Reference · Jurisdiction
Can a salesperson sell a furnace or water heater at your door in Ontario?
Ontario restricts unsolicited in-home marketing and sales of furnaces, water heaters, air conditioners, water treatment equipment and other listed goods or services. A consumer can initiate an in-home transaction. An existing written contract can also allow a new offer if the business meets specific advance-consent conditions.
Sources checked
- 01Identify the product
Match the equipment or service to the restricted functions in Ontario’s list. Source 1
- 02Check who initiated contact
A customer can contact the supplier and request a home visit to enter into a contract. Source 1
- 03Check an existing agreement
A supplier with an existing written contract must obtain agreement to make an offer before visiting. Source 1
- 04Read the written copy
A qualifying restricted contract has a prescribed disclosure cover page and a ten-day cooling-off period from receipt. Source 1
The decisive questions are what the supplier is offering, who initiated the transaction and whether an existing written agreement qualifies for the exception.
An invitation is about the transaction
Ontario’s example is a consumer who calls or emails the business and asks it to come to the home to enter into a contract. A service technician arriving for a routine repair does not automatically meet that test. A supplier making a repair or maintenance visit generally cannot enter into a new restricted agreement during the visit unless the existing-contract conditions apply. Source 1 Source 2
An existing written contract has an advance-consent condition
A business already under a written agreement can arrange a home visit and offer a restricted product or service if, before the visit, it asks whether it may make that offer and the consumer agrees. Ontario requires suppliers that enter into these agreements at the home to keep records for three years showing how the contact and consent conditions were satisfied. Source 1 Source 2
A signed copy starts the cancellation period
Ontario says the ten-day cooling-off period starts when the consumer receives the written agreement. A restricted contract requires a cover page that sets out consumer rights. The contract must disclose matters such as the overall cost and any applicable cancellation fees. Ontario’s consumer guidance discusses possible costs where the consumer asked for installation before the end of the cooling-off period. Source 1 Source 3 Source 4
An unsolicited restricted sale can leave the agreement void
Ontario says an agreement resulting from unsolicited door-to-door marketing or misleading materials left at the home is void in the circumstances covered by the rule. Its guidance also explains reimbursement of related removal or return charges. Keep a copy of the agreement and how the contact started if you need to raise a complaint with Consumer Protection Ontario. Source 1 Source 4