Appliance Repair in Montreal: Plexes, Copropriétés and What Quebec’s Consumer Law Guarantees

What Quebec law requires of a repairer

Quebec’s Consumer Protection Act contains rules that apply specifically to the repair of household appliances. The repairer must provide a written estimate before carrying out the repair, unless you have waived that right in writing, and cannot charge more than the estimate without your consent. The repair itself carries a legal warranty covering parts and labour for a period set by the act, so a fix that fails soon afterward is the repairer’s responsibility. If you decline the repair after diagnosis, the repairer may charge for the estimate only if you were told in advance that it would cost something.

These rules are enforced by the Office de la protection du consommateur, which also handles complaints. Ask for the estimate in writing, keep the invoice, and note the date: the warranty period runs from delivery of the repaired appliance.

The legal warranty: maybe not your repair to pay for

Quebec’s legal warranty of quality requires goods to be usable for a reasonable time given their price and normal use, regardless of what the manufacturer’s written warranty says. A dishwasher that fails at three years, or a refrigerator at five, can be the seller’s responsibility under that warranty, and the Office de la protection du consommateur publishes guidance on how to make the claim. Before paying for a repair on a young appliance, contact the retailer in writing, cite the legal warranty, and keep the diagnosis from the repairer; a written diagnosis is your evidence.

The legal warranty is in addition to any extended warranty a retailer sold you, and a retailer cannot make you use the extended one first.

Plexes, copropriétés and rentals

Montreal’s duplexes and triplexes put kitchens and laundry on upper floors reached by exterior spiral staircases, and the doorways were sized for 1920s iceboxes. A technician needs to know the floor, the stairs, the door widths and whether the washer is stacked in a closet before quoting, and a replacement appliance may not fit at all. Measure doorways and the path in before ordering anything.

In a copropriété, the appliance is yours but the plumbing riser, the dryer vent through the wall and the electrical supply may be common portions under the declaration; ask the syndicat before work that touches them. If you rent, an appliance supplied with the unit is the landlord’s to repair under Quebec’s tenancy rules; report the fault in writing and, if it is not fixed, the Tribunal administratif du logement is the recourse. Tenants should not pay for repairs to the landlord’s appliances without agreeing it in writing first.

• Model and serial number from the label
• Floor, staircase type and door widths
• Stacked, built-in or freestanding
• Copropriété, rental or owned
• Purchase date and receipt, for the legal warranty

Repair, replace and disposal

Compare the written repair estimate with the delivered and installed cost of a replacement, including removal of the old unit, any plumbing or venting changes and the fit through the building. Most retailers in Montreal will take the old appliance away on delivery, which is usually the cheapest disposal route. Otherwise the city’s écocentres accept appliances, and refrigerant-containing units go through Quebec’s appliance recycling program; a refrigerator must have its refrigerant removed by a certified technician before disposal.

Service in French, English or both is a fair question to ask when booking; most Montreal repair companies work in both, but the estimate and invoice you sign should be in a language you read.