Cost of Borrowing (Canadian Insurance Companies) Regulations

6 (1) For the purpose of subsection 480(1) of the Act, a company that grants credit must, in writing, provide the borrower with a disclosure statement that provides the information required by these Regulations to be disclosed.

(2) A disclosure statement may be a separate document or may be part of a credit agreement or an application for a credit agreement.

(2.1) For a disclosure statement that is part of a credit agreement in respect of a loan, a line of credit or a credit card or an application for a credit card,

• (a) the disclosure statement must be presented in a consolidated manner in a single location in that agreement or application; and

• (b) the applicable information box, as set out in one of Schedules 1 to 5, containing the information referred to in that Schedule, must be presented at the beginning of the agreement or application.

(2.2) For a disclosure statement that is separate from the credit agreement or the application,

• (a) the disclosure statement must be provided before entering into the agreement or together with the agreement or the application; and

• (b) the applicable information box, as set out in one of Schedules 1 to 5, containing the information referred to in that Schedule, must be presented at the beginning of the disclosure statement.

(2.3) Numbers that are set out in the information box, including numbers that refer to an interest rate, a time period, a date or a dollar amount, are not required to be repeated in the disclosure statement but may instead be referenced in it.

(2.4) In order to maximize its legibility, the information in the information box must be presented with

• (a) text in an easily readable font style and font size of at least

  • (i) 12 points, with bold font for titles and numbers, including numbers that refer to an interest rate, a time period, a date or a dollar amount, and

  • (ii) 10 points for any other text;

• (b) standard spacing between words and characters, such that the text does not appear to be in a font smaller than a 10-point font;

• (c) sufficient margins above, below and to either side of the text such that sufficient white space is provided around the text; and

• (d) dark text on a light background in order to maximize the contrast so that the text is clearly visible.

(3) Information disclosed in a disclosure statement may be based on an assumption or estimate if the assumption or estimate is reasonable and the information disclosed by it

• (a) cannot be known by the company when it makes the statement; and

• (b) is identified to the borrower as an assumption or estimate.

(4) Any disclosure that is required to be made by a company under these Regulations must be made in language, and presented in a manner, that is clear, simple and not misleading.

(5) If the borrower consents, in writing, the disclosure statement may be provided by electronic means in an electronic form that the borrower can retrieve and retain.

(6) A disclosure statement that is sent to the borrower by mail is considered to be provided to the borrower on the fifth business day after the postmark date.