I just received a Statement of Claim from an HVAC finance company
A formal court filing — Statement of Claim or Plaintiff's Claim — has been served on you by a finance company holding an Ontario HVAC contract. The clock is now on a hard deadline. You have 20 days from service in both Ontario Superior Court and Small Claims Court to file a defence.
What to do right now
- Note the date you were served — this starts the 20-day clock.
- Do NOT contact the plaintiff or their lawyer directly.
- Do NOT ignore the filing — default judgment can be entered if you do not file a defence in time.
- Book a free review with us today, not next week. We respond same day in defence-deadline cases.
What to gather
- Every page of the Statement of Claim and any attached documents
- The original installer agreement (not just the finance company's correspondence)
- All statements from the finance company
- The original cancellation rights notice if it survived
- Any rebate or savings paperwork
- A current parcel register on your home
- Photographs of the equipment data plates
The legal framing
Under Ontario law, an assignee's rights are no greater than the assignor's. The defences that apply to the original installer agreement apply equally to the finance company.
The 2018 amendments to Ontario's Consumer Protection Act provide six grounds for setting the underlying agreement aside: unconscionable pricing, unsolicited contact, misrepresented energy savings, unfulfilled maintenance, improper installation, and unfulfilled rebates. Only one needs to apply.
Expected timeline
First filing within the 20-day deadline. Resolution can take weeks to months depending on whether the matter settles before trial.
This is time-sensitive — reach out today
A free, confidential review takes about fifteen minutes.