You are entitled to the estimate in writing before any work begins
Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act treats vehicle repairs as a special category with its own rules, and the first one is the estimate. A repairer may not charge you for work or parts unless it gave you a written estimate first. The only way around that is if you give it up, and a waiver has to be in writing and set a maximum amount you are authorizing. A shop that says “we’ll see what it needs and call you” and then bills a figure you never saw is on the wrong side of the rule.
The estimate has to describe the work and the parts and give a total. On collision work it usually runs to a line-item sheet: each panel, whether it is repaired or replaced, refinish time, parts by type. What the law cares about is that you can see before you agree what you are being asked to pay for.
If the shop wants to charge for the estimate itself, it has to tell you that, and the fee, before preparing it. The rule protects you from a surprise fee; it does not stop a shop from charging one it has disclosed, so ask before you hand over the keys.
The bill cannot go more than 10 percent over without your say-so
Once you accept an estimate, the shop cannot charge more than 10 percent above it unless you approve the extra. Collision repair is where this rule earns its keep, because hidden damage is normal. A bumper comes off and the reinforcement bar behind it is cracked; a door is removed and a hinge pillar has moved. The shop has to stop, tell you what it found and what it will cost, and get your approval before going on.
Your approval can be given by phone. When it is, the shop is expected to record who authorized it, when, and the number called, so the invoice can be traced back to that call. If you get a bill well above the estimate and nobody ever called, ask to see that record.
When an insurance company is paying, that hidden damage goes to the adjuster as a supplement for approval under the claim. Ask the shop to tell you when a supplement goes in, so a new figure on the paperwork is never news to you at pickup.
- Before work: a written estimate, or a written waiver with a maximum you set.
- Any fee for the estimate: disclosed before it is prepared.
- Over 10 percent above the estimate: only with your authorization, recorded if given by phone.
- At pickup: an itemized invoice showing parts, labour and whether each part is new, used or reconditioned.
You can ask for the old parts back, and every repair carries a 90-day floor
You can ask for the parts that were replaced. Ask when you authorize the repair, because the shop needs to know before it disposes of them. There are exceptions, such as a part going back to a supplier under a warranty or exchange arrangement. On a claim, mention the request to the adjuster as well, so nobody is surprised when the parts go home with you. On a collision job, a bent bumper reinforcement or a cracked headlamp is often all you will want to see, as proof the part was in fact replaced.
The Act also sets a floor on the warranty for parts and labour on a repair: 90 days or 5,000 km, whichever comes first, unless a longer one is offered. Our lifetime warranty on paint and refinish sits on top of that floor, not in place of it. Keep the invoice; it is the document the warranty runs from.
Ask too whether each replaced part is new, used or reconditioned. The invoice should say so, and on an insurance claim the parts type is usually set out on the approved estimate as well, which gives you two documents to compare.
When the rules were not followed, here is where to take it
Start with the shop, in writing. Point to the estimate, the invoice and the gap between them, and ask which authorization covers the difference. Many disputes end there, often because a supplement was approved by an adjuster and nobody told the owner.
Bring the documents in order: the estimate you accepted, any written waiver, the final invoice and your own notes of phone calls with dates. A complaint built on dates and figures moves faster than one built on a total that simply feels too high.
If that fails, Consumer Protection Ontario takes complaints about repair businesses and can explain your options. For money owed back to you, Small Claims Court in Toronto or in York Region is the usual venue. If the shop is holding the car over the disputed amount, you can still get it released while the argument continues; the page on whether a shop can keep your car explains how that works.
At our counter the estimate comes first and in writing, from photos or a walk-around, before anything is ordered. If our estimator finds more once a panel is off, you hear about it before the work is done, with photos of what was found, in English or Mandarin.
Questions people ask
The shop gave me a price verbally and I said yes. Is that enough?
Under the Act the repairer should give the estimate in writing, or have you waive it in writing with a maximum amount. Ask for the figure in an email or on a printed sheet before work starts, so there is something to hold the bill against.
Does the 10 percent rule mean the shop can always add 10 percent?
No. It is a ceiling, not an allowance. The invoice should reflect the work actually done, and anything above the estimate still has to be justified on the itemized bill.
Who authorizes extra work when my insurance company is paying?
The adjuster does, once the shop documents what it found behind the panel and sends it in. You should still be told, especially if any part of the supplement falls outside the claim and will land on your share.