Furnace Contracts in Ontario
Ontario homeowners with unfair furnace rental or financing agreements may have grounds to challenge them under the 2018 Consumer Protection Act amendments. Free review.
Furnaces are the single most common piece of equipment behind unfair Ontario home equipment contracts. The pitch is always familiar: an old furnace, an unsafe combustion warning, an efficiency claim, a same-day signature, an installation within 48 hours, and a 10-to-15-year contract that totals far more than the equipment is worth.
If you signed a furnace rental or financing agreement under those circumstances — particularly if the salesperson was at your door uninvited — the 2018 amendments to Ontario's Consumer Protection Act are very likely relevant.
What the Equipment Is Actually Worth
True installed value of a residential furnace, depending on size and efficiency: roughly $3,000 to $7,000 for a competitively quoted installation. Door-to-door rental contracts routinely run total obligations of $20,000 to $40,000+ over the life of the agreement.
Contract terms typically run 10 to 15 years, with monthly rental fees that compound to several times the equipment's installed value.
Common Sales Patterns We See
- Carbon monoxide or combustion safety warnings used to create urgency
- Promised energy savings or efficiency rebates that never materialise
- Implications of utility, government, or rebate-programme affiliation
- Annual maintenance commitments that are not honoured
- Removal of the existing furnace before the cooling-off period expires
The 2018 Amendments Most Often Triggered
Unconscionable Pricing
Cumulative furnace contract obligations several times the equipment's installed value are central to this ground.
Unsolicited Contact
Door-to-door furnace sales fall directly within the restrictions added by the 2018 amendments.
Misrepresented Energy Savings
Energy savings claims used to justify a furnace contract that never materialise are a recognised misrepresentation.
Unfulfilled Maintenance
Annual furnace servicing promised at the sale and not delivered is an independent ground.
Furnace Contract Help by City
Information for homeowners with furnace contract in specific Ontario cities:
Wondering About Your Furnace Contract?
A free conversation tells you whether your furnace contract is one of the agreements the 2018 amendments were written for.