite.
How many more times do I need to endure the problem before I can ask for the car to be replaced?
Wayne Garden
Lawrence Gridin: As law students, we are prohibited from giving you legal advice. You can seek free legal information at advicescene.ca. Alternatively, for specific advice, we recommend that you contact a local lawyer who specializes in consumer protection law.