TORONTO -

To help dealers comply with provincial law governing advertisements, the Used Car Dealers Association of Ontario recently offered a synopsis of the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council’s advertising rules.

Basically, the UCDA broke down specific areas of the law and how dealers can ensure compliance, beginning with contact information that must be included in dealer ads.

“Ads must include the dealer’s name and business telephone number clearly and large enough to be easily read, or if space is limited in a classified ad you can use the word ‘dealer,’” UCDA explained.

Next up, UCDA dove into guidelines for pricing.

If a vehicle’s price is advertised, all fees must be included, with the exception of HST and the cost of licensing, the association stressed.

Continuing on, UCDA also emphasized that ads for vehicles that are not new and are not in the current or previous model-year class have to say “used.”

There are also rules in ads for “as-is” vehicles. These would be units that the dealer has no intention to recondition certify, e-test or guarantee, and thus choose to sell “as-is,” UCDA noted.

The group also stressed that in advertising as-is units, dealers are required to “clearly state” the following:

“This vehicle is being sold ‘as is,’ unfit, not e-tested and is not represented as being in a road worthy condition, mechanically sound or maintained at any guaranteed level of quality. The vehicle may not be fit for use as a means of transportation and may require substantial repairs at the purchaser’s expense. It may not be possible to register the vehicle to be driven in its current condition," according to the UCDA.

Moving along, UCDA also shared ad guidelines for vehicles sold without certification or an e-test, but stressed that these units are different than as-is units.

“You know enough about the vehicle to have a good idea what it will cost to certify, e-test and have responsibility for its basic suitability as a means of transportation,” the association shared. “When advertising a vehicle for a price that does not include safety certification and/or e-testing, the ad must clearly state:

‘Vehicle is not drivable, not certified and not e-tested. Certification and e-testing available for $xxx,’” officials noted.

UCDA continued: “If you offer safety and/or e-test services, the cost must be in the above statement and it must not be a mandatory charge. … the purchaser must have the right to purchase it without a safety. Such vehicles may not be sold at or above the advertised price using the ‘as-is’ clause on the bill of sale.”

Moreover, all OMVIC disclosures must be included with these units, as well.

Continuing on, UCDA also pointed out a rule for daily rental units and other vehicles of that ilk. Dealers must disclose in advertisements if a vehicle has previously been a daily rental, an emergency service unit or a taxi/limousine. UCDA stressed that “this must be clearly and prominently stated.”

There are also rules for advertising credit.

Per the Consumer Protection Act, 2002, dealers have to share APR, term, cash price and cost of borrowing when they advertise credit offers, according to officials.

“If offering a variety of credit options, a representative example may be used,” UCDA pointed out.

The CPA also includes guidelines for advertising leases, the association noted.

Dealers must disclose the fact that the offer is for a lease and also share the payments, term, APR, start- and end-of-lease obligations as well as kilometer obligations.

Again, UCDA pointed out that: “If offering a variety of lease options, a representative example may be used.”

Dealers with questions are urged to contact the UCDA Help Line at: (416) 231-2600 or (800) 268-2598.

Drive Check

In other news from the organization, UCDA also shared some of the early results from Drive Check, which is its driver license search service rolled out early this year.

Basically, Drive Check allows dealers to check to see if licenses are valid, valid with restrictions or not valid. This offering can be purchased for $3 at ucdasearches.com.

The association found that some dealers discovered “alarming” information after searches.

“We checked 50 (members) of our staff and found two that had suspended or expired driver’s licenses,” UCDA cited one member as saying.

UCDA indicated that another dealership discovered that there were issues with the licenses of four of its 19 staff members. Specifically, two employees were found to have expired licenses while the licenses of two of the employees were suspended.

“Apparently they don’t always tell us when they’ve had a problem,” the dealer was quoted as saying. “I am checking them every three months from now on.”

Overall, the proportion of licenses that came up with a problem was at 6 percent during the program’s first month.

“As of last December, if someone is driving your vehicle with an invalid license, apart from whatever action is taken against that person, your car can be seized for seven days,” UCDA stressed