Polling undertaken by the Homeowner Protection Centre (HPC) shows that more than half the families in Metro Toronto (over 62 per cent) have had a negative experience with a door-to-door water heater salesperson. Complaints about door-to-door water heater rentals have been the second most frequent received by the Ministry of Consumer Services for two years running. The poll also showed that over 80 per cent of those surveyed in Metro Toronto agree that there needs to be legislation in Ontario to regulate water heater door-to-door salespersons. Recently, the Ontario government introduced Bill 55, Stronger Protection for Ontario Consumers Act, 2013. Features of Bill 55 include doubling the cooling-off period for consumers to 20 days, prohibiting the installation of equipment during the cooling-off period, and the requirement of contracts to be explained in clear, easy to understand language. Bill 55 is currently in the legislature at second reading, and has yet to be referred to one of the committees of the legislature for public hearings.
