Quebec EV owner’s 16-month repair nightmare exposes limits of Canada’s first ‘anti-lemon’ law

Natalina Recine is seen with her new vehicle, a Cadillac Lyriq, after going through an ordeal with her previous one, a brand-new Chevrolet Equinox EV. (Submitted photo)

A Quebec woman whose new electric vehicle was in and out of the shop for 16 months says the first-in-Canada anti-lemon law doesn’t go far enough.

“I find that it’s protecting more the companies than the actual consumer that’s buying the car,” said Natalina Recine.

Her ordeal began when she bought her new Chevrolet Equinox EV at Le Relais Chevrolet, Buick, GMC in Montreal in December 2024.

Within three days of driving it home, the battery wouldn’t charge. Recine said the dealership took about three weeks to diagnose the problem and replace the entire computer module.

“I spoke to my sales rep, and I made it clear, saying, ‘Listen, I don’t feel comfortable continuing with a car that already has problems with it when I just bought it,’” Recine said, adding that she immediately requested the dealership cancel the contract.

According to Recine, the representative told her it wasn’t possible because she would lose the government EV rebate.

Mounting issues and safety concerns

A few months later, she emailed the dealership because the car’s sensors were acting up — going off when they shouldn’t — but she says she never received a response.

Then the car began stopping on its own.

“I was on the highway going 100 km/h and all of a sudden, my car stopped,” she said.

Although she avoided a collision that day, she alleges her car crashed the following day after the sensors failed to detect another vehicle. Her EV sustained more than $11,000 in damage, covered by her insurance. Repairs took over a month because the dealership was waiting for backordered parts.

Recine filed at least two claims with General Motors (GM) that remained unresolved.

And the problems didn’t stop there.

She had to take her car back to the garage last month because the internet stopped working. She also said her wipers malfunctioned and a dashboard message indicated the charging door was open when it was closed.

She noted the dealership informed her that it was another communication problem requiring another module to be replaced.

The ongoing situation caused major inconveniences, with Recine missing work and spending hundreds on gas for loaner vehicles, which she said defeated the point of buying an EV.

A growing problem with electric vehicles

It’s a headache that has become increasingly common over the last few years, particularly with electric cars, according to George Iny, president of the Automobile Protection Association.

A 2024 Consumer Reports survey shows that EVs had 42 per cent more problems than gas vehicles on average. The survey measured reliability of cars from the 2022, 2023 and 2024 model years.

Iny explained Quebec’s Consumer Protection Act provides for the return of defective goods.

Introduced in late 2023 as part of the Consumer Protection Act, Quebec’s anti-lemon warranty — the first of its kind in Canada — protects consumers against seriously defective vehicles. It applies to new gas-powered, hybrid, and electric vehicles purchased or leased with less than three years or 60,000 kilometres on them.Iny said the law is an improvement, but it has its flaws.

“The car makers have lawyers already on retainer. They pay to do this work. The customer really is on their own,” he said.For a vehicle to be declared a lemon, or “seriously defective,” it must meet one of the following criteria:

1. Three unsuccessful repair attempts for the same problem.
2. Twelve repair attempts for separate, unrelated problems.
3. More than 30 days spent at the dealership for one or two repairs — excluding periods where parts were unavailable or on backorder.

In Recine’s case, she said her car fell under the second requirement.

A resolution – finally

CTV News contacted the dealership, but it referred all media inquiries to GM’s public relations team.

“In this case, we are actively working with the customer and the dealership towards a resolution. Our teams remain engaged and focused on reaching a fair and satisfactory outcome,” GM said in a statement.

A few weeks later, Recine told CTV News that GM offered to buy back her car. She used the $51,000 to purchase a new vehicle.

“I honestly think that I would still probably be going through it, because they only decided to wake up once they understood that I was serious, and once they understood that I went towards a media outlet,” Recine said.

Legal hurdles for consumers

Jesse Caron, an automotive expert with CAA-Quebec, said the anti-lemon warranty is a process that must be proven in court, and only a judge can declare a vehicle seriously defective.

At that point, a consumer can ask the dealership or manufacturer to reduce the price, cancel the contract, or pay damages.

“That means most likely hiring a lawyer, which is costly, and there are delays. And meanwhile, the vehicle stays in the possession of the buyer, so they continue to pay the monthly payments,” Caron noted.

Iny said going to court can cost anywhere from $15,000 to $50,000, depending on the lawyer and the complexity of the case.

He added that Quebec’s provision offers fewer protections than the American lemon laws it was modelled after, and few cases have been litigated since the law came into effect.

“It shouldn’t be like this for people,” Recine said.