Consumer Edge: December 2024

Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA)

December 2024

Avoid getting wrapped up in a text message scam this holiday season by reviewing our featured guide for triaging your texts. We're also providing information on our open call for proposals for funding consumer advocacy work, and we highlight recent research supported by this same initiative.

The holiday season is here, and in the frenzy of this gift giving time of year, you might notice an increase in text messages from businesses offering you season's greetings. They don't want you to miss a good deal but companies still need to respect Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation when sending consumers commercial text messages.

And unfortunately, tis the season for scammers to try to collect your personal and financial information. They know that your phone is buzzing with texts about holiday deals, delivery details and package tracking links. But you'll be ready with our guide for triaging your texts. It will help you sort through messages so you don't get hung up on mobile spam.

Do you know about the Canadian Consumer Protection Initiative (CCPI)? Through this program, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada funds consumer advocacy work to empower consumers with the information they need to confidently participate in the marketplace. The initiative also enables independent research to inform consumer policy decisions.

The Office of Consumer Affairs is inviting eligible and interested organizations to submit their project proposals for advancing consumer protection. Priority topics for this open call include:

• consumer protection;
• sustainable consumption and the circular economy;
• affordability;
• consumers and the financial sector.

More details on the eligibility requirements and assessment criteria can be found in the CCPI Applicant's Guide.

To learn more about the independent research and consumer advocacy work made possible by the CCPI, check-out the Consumer Policy Research Database.

If there are electronics on your list this holiday season you've likely done your research on price and features. But what about reliability and reparability as factors for determining that you're making a sound investment? That can be difficult to determine.

That's why Équiterre is advocating for measures to make it easier for Canadians to determine durability of consumer products. Canadians expect their purchases, from phones to washers and dryers, to function reliably and last for many years. Équiterre has examined this issue and building on their 2022 study about access to repair, the organization has published a follow-up report that outlines several recommendations for developing a Canadian durability index. This index would help guide consumers in making sustainable purchasing choices by providing information on where appliances and electronics rank on a repairability scale.

This independent research and its report were produced with funding from the Office of Consumer Affair's Canadian Consumer Protection Initiative.