A ‘mystery shopper’ exercise carried out by Ontario’s car dealership regulator suggests more than half of new car dealers in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) could be illegally adding ‘surprise fees’ to their advertised pricing.

Since 2010, all dealerships in the province have had to honour “all-in price advertising” regulations—the advertised price of a new or used vehicle must include all fees and charges except for HST and licensing, the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC) explains.

But in 2017, OMVIC sent out undercover mystery shoppers to 50 new car dealers in the GTA and found 29 of them tried to illegally add on fees they did not advertise.

OMVIC research also shows less than half of Ontario car-buyers know about all-in pricing regulations, something the council hopes to correct with a new awareness campaign that suggests shoppers use their phone to take a photo of the advertisement – whether it be in a newspaper, on the internet, on a sign or on radio and TV – and bring it to the dealership.

Fees that have to be included in the advertised price of a vehicle include freight; pre-delivery inspection; administration fees; and warranties. The only thing a dealership is allowed to exclude from an advertised price is the cost of HST, vehicle registration and plates.

(The cost of a safety must be included in the advertised price, too, unless the vehicle is marketed as “as-is” or “unfit.”)