- Monitoring programs and investigations
- Answering calls from consumers and merchants
- Answering information requests sent through online forms
- Complaints, formal notices, and other requests about a merchant
- Consumer compensation in sectors requiring a security
- Compensating consumers through the Compensation fund for customers of travel agents
- Permit management and issuance
- Travel counsellor certification
- Support for projects from consumer protection organizations
The Office de la protection du consommateur offers services and programs to consumers, merchants and non-profit organizations. The following policies and guidelines are used in decisions regarding the rights of the administered and are presented below for each service and program.
Each policy and guideline provides the following, when applicable:
- the prescribed forms to ensure compliance;
- rights regarding the protection of personal information or other issues.
The Declaration of services to the public presents the commitments of the Office with regard to the services it offers. It also deals with the response times of service requests but does not grant new rights for the customers of the Office.
Consumers, merchants or organizations can file a complaint regarding the services of the Office directly with the Office itself or to the Québec Ombudsman, an independent body under the responsibility of the Québec National Assembly.
Monitoring programs and investigations
The Office conducts monitoring activities and investigations and can issue violation notices based on its findings. The guidelines or policies related to these activities are not released on account of the complex nature of the analysis regarding document accessibility.
Answering calls from consumers and merchants
The Office answers questions from consumers and merchants by telephone from Monday to Friday. To find out more about this service, go to the Contact us section.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
Traitement d’un appel ou d’une demande de renseignements (being revised) Directives relatives au traitement de certaines plaintes à caractère civil (being revised) Directive sur l’enregistrement des appels (being revised) | None | To find out how the data regarding telephone calls are collected, processed and stored, click below:
|
Answering information requests sent through online forms
Consumers and merchants can send requests by filling out the form in the Contact us section.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
| Traitement des demandes adressées à l’Office par le biais du centre virtuel de renseignements (CVR) du site Internet de l’OPC (30.4 KB), December 20, 2005, 6 p. (The guideline on the processing of requests sent to the Office via its virtual information centre is only available in French) | The online form can be accessed through the Consumers page or the Merchants page located under the Contact us section. | To find out how request data is collected, processed and stored, go to the Banque de données « Centre virtuel de renseignements » page (in French only). The Centre virtuel de renseignements manages messages sent by the public through the Office’s Contact Us – Information Request page as well as requests that are forwarded by Office employees. |
Complaints, formal notices, and other requests about a merchant
On September 23, 2013, the Office implemented new procedures for handling complaints. Documents were created to carry out these procedures. The Office’s agents continue to inform consumers about their rights and recourse.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
Politique divulgation de l'information (716.6 KB) (in French only) Lignes directrices encadrant le processus de mise en priorité des interventions en surveillance, d’analyse et de traitement des plaintes (1.7 MB) (in French only) | If needed, an agent will send the consumer an information kit and a formal notice form. | To find out how complaint data is collected, processed and stored, consult the files and database of the Système des commerçants (in French only). This database contains information about complaints, consumers who filed complaints, merchants targeted by the complaints and how the Office processed these complaints. It has not been updated since September 23, 2013. |
Consumer compensation in sectors requiring a security
All the merchants holding a permit issued by the Office must provide security, excluding persons holding money-lending permits.
When a merchant closes his business or goes bankrupt, compensation can be granted:
- without a court judgment when an agreement is reached between the Office and the merchant or the bond company;
- with a court judgment, under the Consumer Protection Act, or to a creditor or debtor under the Act respecting the collection of certain debts or under the Travel Agents Act.
In certain cases, news about business closings and bankruptcies published by the Office explain how to request this type of compensation and provide the appropriate form to fill out. However, in cases in which a judgement was obtained, the consumer must address the Service des permis directly, and the staff there will take care of processing the compensation request.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
| None | In relevant situations, the Office’s Business Closures and Bankruptcies link in the Latest News section explains how to request this type of compensation and provides the form to use. However, if a judgment is handed down, consumers must submit their forms directly to the “Service de permis” department which will then process it. | All personal information is collected and contained in the files and database of the Système des commerçants (in French only) and in the files and database of the Système des permis (in French only). The Système des commerçants database contains information about complaints, consumers who filed complaints, merchants targeted by the complaints and how the Office processed these complaints. |
Compensating consumers through the Compensation fund for customers of travel agents
The fund is composed of contributions made by all the customers of travel agents and travel retailers in Québec. Once a provisional administrator is appointed, it compensates consumers by direct access to the fund or by judgment when a security bond is depleted. The Travel section contains a compensation request form.
Permit management and issuance
To find out more about this service, consult the section entitled Permis et certificats (in French only).
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
None |
| All personal information is collected and contained in the files and database of the Système des permis (in French only). The Système des permis maintains all the physical files of businesses that have submitted a permit request or a permit renewal along with a corresponding database. |
Travel counsellor certification
To find out more about this service, consult the section entitled Travel counsellor.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
None | Go to the section entitled Travel Counsellor Certification of our Web site. | All personal information is collected and contained in the Certification des conseillers en voyages database (in French only). This database contains the personal information collected by the Office used to certify travel counsellors. |
Support for projects from consumer protection organizations
To find out more about this service, go to the section on Support for projects from consumer protection organizations.
| Policies and guidelines | Forms | Protection of personal information |
|---|---|---|
| Normes du Programme de soutien financier aux projets d'éducation, d'information et de partenariat (534.9 KB), 9 avril 2013 (The management framework for the Fund dedicated to projects and strategic partnerships and for the Fund dedicated to consumer education and information is only available in French) | Go to the section on Support for projects from consumer protection organizations of our Web site. | The Office does not collect personal information in the administration of these funds. Applicants act on behalf of their organization. |
Last update : May 3, 2021
