HVAC Lawyer & HVAC Agreements | Langer Law - Greater Toronto Area

Consumer Protection Act: Unfair Practices

Matthew S. Langer — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 01:37:30 +0000

Ontario homeowners have built in protections from the Consumer protection act. One part of the consumer protection act specifically prohibits unfair business practices. The Consumer Protection Act is available online at https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/02c30#BK17.

Unfair practices are defined in two different ways under the Act: 1) to make false, misleading or deceptive representations and 2) to make an unconscionable representation.

A business is in breach of the Consumer Protection Act if the business makes false, misleading or deceptive representations. Potential examples of unfair practices included in the Act include:

A representation that the person who is to supply the goods or services has sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation or connection the person does not have.
A representation that a service, part, replacement or repair is needed or advisable, if it is not.
A representation that a specific price advantage exists, if it does not.

A business is in breach of the Consumer Protection Act if the business makes unconscionable representations. Potential examples of unfair practices related to unconscionable representations included in the Act include:

that the price grossly exceeds the price at which similar goods or services are readily available to like consumers.
that the consumer transaction is excessively one-sided in favour of someone other than the consumer.
that the terms of the consumer transaction are so adverse to the consumer as to be inequitable.

The most important feature of the Consumer Protection Act sections relating to unfair practices is that if a Court determines that a HVAC rental company breached these sections, the Court could rescind or cancel the HVAC rental agreement. If an HVAC rental agreement is legally rescinded, the Consumer Protection Act cancels the HVAC rental agreement as if it never existed and further cancels all guarantees given in respect of money payable under the HVAC rental agreement.

As an Ontario homeowner, if you believe that a HVAC rental agreement or the HVAC rental company has breached the Consumer Protection Act, feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a free phone consultation.

This blog is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Results of cases described on this website may not be typical and are not guaranteed. The accuracy of the blog posts is not guaranteed. Contacting Langer Law or using this website does not create a lawyer-client relationship.

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What can a Homeowner do before contacting a lawyer?

Matthew S. Langer — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 01:31:57 +0000

With these blog posts on HVAC rental agreements, Langer Law attempts to assist Ontario homeowners with questions and concerns they may have regarding their HVAC rental agreements and their HVAC rental equipment. The intention is for the blog posts to provide information about the HVAC rental agreement that may have been signed without the homeowner fully understanding the consequences.

Before contacting Langer Law, collect and review the following documentation to become aware of how the HVAC rental agreement and HVAC rental equipment is impacting you.

Find the original signed HVAC rental agreement. If you can’t find it, you can ask for a copy from the HVAC rental company.
Review your monthly energy bill to determine which HVAC rental company is billing you monthly, how much you are being billed monthly, and how many pieces of HVAC equipment are currently in the home.
Order a Parcel Register from Service Ontario to determine if the HVAC rental companies placed any liens on your home.

The listed documents above should be available to all Ontario homeowners and provide much needed information regarding the factual scenario faced by the homeowner. A review of these documents could lead to the basis for legal arguments nullifying the HVAC rental agreements.

If you have any questions regarding your HVAC rental agreement or your HVAC rental equipment feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a free phone consultation.

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What does HVAC stand for?

Matthew S. Langer — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 01:09:05 +0000

HVAC stands for heating, ventilation and air conditioning. The following is a list of possible HVAC equipment that an Ontario homeowner could have signed an HVAC rental agreement for.

Furnaces
Water heaters
Water filtration systems
Water softeners
Water treatment devices
Electronic air cleaners
Air purifiers
Air cleaners
Air Conditioners

Each piece of equipment listed is considered HVAC equipment. If any of the above listed HVAC equipment has been installed in your home by an HVAC rental company it is likely that you have signed an HVAC rental agreement, it is likely that you are paying monthly for a term of 10 years and it is likely that there is a lien on your home.

If you have any questions regarding your HVAC rental agreement or your HVAC rental equipment feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a free phone consultation.

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What is a Lien?

Matthew S. Langer — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 00:45:14 +0000

A lien is a legal claim or a right against property that has been properly filed against the property.
Having a lien on property typically prevents a homeowner from selling or refinancing the property
unless the lien holder agrees to discharge or postpone their interest. In the context of HVAC rental
agreements, the technical term for the lien filed on the property is a Notice of Security Interest or NOSI
for short. The distinguishing feature of a NOSI is that it is used to protect an interest in personal
property.

What this means for homeowners who have signed a HVAC rental agreement is that there is likely a lien
or NOSI filed on your property. A homeowner should be aware that if there were multiple HVAC rental
agreements signed, there are likely multiple liens on the property. The lien or NOSI was likely filed either
by the HVAC rental company or a third-party financial institution. A homeowner can check if there is a lien on the property by requesting a Parcel Register from Service Ontario. Go to https://www.onland.ca/ui/ and begin the Parcel Register request by following the directions.

If you have any questions regarding your HVAC rental agreement, your HVAC rental equipment or
requesting a Parcel Register feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a free phone
consultation.

This blog is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Results
of cases described on this website may not be typical and are not guaranteed. The accuracy of the blog
posts is not guaranteed. Contacting Langer Law or using this website does not create a lawyer-client
relationship.

The post What is a Lien? appeared first on Langer Law.

HVAC Rental Agreements: Investigative Reporting by the CBC

Matthew S. Langer — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 01:31:28 +0000

The CBC has reported on the problems Ontario consumers may face if they have signed HVAC rental agreements for HVAC equipment. In the following three articles linked below, CBC reporters investigated specific instances where Ontario consumers have made complaints about HVAC rental agreements and pricey monthly payments for a period of 10 years.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/home-trust-hvac-rental-contracts-1.5067957

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/consumer-charges-ontario-safety-standards-1.5073697

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-man-water-softener-scam-1.4292869

The CBC is a credible and reputable source of news for Canadians. These articles indicate that there is a problem that impacts Ontario consumers. These articles should be read by anyone who wants further information about HVAC rental companies and the corresponding HVAC rental agreements. Keep in mind that these articles are not legal advice but they do provide detailed information on specific cases of Ontario consumers who have been negatively impacted by signing HVAC rental agreements.

If you have any questions regarding your HVAC rental agreement feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a consultation.

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HVAC Rental Agreements: What do the Courts think?

Matthew S. Langer — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 02:12:44 +0000

If you have clicked on this blog post, you are likely an Ontario consumer who in some way has been negatively impacted by an HVAC rental agreement for equipment that you are paying for but possibly not receiving a benefit from. While this blog cannot confirm whether the HVAC rental agreement you signed is or is not legally enforceable this blog will outline how one such HVAC rental agreement was found to be unenforceable by the Small Claims Court and how that decision was upheld by the Divisional Court.

Click this link for the Canlii Decision for Balagula v. Ontario Consumers Home Services which is the Divisional Court decision dated September 13, 2018: https://www.canlii.org/en/on/onscdc/doc/2018/2018onsc5398/2018onsc5398.html?resultIndex=1

The facts in this matter are that an Ontario consumer signed two HVAC rental agreements on November 12, 2015 for a carbon filter and an air conditioner. The carbon filter was $49.99 plus HST per month while the air condition was $79.99 plus HST per month for a term of 10 years. The Ontario consumer sold his house in July 2016 but discovered that the HVAC rental company and/or a third party financing company placed two liens (Notice of Security Interests) on the home. The HVAC rental company forced the Ontario consumer to pay $17,334.09 to buy out the ongoing HVAC rental agreements and to discharge the liens.

The Ontario consumer initiated a Small Claims Court action to get back the $17,334.09 along with legal costs. To make a long story short, Deputy Judge Gannage of the Small Claims Court decided that the HVAC rental company had to pay back the $17,334.09 along with costs of $2,300. Deputy Judge Gannage’s most important findings were as follows:

Although the Ontario consumer signed the contracts, he did not consent to onerous terms that were set out in small print on the back of the HVAC rental agreements

The Deputy Judge found that the terms were unclear and confusing and did not make it clear that this was a “rent to own” HVAC agreement

The Deputy Judge found that the buyout formula was “far from clear”

The Deputy Judge found that the HVAC rental agreements were contracts of adhesion and that the HVAC rental company failed to bring the Ontario consumer’s attention to the onerous terms of the contract, which the HVAC rental company was obligated to do

The HVAC rental company appealed the Small Claims Court decision to the Divisional Court. Justice Conway of the Divisional Court upheld the Small Claims Court decision and ultimately found that the HVAC rental agreements contained onerous terms that an Ontario consumer would not reasonably expect. Specifically, the court found that clauses in the HVAC rental agreement related to registering a lien on title and the buyout clause were onerous. Due to the fact that the onerous clauses were not pointed out to the Ontario consumer before the HVAC rental agreement was signed, the onerous clauses could not be relied upon by the HVAC rental company. Accordingly, the HVAC rental company had to pay to the Ontario consumer $17, 334.09 along with Small Claims Court legal fees of $2,300 along with legal costs at Divisional Court of $3,500.

There is an ongoing legal battle between Ontario Consumers and HVAC rental companies. In this instance the Ontario consumer won and in the process created precedent setting case law that further assists other Ontario consumers going through the same legal problems.

If you have any further questions regarding the legal process please feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a consultation.

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Inherent Problems with HVAC Rental Agreements

Matthew S. Langer — Fri, 02 Aug 2019 13:00:35 +0000

HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning. Most Ontario consumers don’t know that is what the acronym stands for. More problematically than not knowing what HVAC stands for, thousands of Ontario consumers don’t know that they are renting HVAC equipment on lengthy agreements that have been found by Ontario Courts in some instances to be unenforceable. These HVAC agreements can seem like small monthly payments, but there can be clauses in the HVAC agreements that include a term length of 10 years and allow for the HVAC companies and other affiliated financial companies to place liens on the consumers house.

The following HVAC equipment have been rented to Ontario consumers with problematic HVAC Rental Agreements:

Furnaces;
Water heaters;
Water filtration systems;
Water softeners;
Water treatment devices;
Electronic air cleaners;
Air purifiers;
Air cleaners; and
Air conditioners.

Duration of Payment Term

The HVAC Rental Agreements that impact most Ontario consumers tend to be 10 years in duration. This means that $80.00 per month for a water softener turns into $960 per year and $11,520 in monthly payments after 10 years. If the Ontario consumer is renting multiple pieces of HVAC equipment, the amount payable over a 10 year period as outlined in the below chart can become astronomical.

Amount of HVAC Equipment in the House	Monthly Payment ($80.00)	Annual Payment	Payment after 10 years
1	$80	$960	$11,520
2	$160	$1,920	$19,200
3	$240	$2,880	$28,800

A troubling aspect of these HVAC rental agreements is that Ontario consumers may not even know what they agreed to, how much they have been paying, or how long they have agreed to pay for the HVAC equipment. This problem is aggravated when the HVAC rental companies attempt to collect the full value of the 10 year contract if the Ontario consumer attempts to cancel the HVAC agreement.

Lien on your House

These HVAC agreements tend to include a clause that allegedly allows for either the HVAC company or an affiliated financial company to place a lien or Notice of Security Interest (NOSI) on the consumer’s home. The amount of the lien can be variable as there is no clear formula in the HVAC rental agreement but it usually is equivalent to the full amount owing for the entire duration of HVAC agreement. If the Ontario consumer has more than one piece of HVAC equipment, they will have multiple liens on their property.

Anyone who believes they might have been impacted by a HVAC rental agreement and wants to check whether there are previously unknown liens registered on their property can request a Parcel Register from Service Ontario. This can be done by paying a nominal fee online.

What can an Ontario Consumer do?

This is a non exhaustive list of potential steps that an Ontario Consumer can complete to determine the extent to which they have been potentially impacted by a HVAC agreement. This list should not be construed as legal advice.

Attempt to find all documentation provided to you by the HVAC company including the HVAC rental agreement (if a copy was given to you).
Contact Service Ontario to purchase and review a Parcel Register to determine if liens were placed on your property by either the HVAC company or an affiliated financial company.
Contact Enbridge or your energy provider to dispute third party charges on the monthly bill.
File a consumer complaint online with the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services.
File a consumer complaint online with the Better Business Bureau.

If you have any further questions regarding the legal process please feel free to contact Langer Law at (647) 926-4704 to schedule a consultation.

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