All-in Pricing

All-in pricing means that the price you advertise for a vehicle — on your website, listing sites, social media, or any other channel — must include every fee the buyer is required to pay as part of the transaction. The only allowable exclusions are government-mandated taxes (HST, GST/PST) and provincial licensing fees.

Any fee that the dealer charges and the buyer cannot avoid — administration fees, documentation fees, safety inspection fees, nitrogen tire fees, etching fees — must be included in the advertised price. You cannot advertise $12,995 and then add $995 in admin fees at the deal table.

All-in pricing is mandated by law in Ontario under OMVIC's Motor Vehicle Dealers Act. Ontario dealers who advertise prices without fees included face fines and OMVIC complaints. It is the most commonly enforced advertising violation in the Ontario dealer industry.

In other provinces, all-in pricing is not always legally mandated in the same explicit way, but consumer protection laws and dealer association codes of conduct generally prohibit misleading advertising — which includes advertising one price and charging another. Adopting all-in pricing across all markets is best practice regardless of provincial requirement.

The simplest approach: decide what you charge for administration (if anything), roll it into your asking price, and advertise one clean number. Buyers appreciate transparency, and transparent pricing actually reduces the adversarial negotiation dynamic at the deal table.

On your dealer website and listing sites, ensure the price displayed is the all-in price. Add a clear disclaimer that prices exclude applicable taxes and licensing — this is both legally prudent and sets accurate buyer expectations before they arrive.