Hiring an electrician in Ottawa: the licence check, the warning signs, the contract

Who can be hired, and who works for them

Ontario splits electrical work between a business licence and a trade certificate. ESA says Licensed Electrical Contractors (LECs) are the only businesses legally authorized to do electrical work in your home. A certified electrician holds a trade certificate and works for an LEC; a master electrician holds a separate ESA licence to supervise the LEC’s work. ESA says neither can be hired directly. A general contractor has no licence for electrical work, so on a renovation it brings in an LEC, and the wiring gets its own ESA permit, separate from the City building permit.

HomeStars’ Canada-wide guide puts apprentices at $60–$80 an hour, journeypersons at $80–$130 and master electricians at $100–$160, and an estimate may list a different rate for each level. The electrician cost guide covers the bands.

Where the licence number should appear

ESA’s display rules put the number on all correspondence, contracts, invoices, business cards and ads, Kijiji listings included, and on the website and work vehicle. On a vehicle it must be at least one inch (2.54 cm) high, in black or white, after “ECRA/ESA Lic” or “ECRA/ESA”.

Search the number, or the company name, in ESA’s Contractor Locator Tool, and match the listed name to the estimate and the van. A status other than valid, or a penalty flag, deserves a question before you sign; the ESA permits page explains the statuses.

ESA also points to Ontario’s Consumer Beware List. It names businesses that ignored two ministry notices about a complaint, or were charged or convicted under consumer protection laws, and keeps them listed for 21 to 27 months.

The worker in your house, and the Gatineau question

Skilled Trades Ontario’s Public Register confirms, by name or STO number, whether a person or apprentice can legally work in a compulsory trade.

STO exempts holders of a valid equivalent Quebec certificate in Electrician – Construction and Maintenance, and registered Quebec apprentices in it, from Ontario’s certificate requirement, and their names stay off the Ontario register. A Gatineau electrician can come up empty there. Either way, the company that bills you needs the ECRA/ESA number.

Warning signs, in the order you meet them

First contact. On ESA’s list: the only contact is a general email box and the reply comes by phone. The company hangs up when asked for its licence number, or also offers drywall, flooring, snow removal or eavestrough cleaning.

The estimate. The licence number or the ESA fees are missing. A price comes over the phone with no mention of an ESA notification; ESA says to refuse it. You are asked to buy the supplies, or offered a cash discount or no receipt.

Before the work. You are told ESA is unnecessary, or asked to file the notification yourself. Whoever does the work files it, and a filing in your name moves to the non-contractor fee: $212 for a panel change against $86 for a contractor (ESA’s minimum is $92 per notification). A claim that a panel change can skip the utility is on ESA’s list too; in Ottawa a service upgrade goes through Hydro Ottawa’s request form three to four weeks ahead, as the panel upgrade page shows.

On the day. A van with one name and an estimate with another. “If anyone asks, tell them you did the work yourself.” A general contractor who promises an LEC but can show no ESA notification.

What the written contract has to hold

Ontario requires a written agreement for any contract over $50. The province’s guide lists what it generally includes: the business name and address, the work with an itemized list of materials and services, warranties, the total with taxes, start and completion dates, any sub-trades and who pays them, the payment schedule and deposit, and who cleans up. The province recommends a deposit of no more than 10%.

For electrical work, add the ECRA/ESA number, the ESA fee line and who receives the Certificate of Acceptance. Keep any written estimate inside the contract: the final price can then go at most 10% above it unless you sign a change. Billed past that without your signature, Ontario says you can demand an adjusted price. Settle who obtains and pays for any City permit; the guide puts that on the customer, and many contractors take it on.

Cancelling, and when a job goes wrong

A contract signed at home can be cancelled for any reason within 10 days of receiving the written agreement, and the business refunds you, deposit included, within 15 days. If you asked for work to start inside those days, the business may keep reasonable payment for work and materials that cannot be returned.

Without a written contract that meets the rules, most contracts can be cancelled within a year; false or misleading claims also allow withdrawal within a year. If the work has still not started 30 days after the contract’s start date, you can cancel. Ontario says private arbitration clauses do not bind you. Consumer Protection Ontario (1-800-889-9768) says it will not contact you first, so a call or text offering to cancel a contract for you may be phishing.

Insurance and WSIB

ESA warns that if an unlicensed worker is hurt on your job, you may be held responsible, and your insurer may deny a claim linked to unlicensed work. WSIB gives each registered business in good standing a clearance number, valid up to 90 days and searchable online without logging in. Ask for it with the estimate.

Who you are dealing with

Ottawa Electric Desk passes your request to one independent local electrical company. That company calls you back, quotes the job and does the work. Ask for its ECRA/ESA number on that call and run the same checks.