The OMVIC Advertising Rules Every Buyer Should Know

Photo: American Honda (Honda US Newsroom). 2026 Honda Odyssey. Part of the Car Buyer Protection Series by Henry Chen, Maple Honda, Vaughan.

OMVIC's Advertising Guideline is the rulebook for every ad an Ontario dealer publishes — print, online, social, broadcast, billboards, and the price sticker on the windshield. For buyers, the rulebook is the protection: if the ad doesn't comply, OMVIC can take action against the dealer, and you have specific knowledge about what to look for.

The rules are stricter than most buyers realize. Past use as a rental has to be disclosed on the ad itself. Finance offers have to include APR, term, and cost of borrowing. Lease offers have to include mileage limits. As-is vehicles have to use the exact disclosure language. Knowing these rules makes you a much sharper shopper.

What OMVIC considers an advertisement

• Print ads in newspapers, magazines, flyers, or mailers
• Online ads on the dealer's website, third-party marketplaces, or social media
• Radio or TV commercials
• Billboards and signs, including the price stickers on the vehicles themselves
• Any text, image, or combination that persuades or influences a buyer to purchase or lease

The all-in pricing rules for ads

The advertised price has to include every fee and charge the dealer intends to collect, except HST and licensing. The ad has to clearly indicate HST and licensing are not included.

Freight, PDI, admin fee, OMVIC transaction fee, government levies, pre-installed accessories — all of it has to be in the number. If the ad says '$X +HST/Lic' and the dealer tries to add any other fee at the desk, that's a violation.

There are two narrow exceptions OMVIC publishes beyond the base HST and licensing exclusion. Unfit vehicles can drop the safety-certification cost from the all-in price, but the ad must say the vehicle is not driveable and not certified and list the exact certification fee. As-is vehicles can drop the certification cost too, but the ad must carry the full OMVIC-prescribed as-is disclosure language verbatim. Two dealers co-advertising together can also exclude a varying admin fee, provided that fee is disclosed alongside a clear description. Every other fee the dealer intends to collect still has to be inside the advertised number.

Photo: American Honda (Honda US Newsroom). 2026 Honda Accord.

What has to be on the ad about the vehicle's past

• Previous daily rental use (unless subsequently owned by an individual)
• Previous police or emergency-services use
• Previous taxi or limousine use
• If the vehicle is a demonstrator (demo) — demos are used vehicles, not new, even if they qualify for new-vehicle incentives
• If the vehicle is being sold as-is — exact disclosure language required
• If the vehicle is unfit — exact disclosure language required

What has to be on finance and lease ads

Finance ads with an interest rate or payment amount have to disclose the APR, term, cash price, and cost of borrowing. The APR must be displayed as prominently as the advertised payment.

Lease ads have to disclose that it's a lease, the payment amount and frequency, the down payment or security deposit (or the amount of any other upfront payment), the APR, the term, and the excess-kilometre cost if the allowance is less than 20,000 km per year. The APR must be displayed as prominently as the advertised payment — same font size, same weight, not in fine print. If the ad runs in a medium with tight time or space limits, the APR / term / excess-km cost can be omitted only if the ad directs the buyer somewhere else (a website, a phone number) where those numbers are spelled out.

What the dealer's name requirement means

Every ad must include the dealer's registered name and contact information. The contact information has to be a way of reaching the dealer that OMVIC has on file (business address, phone, email, or website).

Salespeople can advertise on behalf of dealers, but they have to get the dealer's approval first and the dealer's registered name has to be on the ad. They can include their own contact information. They can't invite the public to a place other than the dealer's authorized premises.

What ads CAN'T do

• Use a stock photo of a higher trim level to advertise a base model price
• Use 'see dealer for details' instead of mandatory disclosures
• Use fine print to disclose material information
• Use pop-ups or additional windows to hide required disclosures on online ads
• Advertise a finance-only price without disclosing that limitation
• Advertise a price that's not available to every buyer (without disclosing the limitation)