Strengthening Motor Vehicle Safety for Canadians

Backgrounder

Transport Canada is proposing new legislation to give the Minister additional powers under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

The proposed legislation includes amendments that would:

  • give the Minister of Transport the power to order companies to issue a recall notice and to make manufacturers and importers repair a recalled vehicle at no cost to the consumer;
  • give the Minister of Transport the power to order manufacturers and importers to repair new vehicles before they are sold;
  • allow the department to use monetary penalties (fines) to increase safety compliance and to leverage the monetary penalties to require manufacturers to take additional safety action;
  • provide the department with much needed flexibility to address ever-evolving vehicle safety technology;
  • require companies to provide additional safety data and conduct additional testing to address safety concerns; and
  • increase our vehicle inspection capability.

Under the current Motor Vehicle Safety Act only manufacturers can order vehicles recalls in Canada. The Minister of Transport can only order a manufacturer to notify Canadians that their vehicle is the subject of a recall. Unlike the new proposed legislation, the current Act does not allow Transport Canada to issue monetary penalties to manufacturers; the only way to ensure compliance with the Act is through time-consuming and costly criminal prosecution.

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Hon. Marc Garneau Transport Canada Transport

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