If dealers all advertised on-the-road prices with no additional fees then I'd be a pretty happy automobile consumer.
That is the law in Alberta and quite sure it is the same in BC and Ontario. Not sure about other provinces.
Maybe we have different definitions of "on-the-road" pricing. What I mean is the price required to drive away in the car with everything included (yes, even taxes). I'm certain that is not what's advertised in Ontario and I don't seem to remember it being advertised that way in Alberta either.
You are absolutely right. Dealers are required to advertise prices that include everything but taxes. But your concern wasn't taxes anyway, was it?
No, my main concern is PDI and other sundry dealer fees, although I think taxes should be included too. Those dealer are definitely either not advertised or hidden in some seriously tiny print in all the ads I've ever seen. And no, hiding fees in the middle of some very tiny print does not qualify as "included in the advertised price" in my books.
Here is what is required in Alberta:
(l) includes in the advertised price for any vehicle the total cost of the vehicle, including, but not limited to, all fees and charges such as the cost of accessories, optional equipment physically attached to the vehicle, transportation charges and any applicable taxes or administration fees, but not including GST or costs and charges associated with financing...
This information is readily available to consumers at
www.amvic.org. As I've mentioned before, AMVIC has told me that the only people that ever complain about advertising are other car salespeople and AMVIC apparently doesn't have the resources to study every car ad in the province every day. Maybe if consumers showed a little less apathy about advertising and actually took the time to register complaints rather that just enjoying forum moaning about it, change might actually happen quicker.