Cambridge International College of Canada charged

December 23, 2008

On December 12, 2008, the Ministry of Small Business and Consumer Services’ Consumer Protection Branch laid 16 charges each against Cambridge International College of Canada and two directors for allegedly engaging in an unfair practice regarding tuition refunds.

The Consumer Protection Branch began investigating in February 2007 after receiving numerous complaints from overseas students and their families who had submitted application forms along with tuition fees ranging from $5,000 to $6,000 per student to Cambridge International College of Canada, which operated as a private school in Toronto, until it closed down in June 2007.

The Director of the ministry’s Consumer Protection Branch had previously ordered the private school to stop misleading consumers with inaccurate information on their web site.

The first court appearance for these charges laid under Ontario’s consumer laws is on March 16, 2009, in Toronto.

It is an unfair practice under the Consumer Protection Act, 2002, to make a false, misleading, deceptive or unconscionable representation. The Act imposes fines of up to $250,000 for corporations and $50,000 for individuals convicted of infractions. It also provides for jail terms of two years less a day on each offence. The act also empowers courts to order offenders to pay compensation or make restitution to victims upon conviction.

Contact: Stephen Puddister, Communications, 416-326-7408