Luc Rochefort, Me Marcel Boucher
Union des consommateurs
2006
The purpose of this project is to analyse the operations, funding and regulation of credit counselling agencies in Canada in order to ensure that consumers are well served and that risks of fraud and conflict of interest are minimized. The first chapter of the report consists of a brief analysis of the situation in the U.S. The second chapter examines the Canadian context, including: a) Identification of the different actors offering budget counselling services; b) Analysis of the laws and regulations at the federal level and in five provinces: Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec; c) Analysis of the existing self-regulation mechanisms. The third chapter presents the results of a survey of organizations offering budget counselling services in the five provinces studied. The survey was aimed at gaining a better understanding, based on information gathered from the organizations themselves, of the various industry practices, the type and scope of training required or offered to counsellors, the agencies’ funding methods and of how their professional ethics are regulated.
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OCA Funded ResearchThis research received funding support through the Office of Consumer Affairs' Contributions Program.
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Source: Consumer Policy Research Database