On September 12, 2024, the National Assembly of Québec introduced Bill 72, which proposes significant amendments to the Consumer Protection Act with the goal of safeguarding consumers against abusive commercial practices and enhancing transparency in pricing and credit. The Bill includes the following measures:
Enhanced Granularity in Taxes, Unit Pricing, and Loyalty Programs:
- Bill 72 would require all display of food prices to clearly indicate the amount of tax that will be applied to the product price, making it easier for consumers to know exactly what they will pay at checkout.
- Businesses would also need to indicate the price per unit of measurement (e.g., cost per kilogram or liter), which facilitates the process of comparing prices.
- If a merchant offers lower pricing for members of a loyalty program, the price for loyalty members vs. for non-members must be clearly indicated next to each other, with the characters used to indicate loyalty pricing being no more than 25% larger than the non-member pricing.
Increased Threshold for Price Accuracy of Scanned Items: Where there is a discrepancy between the price of a product displayed on the shelf and the price scanned at checkout, and the item in question is under $15, the product would be given to the consumer for free. This price accuracy requirement was originally implemented almost 25 years ago, but currently only captures items that cost up to $10.
Calculation of Tips: Bill 72 would also require tips to be calculated as a percentage of the base price of a good or service, excluding any applicable sales taxes. Currently, many point-of-sale devices propose tips percentage options which are calculated on the overall after tax price, resulting in higher amounts than certain customers expect when selecting a particular tip percentage.
Transparency in Consumer Credit: The proposed bill would also impose significant changes on consumer credit agreements, including limiting credit card fees to annual charges and requiring express consumer consent for any increases in credit rate or credit charges.
Restrictions Door-to-Door Sales: Itinerant merchants would be prohibited from entering into certain contracts, including credit contracts and contracts concerning heating or air-conditioning appliances. They would also be restricted from providing services under a contract within the 10-day cancellation period of such contract. Lastly, the Bill proposes to ensure that any contracts entered into by the consumer under or in relation to a contract made with an itinerant merchant forms part of the whole contract, and is cancelled automatically if the contract made with the itinerant merchant is cancelled.
This is only a high level overview of some the proposed changes, as the bill has just passed its first reading and remains subject to change as it makes its way through the legislative process.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
