Motor Vehicle Safety Act

This Act may be cited as the Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

In this Act,

company means a person

who is engaged in the business of manufacturing vehicles or equipment in Canada,

who is engaged in the business of selling to other persons, for the purpose of resale by those persons, vehicles or equipment obtained directly from a person described in paragraph (a) or the agent of such a person, or

who imports a vehicle or article of equipment into Canada for the purpose of sale; (entreprise)

equipment means any equipment set out in Schedule I that is designed for use in or on a vehicle; (équipement)

inspector means a person designated as an automotive inspector pursuant to section 14; (inspecteur)

manufacture, in relation to a vehicle, includes any process of assembling or altering the vehicle prior to its sale to the first retail purchaser; (fabrication ou construction)

Minister means the Minister of Transport; (ministre)

national safety mark means a prescribed expression, symbol or abbreviation or any combination of them; (marque nationale de sécurité)

prescribed means prescribed by regulations made under section 11; (Version anglaise seulement)

sell includes to offer for sale or lease, have in possession for sale or lease or deliver for sale or lease; (vente)

standard means a standard that governs the design, manufacture, functioning or marking of vehicles or equipment for the purpose of reducing, directly or indirectly, the risk of death, injury or property damage from vehicle use, including a standard aimed at increasing the use of safety features by the public or facilitating the creation, recording or retrieval of information; (norme)

Tribunal means the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada established by subsection 2(1) of the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Act; (Tribunal)

vehicle means any vehicle that is designed to be, or is capable of being, driven or drawn on roads by any means other than muscular power exclusively, but does not include any vehicle that is designed to run exclusively on rails. (véhicule)

The Minister may, in writing, authorize any person designated by the Minister to exercise any of the Minister’s powers and duties under this Act, either generally or as otherwise provided in the instrument of authorization.

The Minister may enter into an agreement to further the purposes of this Act.

A company designated by the Minister that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports into Canada any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed is required to provide the Minister, for a purpose related to verifying compliance with this Act, with the contact information for a person for the purpose of correspondence.

The national safety marks are hereby declared to be national trademarks and, except as provided in this Act, the exclusive property in and right to the use of those marks are vested in Her Majesty in right of Canada.

A company authorized by the Minister, as provided for in the regulations, may apply a national safety mark to a vehicle or equipment, as provided for in the regulations.

The company shall provide the Minister with the address of the premises at which the national safety mark is to be applied.

No person shall use a national safety mark except as authorized by this Act.

No person shall use a mark other than a national safety mark in such a manner that it is likely to be mistaken for a national safety mark.

Except as otherwise provided by the regulations, no company shall ship from one province to another, or deliver to any person for the purpose of being so shipped, any vehicle or equipment of a prescribed class manufactured in Canada unless it has a national safety mark applied to it in accordance with section 3.

No company shall apply a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sell any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied, or import into Canada any vehicle or equipment of a prescribed class unless

the vehicle or equipment conforms to the standards prescribed for vehicles or equipment of its class at the time the main assembly of the vehicle was completed or the equipment was manufactured;

evidence of that conformity has been obtained and produced as provided for in the regulations or, if the regulations so provide, to the Minister’s satisfaction;

[Repealed, 1999, c. 33, s. 351]

prescribed information is marked on the vehicle or equipment as provided for in the regulations;

prescribed documentation or prescribed accessories accompany the vehicle or equipment as provided for in the regulations;

prescribed information relating to the operation of the vehicle or equipment is disseminated as provided for in the regulations;

records are maintained and furnished, as provided for in the regulations, in relation to the design, manufacture, testing and field performance of the vehicle or equipment, for the purpose of

enabling an inspector to determine whether the vehicle or equipment conforms to all requirements applicable to it, and

facilitating the identification and analysis of defects referred to in subsection 10(1); and

in the case of equipment, the company maintains, as provided for in the regulations, a registration system by which any person who has purchased equipment manufactured, imported or sold by the company and who wishes to be identified may be so identified.

[Repealed, 2014, c. 20, s. 216]

Unless otherwise provided by the regulations, a company may apply a national safety mark to, or import into Canada, a vehicle that does not satisfy a requirement of subsection (1) if that requirement is satisfied before the vehicle leaves the possession or control of the company and before the vehicle is presented for registration under the laws of a province.

Where the regulations so provide in relation to a prescribed standard that corresponds to a prescribed enactment of a foreign government, a vehicle shall be deemed to conform to the standard if a prescribed agency of that government has certified that the vehicle conforms to the enactment as applied by the agency, unless the Minister determines that the vehicle does not conform to that enactment as so applied.

No person shall import into Canada a vehicle of a prescribed class unless the requirements of paragraphs 5(1)(a), (b), (d) and (e) are satisfied in respect of the vehicle.

Sections 5 and 6 do not apply in respect of the importation of a vehicle or equipment if

before the importation, the person importing the vehicle or equipment makes a declaration, as provided for in the regulations, that the vehicle or equipment

will be used in Canada solely for a prescribed purpose,

will remain in Canada for a period of not more than one year or any other period that is specified by the Minister, and

meets or will meet any other prescribed requirement; or

the vehicle or equipment is passing through Canada to another country or is exclusively for use by a visitor to Canada.

A person who imports a vehicle or equipment under paragraph (1)(a) shall, as provided for in the regulations, export or destroy the vehicle or equipment before the end of the period referred to in subparagraph (1)(a)(ii).

Despite subsection (1.01), a person who imports a vehicle under paragraph (1)(a) may, with the Minister’s approval, donate it as provided for in the regulations.

Sections 5 and 6 do not apply to a resident of Canada who imports a vehicle that is licensed in the United States if the vehicle is rented in the United States from a vehicle rental business and is being imported into Canada for non-commercial purposes.

A resident of Canada who imports a vehicle under subsection (1.1) shall remove the vehicle from Canada within a period of 30 days, or any other prescribed period, beginning on the day on which the vehicle is imported.

If, within the period referred to in subsection (1.2), the resident of Canada delivers the vehicle to a vehicle rental business in Canada with the consent of the business, then the vehicle rental business shall remove the vehicle from Canada before the end of that period.

For greater certainty, if a vehicle rental business is required under subsection (1.3) to remove the vehicle from Canada, subsection (1.2) does not apply to the resident of Canada.

The Governor in Council may make regulations

respecting vehicles imported under subsection (1.1);

respecting the importation or removal of vehicles under subsections (1.1) to (1.4); and

defining, for the purposes of those subsections, any term used in them.

Sections 5 and 6 do not apply to the importation of a vehicle that has been sold at the retail level in the United States or that is a prescribed vehicle from Mexico if

the vehicle meets any prescribed requirements; and

the person importing the vehicle makes a declaration, as provided for in the regulations, that the vehicle will be, before being presented for registration by a province and within the prescribed period,

brought into compliance with any prescribed requirements, and

certified, as provided for in the regulations, as compliant with the requirements referred to in subparagraph (i) by the person designated in the regulations.

Sections 5 and 6 do not apply to the importation of a vehicle that has been sold at the retail level in the United States or that is a prescribed vehicle from Mexico if the person importing the vehicle makes a declaration, as provided for in the regulations, that the vehicle

will not be presented for registration by a province;

will be registered, as provided for in the regulations, by the person designated in the regulations; and

will be dismantled for its components.

A vehicle that does not conform to a standard prescribed for vehicles of its class at the time of its main assembly may be imported notwithstanding section 5 or 6 if, at the time of its importation, the standard is no longer in effect and

the vehicle conforms to the corresponding standard prescribed for vehicles of its class at that time; or

there is no corresponding standard at that time.

[Repealed, 2014, c. 20, s. 217]

A person who makes a declaration under this section shall comply with the declaration.

A company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed shall, on the Minister’s request, provide the Minister with the means to retrieve or analyze information created or recorded by the vehicle or equipment.

The Minister may, by order, require any company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed to

conduct tests, analyses or studies on the vehicle or equipment in order to obtain information related to defects, or to verify compliance with this Act, that the Minister considers necessary; and

provide the results to the Minister in the time and manner that the Minister specifies.

The Statutory Instruments Act does not apply to an order made under subsection (1).

On application by a company as provided for in the regulations, the Minister may, by order, grant an exemption for a specified period, in accordance with any conditions specified in the order, for any model of vehicle manufactured or imported by the company from conformity with any prescribed standard if the exemption from that standard would, in the opinion of the Minister, promote the development of

new safety features that are equivalent to or superior to those that conform to prescribed standards; or

new kinds of vehicles, technologies, vehicle systems or components.

An exemption must only be granted for a model if the exemption would not substantially diminish the overall safety performance of the model.

Each exemption order must, as soon as feasible, be published through the Internet or by any other means that the Minister considers appropriate.

[Repealed, 2018, c. 2, s. 6]

On expiration of the period of an exemption, a new exemption may be granted in accordance with this section.

A company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed shall, as provided for in the regulations, give notice of any defect in the design, manufacture or functioning of the vehicle or equipment that affects or is likely to affect the safety of any person to

the Minister, on becoming aware of the defect; and

the current owner and any other prescribed person, within the period provided for in the regulations.

A company is not required to give notice of a defect

for which notice has already been given by another company that manufactured, sold or imported the vehicle or equipment; or

for which a notice of non-compliance has been given under section 10.1.

If the Minister determines that a defect has not been corrected in an adequate number of vehicles or equipment for which notice was given under subsection (1), the Minister may, by order, require the company to provide, in accordance with any conditions specified in the order, a subsequent notice to those persons who have not had the defect corrected. In making this determination, the Minister shall take into consideration, among other things,

the nature of the defect;

the safety risk arising from it; and

the total number of vehicles or equipment affected.

If the Minister is satisfied that the current owner of a vehicle or equipment cannot reasonably be determined by a company,

the company shall give notice in any other manner that is acceptable to the Minister; or

the Minister may exempt the company from the requirement to give notice to the current owner.

The Minister may, by order, require any company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed to give notice of a defect in the manner specified in the order, if the Minister considers that it is in the interest of safety.

The Statutory Instruments Act does not apply to an order made under subsection (2.1) or (4).

Forthwith on receiving any notice under subsection (1), the Minister shall forward full particulars of the notice to the minister or other officer responsible for motor vehicle administration in each province.

[Repealed, 2014, c. 20, s. 221]

A company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed shall, as provided for in the regulations, give notice of any non-compliance of the vehicle or equipment with the regulations to

the Minister, on becoming aware of the non-compliance; and

the current owner and any other prescribed person, within the period provided for in the regulations.

A company is not required to give notice of any non-compliance for which notice has already been given by another company that manufactured, sold or imported the vehicle or equipment.

If the Minister determines that the non-compliance is inconsequential to safety, the company is not required to give notice under paragraph (1)(b).

If the Minister determines that a non-compliance has not been corrected in an adequate number of vehicles or equipment, the Minister may, by order, require a company to provide, in accordance with any conditions specified in the order, a subsequent notice to those persons who have not had the non-compliance corrected. In making this determination, the Minister shall take into consideration, among other things,

the nature of the non-compliance;

the safety risk arising from it; and

the total number of vehicles or equipment affected.

If the Minister is satisfied that the current owner of a vehicle or equipment cannot reasonably be determined by a company

the company shall give notice in any other manner that is acceptable to the Minister; or

the Minister may exempt the company from the requirement to give notice to the current owner.

On receiving a notice under subsection (1), the Minister shall forward full particulars of it to the minister or other officer who is responsible for motor vehicle administration in each province.

The Minister may, by order, require any company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed to give a notice of non-compliance in the manner specified in the order, if the Minister considers that it is in the interest of safety.

The Statutory Instruments Act does not apply to an order made under subsection (4) or (7).

A company that gives notice to the Minister shall submit reports to the Minister as provided for in the regulations.

A company designated by the Minister that gives notice to the Minister in respect of a vehicle or equipment shall, as provided for in the regulations, make information available for the vehicle or equipment in respect of which the notice was given.

The notice given by a company under paragraph 10(1)(b) or 10.1(1)(b) shall specify the earliest date by which the parts and facilities that are necessary to correct the defect or non-compliance are expected to be available.

Despite subsection (1), if the company cannot reasonably specify the earliest date at the time the notice is sent, the company shall send the notice without that date. The company shall send a subsequent notice that provides the earliest date as soon as it has been determined.

The company shall immediately provide the Minister with a copy of any notice referred to in subsections (1) and (2).

The Minister may, by order, require a company to provide, in the manner and within the period specified in the order, any information or documents that the Minister considers necessary for verifying that the date specified by the company under subsection (1) or (2) is the earliest date by which the parts and facilities that are necessary to correct a defect or non-compliance are expected to be available.

The Minister may, by order, require any company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed to correct a defect or non-compliance, in accordance with any terms and conditions specified in the order, if a notice of defect or non-compliance has been given and the Minister considers that it is in the interest of safety.

A company that is subject to an order made under section 10.5 may correct a defect or non-compliance by doing one of the following:

repairing the vehicle or equipment, including by adding to, removing anything from or modifying the vehicle or equipment, as the circumstances require;

replacing the vehicle or equipment with a reasonable equivalent;

reimbursing

the reasonable cost of repairs to the vehicle or equipment that have already been undertaken before a notice of defect or non-compliance has been given, or

the sale price of the vehicle or equipment, less reasonable depreciation in the case where the vehicle or equipment has been sold to the first retail purchaser, on return of the vehicle or equipment.

For greater certainty, any person, including an automobile dealer, may benefit from any measure referred to in section 10.51 and any payment of costs under subsection 10.6(1).

For greater certainty, nothing prevents a company that is subject to an order under subsection 10.1(7) or 10.4(4), section 10.5 or subsection 10.6(1) from entering into an agreement with any person, including an automobile dealer, in respect of any matter related to the order — including, in the case of a vehicle or equipment that has not been sold to the first retail purchaser, in respect of the reimbursement of reasonable costs incurred — in addition to complying with any terms and conditions specified in the order.

For greater certainty, a correction to a vehicle or equipment in accordance with section 10.51 does not affect the right of any person, including an automobile dealer, to exercise any other right or remedy available at law, including a right or remedy to recover reasonable costs incurred as a result of an order under section 10.5.

The Minister may, by order, require any company that applies a national safety mark to any vehicle or equipment, sells any vehicle or equipment to which a national safety mark has been applied or imports any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed to pay the costs of correcting a defect or non-compliance, in accordance with any terms and conditions specified in the order, if a notice of defect or non-compliance has been given.

This section does not apply to any vehicle or equipment that was manufactured 15 years or more before the date of an order under subsection (1).

The Minister may, by order, require a company to ensure that any defect or non-compliance in a vehicle or equipment is corrected before the vehicle is offered for sale to the first retail purchaser, in accordance with any terms and conditions specified in the order.

For greater certainty, a company is not prohibited from doing any promotion activities prior to offering for sale any vehicle or equipment under subsection (1).

For the purposes of subsections 10(4) and 10.1(7) and sections 10.5 to 10.61, the Minister shall, before issuing any order,

make a preliminary determination, on the basis of testing, analysis, inspection, examination or research that the Minister considers appropriate and in consultation with the company, that an order may be necessary in the interest of safety;

notify the company of the preliminary determination, including the rationale on which it is based, and invite the company to provide information in writing, in the time and manner specified by the Minister; and

publish a notice of preliminary determination and invite any person to make comments in writing, within the time that the Minister specifies.

The Minister shall not make a final decision that an order is necessary unless the Minister has taken into account information that he or she considers relevant.

After making a final decision, the Minister shall notify the company of the decision and the rationale on which it is based.

After making a final decision, the Minister shall publish a notice of it through the Internet or by any other means that he or she considers appropriate.

The Minister may vary or revoke an order if new relevant information becomes available.

The Statutory Instruments Act does not apply to an order made under section 10.4, 10.5, 10.6 or 10.61.

The Governor in Council may make regulations for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act, including regulations

respecting the keeping of records and the provision of information to the Minister; and

prescribing or providing for anything that by this Act is to be prescribed or provided for by the regulations.

Regulations prescribing a standard may be made applicable in respect of a specified proportion of vehicles of any class before those regulations are made applicable in respect of all vehicles of that class.

Regulations made under this section may, in whole or in part, incorporate by reference, as it is amended from time to time or as it exists on a particular date,

a document produced by a person or body other than the Minister; or

a technical or explanatory document produced by the Minister including specifications, classifications, illustrations, graphs, test methods, procedures, operational standards and performance standards.

For greater certainty, a document that is incorporated by reference in a regulation is not required to be transmitted for registration or published in the Canada Gazette under the Statutory Instruments Act by reason only that it is incorporated by reference.

In this section, technical standards document means a document that is published by the Minister, as provided for in the regulations, that adapts, or that reproduces in whole or in part in the official languages of Canada, an enactment of a foreign government or material produced by an international organization. The adaptations may include amendments to the content of the originating enactment or material.

Regulations made under this Act may, in whole or in part, incorporate by reference a technical standards document as it is amended from time to time or as it exists on a particular date.

For greater certainty, a technical standards document that is incorporated by reference in a regulation is not required to be transmitted for registration or published in the Canada Gazette under the Statutory Instruments Act by reason only that it is incorporated by reference.

For greater certainty, subsections 11(3) and 12(2) do not limit any authority to make regulations incorporating material by reference that exists apart from those subsections.

If an enactment of a foreign government corresponds to regulations made under this Act and that enactment is amended by that government or its operation is affected by a decision of a foreign court, the Minister may issue an order, effective for a period not exceeding three years, suspending or modifying the operation of the regulations to the extent that they are inconsistent with the enactment as amended or given effect. The Minister may renew the order for a further period not exceeding three years.

An order issued under subsection (1) is not a regulation for the purposes of the Statutory Instruments Act but no person is required to comply with such an order unless it has been published in the Canada Gazette or that person has received actual notice of it.

The Minister may issue an order, effective for a period not exceeding three years, that suspends, modifies or adapts a regulation, in whole or in part, if the Minister is of the opinion that it is in the public interest to do so, including to promote innovation or for reasons of safety.

The Minister may designate as an automotive inspector any person who, in the Minister’s opinion, is qualified to be so designated.

For greater certainty, the Minister may designate as a collision investigator any person whom the Minister considers qualified, and that person may collect information with respect to an investigation of any motor vehicle collision.

The Minister shall furnish every inspector with a certificate of designation, and on entering any place referred to in subsection 15(1) an inspector shall, on demand from the person in charge of that place, produce the certificate for examination by that person.

An inspector may not be compelled to give testimony in any civil suit, with regard to information obtained by them in the discharge of their duties, without the Minister’s written permission.

For a purpose related to verifying compliance with this Act, an inspector may at any reasonable time enter any place, other than a dwelling-house but including a collision site, in which the inspector believes on reasonable grounds there is

any vehicle or equipment of a class for which standards are prescribed;

any component that is used or intended to be used in the manufacture of a vehicle or equipment for which safety standards are prescribed; or

any record referred to in paragraph 5(1)(g).

In carrying out their duties, an inspector and any person accompanying the inspector may enter on and pass through or over private property, other than a dwelling-house, without being liable for doing so and without any person having the right to object to that use of the property.

An inspector who enters a place may require the attendance of persons whom the inspector considers relevant to the carrying out of the inspector’s functions.

The inspector may, for the purpose referred to in subsection (1),

examine any vehicle, equipment or component that is in the place;

open and examine any package or receptacle that the inspector believes contains any equipment or component referred to in that subsection;

examine any document that is in the place, make copies of it or take extracts from it;

disassemble and remove any constituent components;

order the owner or person having possession, care or control of any vehicle or equipment to which this Act applies that is in the place to move it or, for any time that may be necessary, not to move it or to restrict its movement;

use or cause to be used a computer or other device that is in the place to examine data that is contained in or available to a computer system or reproduce it or cause it to be reproduced in the form of a printout or other intelligible output and remove the output for examination or copying;

use or cause to be used copying equipment that is in the place and remove the copies for examination;

take photographs or make recordings or sketches; and

remove any vehicle, equipment or component from the place for the purpose of examination or conducting tests.

Any person who owns or has charge of a place entered by an inspector under subsection (1) and every person present there shall answer all of the inspector’s reasonable questions related to the inspection, provide access to all electronic data that the inspector may reasonably require, provide all reasonable assistance in their power to enable the inspector to carry out his or her duties and furnish any information that the inspector reasonably requires for the purposes of the administration of this Act.

An inspector may seize and, subject to sections 489.1 to 491.2 of the Criminal Code, detain any vehicle, equipment or component described in subsection (1)

by means of which or in relation to which the inspector believes on reasonable grounds that this Act has been contravened; or

that the inspector believes on reasonable grounds will afford evidence in respect of a contravention of this Act.

Except with the authorization of an inspector, no person shall remove, alter or otherwise interfere with any vehicle, equipment or component seized by an inspector under subsection (6).

An inspector may, for a purpose related to verifying compliance with this Act, order a person, in writing, to provide, on the date, at the time and place and in the manner specified by the inspector, any document, information or electronic data specified by the inspector.