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December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Our voices matter too

A Francophone municipal employee in Eastern Ontario was invited to take part in an English-only survey on the quality of municipal and provincial emergency management programs.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Everything at the ready

A Francophone filed a complaint about an announcement of a public consultation on the reform of housing industry regulations posted to the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery’s French LinkedIn page.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Bet on bilingual

A Francophone reached out to us because he was unable to find French versions of posts on the social media accounts of Lotto Max (Facebook, Instagram and X).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

A Place for French?

A Franco-Torontonian reached out to let us know that content on Infrastructure Ontario’s X account (@InfraOntario) about plans for an upcoming spa, water park and multi-storey parking garage at Ontario Place was only available in English.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

No room for failure

Two Francophone students from Northern Ontario reached out to us with concerns about the quality of the French version of the accreditation exam for emergency medical care assistants.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Substantial improvement

A Francophone member of the military contacted us about a regulation in the Environmental Protection Act that he needed for work, but was not available in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Translation in progress

Walking to work one day, a man noticed English-only signs about the upcoming construction of Corktown Station in Toronto for the future Ontario Line.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

One complaint, 600 signs

Our Unit handled a case involving more than 600 English-only road signs in Northern Ontario, reported by a Francophone who told us he drove more than 800 kilometres to document them.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Returning French to the French River

A Francophone resident from the Sudbury area informed us about an English-only sign marking the French River on Highway 69, located between Parry Sound and Sudbury.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Your call is important to us

A man called the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) call centre in December 2022 to make an online purchase.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Checked out

A Francophone who had been unemployed for a long time requested a background check from the OPP so he could be hired for a new job.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Alert unheard

As he drove to Hamilton in a snowstorm, a driver noticed that the French version of the government’s emergency weather alerts broadcast on the radio were garbled and unintelligible.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Fairer treatment

A Francophone teen at a secure treatment centre run by a designated organization was having trouble accessing services in French, including in the classroom.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Starting off right

A Francophone representing himself in a dispute received an English-only email inviting him to sign up for the CaseLines platform (used by Ontario courts) to upload his documents for an upcoming hearing.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

That’s my name

An Eastern Ontario mom reached out to us on behalf of her daughter.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

In the eye of the ID holder

A Francophone with an Outdoors card noticed that the eye colour field on his (bilingual) card was in English only (“brown”).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Service on demand

A man who had moved from Quebec to Ontario had initiated the process to change his driver’s licence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Road to improvement

A Francophone man in Northern Ontario called 511 to get information on driving conditions and selected service in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Zone change

A Franco-Torontonian contacted us to say that the web page for the “Tow Zone” pilot program operated by the Ministry of Transportation showed stickers in English only on the vehicles of authorized towing companies.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

The portal is open

The doctor of a Francophone woman who needed surgery was of the opinion that it would be too risky for her to drive.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Patient understanding

A woman in Northern Ontario went to the emergency room of a designated hospital and was greeted by an employee who asked her COVID-19 screening questions in English only.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

How did we do?

A patient at a designated hospital in Northern Ontario told us that on one of her many visits to the hospital, she had noticed multiple unilingual English posters, including one that said “Tell us how we’ve done,” as well as posters in French with errors, including one that misspelled “défense de vapoter” (vaping prohibited).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

When in doubt, ask

A Francophone told us about her partner’s experience after undergoing heart surgery in a partially designated hospital.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Double encryption

A blind Francophone man complained to us after a designated community health centre in Northern Ontario sent him confidential, encrypted documents regarding his health in English only.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Understanding the assessment

A Francophone man required services from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) after he was injured at work.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Unavailable in French

A Francophone woman received a construction notice in English only from Metrolinx, which had been mailed to tenants of a residential building in Toronto.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

A true active offer

A man went to a ServiceOntario branch in central west Toronto to get an accent added to his first name on his health card.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Continuity at work

While at work, a Francophone man noticed that the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) had published a notice on its website in English only about a proceeding.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Understanding the bill

A Francophone woman who was in a car crash in the Ottawa region received a bill from the Ministry of Transportation’s Highway Incident Claims Unit.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2023

7 December 2023

Telephone tag

A Francophone in Eastern Ontario reached out to tell us about her experience as a witness to a situation while camping.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Dangerously close

An inmate sought our help because he was housed on the same range with another inmate who was facing charges for stabbing him – and, he told us, was now extorting him for access to the canteen, food and phone calls.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Issues overlooked

An inmate told us a correctional officer threw him to the ground and started punching and kneeing him – leaving the inmate with swollen arms and a broken hand.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Added grief

A woman whose common-law spouse had died while they were living in a homeless shelter complained to us that the Chief Coroner’s Office had buried him even though she had requested to claim the body.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Permit me

A woman complained to us about how her municipality handled her request to convert a shipping container into a garden shed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Home again

A woman reached out to us because her family’s subsidized housing unit was uninhabitable after a fire.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

All’s well that ends well

Three residents told us that construction near their homes had caused their wells to dry up.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Every vote counts

Shortly before the day of the October 2022 municipal election, several voters in one municipality complained to us that their mail-in ballots arrived too late.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Capacity concerns

A woman sought our help after her husband, who recently had an aneurysm, underwent a capacity assessment to determine his ability to make decisions about his property and personal care.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Guardian angels

A community support worker contacted us with concerns about a 97-year-old neighbour.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Waiting to be heard

A single mom of a child with a disability contacted us in desperation.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Seal of disapproval

A man who pays family support through the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) complained to us that the FRO was garnishing too much from his federal disability payments, leaving him unable to pay his rent.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Suspended payment

A woman was owed thousands of dollars in support payments by a former spouse who was living in British Columbia.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Funding frustration

The mother of an 11-year-old with autism and developmental disabilities contacted us when she wasn’t able to access funding under the Ontario Autism Program (OAP) or the Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities program (ACSD), even though she believed her child was eligible for both.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Far from home

After he suffered a traumatic brain injury, an eight-year-old boy in the care of a northern children’s aid society (CAS) was airlifted from his home community to a rehabilitation hospital in southern Ontario.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (Placement)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Opening doors

A youth who was turning 18 called us for help when plans for her to enter a transitional housing program and complete her final semester of high school fell through.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (Good care/Education); Transitional housing

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Home security

A 16-year-old complained that staff at his group home weren’t helpful to him after his personal belongings, including a laptop, were stolen or damaged by other youths living in the home.

Issue: Group home; Rights (Safety)
 

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Sound the alarm

A vendor complained to us after attempting to bid on a school board’s fire alarm testing contract.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Time to reconsider

A college student in an online learning program sought our help after he lost access to one of his courses.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Section connection

A Francophone student complained to us that his French-language high school couldn’t provide him with a “section 23” program, which is support provided through the ministries of Education and Children, Community and Social Services to students who cannot attend school due to identified social, emotional, behavioural or mental health needs.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Going the extra mile

A mother complained to us that her child’s school bus route was far too long, averaging four hours per day.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Permanent solution

A man was trying to renew a health card on behalf of his son, who has a disability and does not have a driver’s licence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Positive test result

A pregnant woman who had tested positive for an infection contacted us when she received the results from Public Health Ontario and realized that the wrong follow-up test had been done.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

At your service

A mother sought our help when a DriveTest centre wouldn’t let her daughter bring her certified service dog on her road test.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Name shame

A mother contacted us in frustration about the conduct of a driving instructor towards her son, a student driver.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Wurst case scenario

An aspiring hot dog vendor complained to us after waiting for two years for a letter from the Ministry to confirm that his custom-built propane-fueled hot dog cart did not require a vehicle identification number or licence plate.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Tricky ticket

A woman contacted us after a difficult experience trying to resolve a traffic ticket.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Birth displace

A woman who was born in Ontario but living in Quebec applied for a name change after discovering that her birth registration listed the wrong name.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Copy that

A woman applied for a replacement birth certificate for her adult son, who has a disability, but her request was cancelled because her ex-husband had also applied for a birth certificate for him (ServiceOntario does not permit individuals to have two birth certificates).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

What’s in a name?

A woman who immigrated to Canada as a child sought our help in changing her name on official documents.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Wait for it

A woman who had been approved for a second payment of $10,000 from the Ontario Small Business Support Grant program, sought our help after months of waiting.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Expense suspense

An injured worker had been approved by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) to see a doctor some distance from his home.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Dues blues

A Francophone man in Quebec had been told he still owed dues for his trade licence, dating back to when he lived in Ontario a decade ago.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

A grey area

An environmental group complained to us when they didn’t hear back from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry about their concerns related to a development project’s unregulated grey water and natural septic systems.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 5, 2023

5 October 2023

Flood of concern

When a conservation authority approved a permit to fill regulated flood plains, we received several complaints from local residents concerned about the negative effects on the environment.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 25, 2023

25 July 2023

Watchful help

A mother contacted our Children and Youth Unit because she was concerned that her son might have been hurt by a staff member in a group home.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Duty to Report; Safety

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 30, 2023

30 May 2023

Bringing a smile

The Office of the Children’s Lawyer contacted us on behalf of a 17-year-old who was trying to get the cost of braces for her teeth covered by her children’s aid society (CAS).

Issue: Children’s aid society; Voluntary Youth Services Agreement; Rights (Good care)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Translation audit-y

A man noticed a post in French on the Office of the Auditor General’s Twitter account, announcing the release of its annual report on the environment.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Language integrity

A man saw a post in French on Twitter from the Office of the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario, indicating that the latest report from the Integrity Commissioner was available, with a link to the report “Re: The Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy, President of the Treasury Board.”

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Equivalent access to information

A woman seeking a review as part of her work visited the website of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (IPC).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

“Please speak in English”

A man shared with us his family’s experience after their dying mother was admitted to a designated hospital in Northern Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Positive result

A man complained to us about the lack of French language services at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Services in French at home

A woman contacted us because she was unable to obtain home care services in French for her spouse, who had lost the ability to speak English due to health problems.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Skills in French required

A crane operator attempted to contact Skilled Trades Ontario (STO) to request an explanation regarding an invoice and was unable to obtain services in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Entitled to inclusion

We were contacted by a Francophone mother whose child identifies as female – which represented a change from the gender assigned to the child at birth.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

“Help wanted” in both languages

A man filed a complaint about Ontario Health’s job postings.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 12, 2022

12 December 2022

Without subtitles

A woman informed us that French subtitles had disappeared from the videos on the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development’s Facebook page entitled “Lieux de travail de l’Ontario [Ontario At Work].”

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 24, 2022

24 November 2022

Uninterrupted visits

A 13-year-old in the care of a children’s aid society (CAS) contacted us when he didn’t hear back from his CAS about making arrangements to see his mother.
 

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (access visits)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 18, 2022

18 October 2022

Help is en route

A Francophone man who wanted some information about renewing his licence plate contacted our Office because he was unable to obtain service in French from a ServiceOntario office in a designated area.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 29, 2022

29 September 2022

Continuing education

A woman contacted us to complain about her experience with inadequate French services from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, both during telephone conversations and in written communications in response to her access to information request.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 29, 2022

29 September 2022

Secure resolution

A 16-year-old complained that staff at his group home weren’t helpful to him after his personal belongings, including a laptop, were stolen or damaged by other youths living in the home.

Issue: Group home

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

The right to know

After an inmate complained to us that he was pushed to the ground and attacked by several correctional officers, we intervened to verify that a local investigation had been conducted.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Supplemental care

An inmate with HIV complained that he hadn’t been receiving testosterone and other supplements he required to prevent muscle deterioration.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Email retrieved

A man contacted us in frustration after his application to have his issue heard by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) was dismissed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Voting rights – and wrongs

A man who was in jail awaiting sentencing complained to us that correctional officials had told him he could not vote in the September 2021 federal election, even though he was eligible.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Culvert conundrum

A homeowner complained to us that her municipality was demanding she pay more than $5,000 in fees for a permit for a culvert that had been built under her driveway years ago.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Personal reasons

A man seeking a property tax deferment complained to us that council had unfairly rejected his request because there wasn’t time to consider it.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Triple trouble

A woman complained to us that she had no idea why her water bill had tripled in a few months with no change to her consumption, and the municipal billing department would not help.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Paying the piper

After water rates were increased in a small municipality, we received 48 complaints from local residents who disagreed with the increase.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Far and unfair

We received a complaint from the father of a student with disabilities who resides during the week at a provincial demonstration school in southern Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Vaccination pass

A university student who was exclusively enrolled in online courses and as an online teaching assistant complained to us that he was “unenrolled” because he did not provide proof that he had received the COVID-19 vaccine.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Conversion confusion

A man who had accidentally submitted incorrect information to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) sought our help when OSAP converted his $32,000 grant to a loan.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Please remain seated

A man studying online for his real estate certification complained to us after he was accused of leaving his seat during a virtual exam and then locked out of the program.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Power arrangers

A woman who was behind on her hydro bills asked Ontario Works (OW) for help to avoid getting disconnected.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Found money

A mother had been waiting for months to access support funding to assist with her nine-year-old son’s developmental mental health conditions.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Breaking the bank

A woman who was owed more than $10,000 in support payments from her ex-husband complained to us that she had provided documents to the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) proving that he had the money in a bank account, but the FRO would not take action.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Voicemail jail

An Ontario Works (OW) recipient urgently needed help when her benefits were suspended because she submitted some paperwork late.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Post-mortem refund

A man who had continued to make regular family support payments to his former mother-in-law, who had cared for his now-adult daughter, complained to us after he learned the older woman had been dead for more than a year.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Finally heard

A couple with disabilities contacted us after trying for months to get an expedited hearing with the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) to address unsafe conditions in their apartment.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Up in smoke

A woman sought our help after trying for several weeks to get a refund from the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) for a package that Canada Post never delivered.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Pardon the delay

A former client of the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee (OPGT) contacted our Office after she was told she would have to pay an outstanding restitution order to receive a pardon for a past criminal offence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Slow-speed cheque

A man contacted our Office after waiting almost two years for the Ministry of Transportation to return a $5,000 security deposit.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Clean record

A woman who needed to drive to visit her husband in hospital sought our help after ServiceOntario told her she could not renew her licence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Fax confirmed

A woman complained to us that the Ministry of Transportation had suspended her licence even though she had faxed in her eye test results a month earlier for special review.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Address unknown

A woman sought our help when she found out her driver’s licence had been suspended for medical reasons five years earlier, without her knowledge.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Form fix

We heard from a man who was still waiting for his semi-annual grant for ostomy supplies from the Ministry’s Assistive Devices Program.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Deductible decision

A man contacted our Office after trying unsuccessfully to have his Trillium Drug Program deductible increased.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Tell us more

A man contacted us on behalf of his father, who was immunocompromised and receiving cancer treatments.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Extension explained

A woman whose husband was killed in a workplace accident complained to us that she had heard nothing about the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development’s investigation of the incident for more than a year.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Second chance

After receiving the first of two Small Business Support Grant payments, a business owner was told he was no longer eligible for the second.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Septic solution

A homeowner sought our help with servicing his septic tank – which was located on the property of a neighbour who would not allow access.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Debris debacle

A group of residents near a construction site complained that the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks was not acting on their complaints about debris.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Errant pass

A woman sought our help after she purchased an annual Ontario Parks pass by mistake – she had meant to buy a Parks Canada pass (for national parks) instead.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Delay of name

A mother complained to us about delays in obtaining long-form birth certificates for her two university-aged children, who needed the documents to apply for post-secondary education funding.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 10, 2022

10 August 2022

Apply, return, repeat

A mother contacted us in frustration after waiting several months for her son’s name change to be processed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 20, 2022

20 July 2022

Timely help

A concerned adult contacted our Office on behalf of a youth who was denied a Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA) by a children’s aid society (CAS). VYSAs are available to 16- and 17-year-olds who have left home because of concerns about their safety, and who are in need of child protection services.

Issue: Children’s aid society, Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 30, 2022

30 June 2022

Please try again later

We received a complaint from a Francophone who contacted the Ministry of Finance regarding provincial property taxes in an unorganized territory in Northern Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 31, 2022

31 May 2022

Helping displaced Ukrainians obtain driver's licences

As large numbers of Ukrainians have sought refuge in Ontario in the wake of Russia’s invasion of their country, Ontario has made efforts to help them settle. However, we recently heard of some having difficulty in obtaining driver’s licences.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 19, 2022

19 May 2022

French connections

A person complained that some LinkedIn accounts of the Ontario government and its agencies, including those of the Ministry of Transportation and Ontario Health, showed a unilingual English logo and title.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 29, 2022

29 April 2022

ID help

A 14-year-old youth needed our help getting identification documents to register for school and access health care, after he was removed from his home by a children’s aid society (CAS) over safety concerns.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (Get help)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 29, 2022

29 April 2022

Transit news, now bilingual

A man informed us that although he had chosen to receive the Metrolinx e-newsletter about the Ontario Line in French, it was still being emailed to him in English every week.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 23, 2022

23 March 2022

In French, please, Your Honour

We were contacted by a person who requested a bilingual hearing at a courthouse in Northern Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 23, 2022

23 March 2022

A helping hand

A youth sought our help with retrieving belongings she had left behind at her family home after experiencing physical abuse at the hands of her stepfather.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (Get help)

 

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

February 25, 2022

25 February 2022

Refusal reversed

A 16-year-old complained to us that her children’s aid society (CAS) had refused to allow her to enter into a Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA) after she had left her home due to the abusive behaviour of her aunt.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 31, 2022

31 January 2022

Overcoming obstacles

A youth in care sought our help in filing a complaint about staff at her residential placement.

Issue: Rights (making a complaint)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 28, 2022

28 January 2022

For follow-up in French, press 2

A man contacted the provincial COVID-19 vaccine system by phone and chose the “French” option to request his proof of vaccination by mail.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

Errors identified

In February 2021, the government launched an online consultation to get ideas and feedback on its plan to introduce a digital ID (digital identification).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

The award goes to…

We were contacted by a person who watched the Trillium Awards ceremony on Facebook on June 17, 2020, which was held in English only.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

Improvements on track

We were contacted by a Francophone woman after she tried to call Metrolinx. Although she chose the French phone line, she said the agent who took the call could only speak English.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

Cured by translation

We were contacted by a person who visited the Ontario Health Data Platform website to learn more about a Ministry of Health research project – only to discover the site was only available in English.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

Problem extinguished

A man working at a French-language school board contacted us because he wanted to obtain the French version of the Fire Code (Regulation 213/07 of the Fire Protection and Prevention Act) in order to know the provisions that apply to school facilities.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

December 7, 2021

7 December 2021

Electrifying solution

We were contacted by a person living in a designated area of Eastern Ontario who requested the French version of an inspection report conducted by the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 29, 2021

29 November 2021

Duty to report

A mother complained to our Office that her son’s school didn’t notify the local children’s aid society (CAS) about allegations he made to his teacher that his grandmother had hurt him.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Duty to report

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 29, 2021

29 November 2021

Call Waiting

A woman told us that she wanted to get physiotherapy care for her father.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 27, 2021

27 October 2021

Online schooling okayed

A 14-year-old in care told us her worker was insisting that she go to school in person, even though her preference was to continue to attend school online.

Issue: Rights (education)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 27, 2021

27 October 2021

Clinical error

A Francophone woman complained to us that a dermatology clinic at an eastern Ontario hospital did not provide services in French when she booked her appointment on the phone, at reception or during the medical examination.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 29, 2021

29 September 2021

Alerting all at once

The French Language Services Unit has received several complaints about the Amber alert system.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 24, 2021

24 August 2021

The right words

A Francophone education professional complained to us about the inadequate quality of French on some of the forms for the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP), a school-to-work transition program offered in high schools across the province.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Long-term loan

A man with ALS complained that when he moved into a long-term care home in 2017 due to his deteriorating condition, he become ineligible for the ventilator that he had been provided through the province’s Ventilator Equipment Pool program.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Un-fur treatment

A First Nations trapper sought our help in obtaining a refund from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry for licences to sell furs commercially, and a mandatory humane trapping course.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Upstream battle

A homeowner complained to us about a pipe outlet on his property that was leaking foul-smelling fluid. His municipality referred him to the Ministry of Transportation, which denied responsibility.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Home safe

A group home worker raised health and safety concerns with us after he and a few colleagues contracted COVID-19.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Exclusion explanation

A personal support worker contacted us in frustration when he and his colleagues were denied “pandemic pay,” despite being in close contact with patients.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Open and shut case

A woman who was waiting for the Fair Practices Commissioner (FPC – the WSIB’s internal ombudsman) to assist her with a loss-of-earnings assessment and prescription cost refund sought our help early in the pandemic.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Family connection

A woman contacted us in frustration over delays and a lack of communication from the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee (OPGT) regarding her brother, who was an OPGT client.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Find us online

Several people who work as title searchers complained to us about the province’s decision to end in-person services at all 54 of its Land Registry Offices in October 2020.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Bad form

A father whose child was born through a surrogate mother complained to us after the Registrar General asked him to resubmit the paperwork for registering the birth, and include an additional form swearing that his statements were true.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Double time

A man complained to us about long delays in getting ServiceOntario and the Registrar General to correct a name error on his mother’s death certificate.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Checked and re-chequed

A woman contacted us after she missed several cheques from the province’s Assistive Devices Program (ADP), which she required to cover the cost of ostomy supplies.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Information, please

A woman who has several health issues and relies on Ontario Disability Support Program benefits complained to us that her request for coverage of her medications had been denied by the Ontario Drug Benefit program.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Healthy extension

A woman who had lived in Canada for 76 years sought our help when she attempted to renew her health card and discovered she did not have Canadian citizenship.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

No surrender

A driver complained to us after he was told the Ministry had no record of the licence he had surrendered to them 30 days earlier.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Experience counts

A man who had driving experience in India and in British Columbia sought our help after he tried to obtain an equivalent Ontario driver’s licence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Kept in suspense

A driver whose licence was suspended as a result of a criminal charge successfully appealed the charge and had it removed from his record.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Letter imperfect

The mother of a 21-year-old woman with developmental disabilities complained to us that she had not been reimbursed by the province’s Passport program for support services that she purchased for her daughter.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Failed to send

An Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) recipient complained to us that her benefits had been cut off twice without warning.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

After-life support

An unemployed woman who had been paying child support to her children’s father complained to us that the Family Responsibility Office was still intercepting 50% of her unemployment benefits, even though the man had died and the children were now in her care.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Dogged determination

After a youth living in a treatment home complained that his request for a service dog was refused, we followed up with his CAS worker.

Issue: Rights (appropriate services)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Talk or else

A 13-year-old in a group home complained that staff were forcing him to talk to them and share his feelings, rather than respecting his privacy.

Issue: Rights (reasonable privacy)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Culture change

A Black 16-year-old complained that her CAS worker was dismissive of her requests for hair and skin products that met her cultural needs, making her feel like she was being treated differently because of her race.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (culture and identity)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Trucker stop

A would-be commercial truck driver complained to us after the private career college where he took his Mandatory Entry Level Training course was suspended by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Slow off the marks

A college graduate seeking to pursue studies at a university sought our help when he was unable to provide official transcripts from the college, whose offices were closed in spring 2020 due to COVID-19.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Process upgrade

A university student who had completed two years of courses applied for late withdrawal because of a previously undiagnosed mental illness.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Cleared up

After a woman told us her drinking water was discoloured and she feared it was unsafe to drink, we contacted her municipality and the Ontario Clean Water Agency, which runs its water system.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Information flow

More than 30 people from the same municipality sought our help with concerns about leaking water pipes.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Bad signs

A man who received a ticket for stopping in a “no stopping” zone complained that only a “no parking” sign was visible from the spot.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Process undermined

Residents who live close to an open-pit mine contacted us in frustration after complaining to their municipality about noise, dust, and emissions for years.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Under the gun

We received numerous complaints in 2020-2021 about delays in approvals by Ontario’s Chief Firearms Officer (CFO) for transfers of restricted firearms.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Report duty

An inmate sought our help after he was involved in an altercation with another inmate and then pepper sprayed and assaulted by correctional officers.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Search terms

Several inmates in the same facility complained to us that they were strip searched in a main hallway, in view of security cameras.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Restraints cause concern

A youth revealed to us that her concerns about being physically restrained at her group home were not being heard.

Issue: Physical restraints

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

A difficult day

Our Office checked on a youth after we heard she was hurt when her group home staff physically restrained her self-injurious behaviour.

Issue: Physical restraints

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Restraining restraints

Our staff reached out to a youth after we learned that he had his arm broken while being restrained by staff at his group home.

Issue: Police involvement; Physical restraints; Rights (disability)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Rethinking reliance on police

Our Office made inquiries when we learned that a children’s aid society (CAS) asked the police to bring back a youth who had left her foster home without permission to return to her family home.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Police involvement

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Whistleblower heard

A whistleblower came to us with several disturbing allegations about a group home serving children and youth who are medically fragile or have other vulnerabilities.

Issue: Whistleblower; Quality of care – group home

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 28, 2021

28 June 2021

Delivered at last

A woman who had been granted full custody of her niece – with the support of a children’s aid society (CAS) – contacted us after waiting four months for a certified copy of the original court order, which she needed in order to apply for a health card and other important items for the girl.

Issue: Children’s aid society

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 26, 2021

26 May 2021

For service in French, dial OO

A Francophone student seeking information about scholarships via the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) contacted us when he discovered there was no option to select services in French in the automated phone system of the OSAP department he called.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 30, 2021

30 April 2021

Repairing wrongs

A woman sought our help after her two foster children disclosed to her that their former foster parent had been physically and verbally abusive toward them.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Safety concerns in foster care

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 30, 2021

30 April 2021

Landing test

A woman returning from an overseas trip complained to us that she was not served in French during the COVID-19 test she was required to undergo at Toronto Pearson airport.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 30, 2021

30 March 2021

Better bilingual service for landlords and tenants

While the Ombudsman’s systemic investigation into delays at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) is ongoing, we have resolved many individual complaints, including from landlords and tenants who had difficulty receiving services in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 30, 2021

30 March 2021

Payment received

A mother complained to us because she was not receiving any family support payments from her children’s father, even though the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) had the ability to garnish his wages.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

February 25, 2021

25 February 2021

Seeking the right support

After her second suicide attempt, a 15-year-old girl contacted us from the hospital.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (safety)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

February 25, 2021

25 February 2021

Easier to complete

A French-speaking member of the board of directors of a small housing co-op in northern Ontario sought our help when he had trouble completing an annual form from the Condominium Authority of Ontario (CAO).

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 29, 2021

29 January 2021

The right balance

A 16-year-old youth complained to us that staff at his group home threatened to lock the refrigerator after he helped himself to food at night when he was hungry.

Issue: Group home; Rights (access to food)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 29, 2021

29 January 2021

Email fail

After requesting information from the Ministry of Health in French and receiving answers in English twice, a Francophone journalist complained to our Office.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 29, 2021

29 January 2021

Keep on truckin’

A truck driver who crosses the Canada-U.S. border weekly as an essential worker complained to us that a ServiceOntario location would not let him in and demanded he self-isolate for 14 days because he had recently crossed the border.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 24, 2020

24 November 2020

Keeping watch

A woman worried about the health and safety of a young relative complained to us that the local children’s aid society (CAS) had done “nothing” in response to her concerns.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Safety concerns

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 24, 2020

24 November 2020

You have the choice

Our French Language Services Unit received two complaints from people who called the general DriveTest phone line to book driving tests and were obligated to listen to a 90-second message in English only.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 24, 2020

24 November 2020

At your service

A small business owner reached out to us after he was unable to update the information attached to his business licence through ServiceOntario, despite several attempts.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 29, 2020

29 October 2020

Right-ing on the wall

A 16-year-old who has a developmental disability and lives in a group home contacted us to raise questions about his rights.

Issue: Group home; Rights (making a complaint)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 29, 2020

29 October 2020

A better way

A 13-year-old racialized youth complained to us after her children’s aid society (CAS) called the police to transport her to a new group home – which they did by handcuffing her and placing her in the back of a police vehicle.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Police involvement

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 29, 2020

29 September 2020

To be or not to be… in French

A woman in Thunder Bay decided to go to a local ServiceOntario to update her home address on her driver’s licence, after first checking the website to confirm the service location offered services in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 28, 2020

28 September 2020

Family feud

A 16-year-old youth living in a group home complained to our Office that staff at the home were not allowing him to contact certain members of his family because his mother – his legal guardian – did not want him speaking to them.

Issue: Rights (contacting family)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 28, 2020

28 September 2020

Vote for fairness

A young person in custody contacted us last year to complain that he wasn’t able to vote in the federal election, although he had expressed his interest in voting to the youth facility’s staff members.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 28, 2020

28 August 2020

No longer a loan

After being injured and hospitalized, a college student was unable to complete his one-year course, so the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) converted his $15,000 grant to a loan.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 28, 2020

28 August 2020

Right to review

We helped a parent who was refused an identification, placement and review committee (IPRC) to assess her daughter’s giftedness in kindergarten.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 28, 2020

28 August 2020

A message in French will follow

With the current pandemic and the necessity to work from home, using conference call lines has become the norm in many organizations.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 28, 2020

28 August 2020

A cry for help

A 15-year-old emailed us that she was being physically and verbally abused by her mother, and had started to self-harm and even attempted suicide as a result.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Safety concerns

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 31, 2020

31 July 2020

Proven parenthood

A father whose wife died in childbirth sought our help in obtaining a birth certificate and Social Insurance Number for the new baby, which he needed in order to claim survivor benefits.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 31, 2020

31 July 2020

Opportunity granted

A former master’s student who began to work in her field just before she completed her degree complained to us that the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) had deemed her ineligible for an Ontario Student Opportunities Grant, due to unreported income.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 31, 2020

31 July 2020

Safe slumber

A 16-year-old living in a foster home sought our help when she was invited to spend the night at a friend’s house, but her foster care agency denied her request, citing COVID-19 restrictions.

Issue: Rights (fairness)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 31, 2020

31 July 2020

Fish story

When new signs were installed at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry's Fish Culture Station in North Bay, some Francophone residents noticed something fishy - the signs were in English only.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Whose sewage

A trailer park owner contacted us when a dispute arose about responsibility for the municipal sewage system servicing the park.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

After the fire

After firefighters used foam containing PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) to put out a fire at her property, a woman complained to us about how long it was taking to ensure her water was safe to drink.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Post-mortem correction

A woman sought our help in getting the Registrar General to help her correct an error she made on her mother’s death certificate.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Starting anew

A man complained to us after trying for years to resolve a name discrepancy with ServiceOntario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Debt free

A man sought our help when he was contacted by a collections agency many years after receiving funding from Second Career – a program now operated by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Sorry process

We have resolved several complaints over the past three years about the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), which nominates skilled immigrant workers for permanent residency.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Record time

A driver who moved to B.C. sought our help after waiting for a copy of his driving record from Ontario for 7 weeks.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Presto change

When attempting to reload her Presto card, a transit rider purchased a monthly Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) pass by mistake. She contacted Metrolinx, which referred her to the TTC, which in turn referred her to Metrolinx.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Claiming responsibility

A man whose vehicle was damaged by a large pothole complained to us after the Ministry of Transportation’s adjuster denied his claim and the road construction company denied responsibility.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Lost in the mail

A woman came to us in frustration after trying several times to obtain her renewed driver’s licence. Each time she visited ServiceOntario, she was given a temporary licence and told a permanent one would be mailed to her.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Wrongly charged

A patient contacted us after being told by their physician that a non-cosmetic dermatological treatment was not covered by OHIP, and could only be provided if the patient paid.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Insured in time

A cancer patient who had appealed OHIP’s decision to deny him coverage complained to us when he did not receive a response within the Ministry of Health’s posted deadline.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Worth the trip

A woman sought our help after her application for an overnight accommodation allowance was denied by the Northern Health Travel Grant because she did not meet the minimum distance requirement.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Course completed

A transgender student at a college of applied arts and technology complained to us that she had experienced harassment, bullying, and a lack of accommodation.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Second chance

A federal inmate who was taking university courses sought our help with submitting a grade appeal. He had tried to submit it to the university’s senate committee, but received no response because he sent it directly to his professor instead of the registrar.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Language barrier

An English-speaking mother whose child attends a French-language school was facing barriers when attempting to raise concerns with the school principal.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Northern resources

A woman in a remote northern community complained to our Office that her grandson, who has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), had been excluded from school for four months due to escalating violent behaviour. When the child was allowed back to school, he was only allowed to attend for two hours per day, four times a week. 

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Overtaxed

A homeowner sought our help after learning that his property type had been incorrectly recorded by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) when it was first assessed almost a decade earlier.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Loan protection

After a woman under the guardianship of the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee (OPGT) took out two short-term, high-interest loans without the OPGT’s knowledge or consent, we asked for more information about how it prevents unauthorized loans and other dissipation of clients’ assets.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Help with the bill

A recipient of Ontario Disability Support Program benefits contacted us when he discovered his monthly natural gas and water tank rental fees had not been paid since 2016 and he owed $2,000 in outstanding fees.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Long overdue

A man with significant medical issues contacted us with the help of his social worker because he was experiencing financial hardship due to the Family Responsibility Office garnishing his Canada Pension Plan benefits for past child support arrears – although his children were now in their 30s.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Address unknown

A woman complained to us that she had not received any family support payments in over a year, despite submitting paperwork to the Family Responsibility Office asking that she receive them via direct deposit rather than by mailed cheque.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Sensitive subjects

We received three complaints about a chaotic meeting of council for the Municipality of West Nipissing in March 2019.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Out-of-town breakdown

As noted in last year’s Annual Report, we received 77 complaints in February 2019 about a City of Hamilton committee’s decision to meet outside of the city – the highest number of complaints we have ever received in a single closed meeting case.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Per-pet-ual licence

A dog owner who went to renew the licences for her pets complained to us when the municipality also charged her to renew the licence of a dog that had died six months earlier.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Fair warning

A man who moved a trailer onto a property while he waited for a permit to build a house on it complained that the municipality had removed the trailer without notice.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

How much?

A man complained to us that he was charged $123.79 for the installation of a new water meter at his cottage, even though the municipality’s fees by-law listed the fee for water meter replacement as $34.38.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Unreasonable search

A group of Indigenous inmates complained to us that they were strip-searched before attending a smudging ceremony, leaving them feeling violated, discriminated against and targeted because of their Indigenous spirituality.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Needed support

An inmate who uses a customized wheelchair to support his spine sought our help because he was being repeatedly transferred to a second institution without his chair.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Misconduct-ed

An inmate complained to us after a sergeant at his facility penalized him by taking away 30 days of earned remission (time off his sentence) for refusing a transfer to another facility.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Right to safety

An 11-year-old told us she felt unsafe in her group home after another resident threatened her with a knife.

Issue: Safety concerns; Group home

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 6, 2020

6 July 2020

Not as planned

A young person who was serving a youth sentence at an adult correctional facility complained to us that he was not being provided CAS access to services required by his court-ordered plan.

Issue: Rights (education)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 29, 2020

29 May 2020

Proof of identity

A man complained to us after he wore a non-medical mask to prevent coronavirus spread inside his local Liquor Board of Ontario (LBCO) outlet, and staff there asked him to remove it so they could verify his identity.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 29, 2020

29 May 2020

Broken telephone

Our staff helped a woman who was having trouble reaching a manager at the Family Responsibility Office (FRO), due to recent changes to its phone system.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 29, 2020

29 May 2020

Extended parking

A woman sought our help after she was provided with a temporary accessible parking permit with a duration of only six months, when she had previously had one that lasted five years.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 29, 2020

29 May 2020

Our opinion matters

An education worker complained to our French Language Services Unit about a unilingual English survey about technology that was being conducted on behalf of the Ministry of Education.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 30, 2020

30 April 2020

Parked at home

A man complained to us about his municipality issuing parking tickets during the COVID-19 state of emergency.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 30, 2020

30 April 2020

Paid upfront

A cancer patient who is an Ontario Disability Support Program recipient told us she was about to have surgery and urgently needed funds to pay for transportation, but could not reach her caseworker.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

April 30, 2020

30 April 2020

Essential licence

A woman whose job was deemed an essential service during the COVID-19 pandemic sought our help when her driver’s licence was suspended due to a medical matter and she was temporarily unable to get to work.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 31, 2020

31 March 2020

A cut above

A Black youth living in a rural group home with little access to public transit complained to us that staff would not drive him to get a haircut.

Issue: Rights (culture and identity)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

March 27, 2020

27 March 2020

Failing the test

A man visited a London DriveTest centre with his son, who wanted to take the theory component of the road test, and requested services in French.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

February 26, 2020

26 February 2020

Left out in the cold

The mother of a teenager with developmental disability complained to us about an incident involving her daughter at a group home.

Issue: Group home; Safety concerns

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 31, 2020

31 January 2020

Hold, s’il vous plaît

A francophone man complained to our French Language Services Unit that he waited an hour on the phone for service in French when he called the disability eligibility decision unit of the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

January 31, 2020

31 January 2020

The right process

A mother called our Children and Youth Unit after her local children’s aid society told her it would not review her complaint due to a lack of information.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Complaint process

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 29, 2019

29 November 2019

Au revoir, not goodbye

A woman complained to our French Language Services Unit that the Superior Court in Toronto could not serve her in person in French, resulting in a wasted trip and frustration.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 29, 2019

29 November 2019

On her own

A 16-year-old youth in care of a children’s aid society felt that her needs were not being met since she had a change in caseworkers.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 31, 2019

31 October 2019

Website faux pas

A French-speaking woman sought our help after she encountered difficulties with the website of the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

October 31, 2019

31 October 2019

Right to complain

When a woman complained to us about how she and her family were treated by a children’s aid society, we first advised her to contact her caseworker and raise the issue through the society’s internal process.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Complaint process

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 30, 2019

30 September 2019

That's the place

Unhappy with his placement at a foster home, a 17-year-old asked his children’s aid society caseworker for a placement change, only to be told the home he was staying in was best for him.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (placement)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

September 30, 2019

30 September 2019

Lacking language

A man who was following the complaints process regarding a bilingual community legal clinic reached out to us after receiving an English-only version of the clinic’s complaints policy.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

August 30, 2019

30 August 2019

The road to French services

We received a complaint from a man who had recently moved to Canada. Although his motorcycle licence was valid in his home country, he was required to re-take the test in Ontario. The man had been assigned an English-speaking examiner for his motorcycle road test, even though he requested a French-speaking examiner in advance at a designated DriveTest centre.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

July 31, 2019

31 July 2019

Review askew

A 16-year-old girl living in a group home told us she had asked her children’s aid society worker to initiate a review of her placement because she felt unsafe, but the caseworker didn't follow up with her.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Safety concerns; Rights (placement)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Without further delay

A woman who had been pursuing her case at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario for several years sought our help after she learned that the adjudicator assigned to her case was no longer able to continue.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Re: Vision

An inmate complained to us that staff at his correctional facility had taken his eyeglasses and refused to return them.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

A time to mourn

An inmate sought our help in reaching the appropriate correctional officials after her father passed away and she could not get a response to her request to attend his funeral.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Not on board

An Ontario Works recipient sought our help when he received a letter saying he would have to repay $1,835 to Ontario Works, and that his monthly income would be reduced by $202.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Auto-threat

A pensioner who had a longstanding agreement to pay her family support arrears off at $50/month complained to us that the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) sent her a letter threatening to garnish half of her monthly income, which would leave her with no money to pay her utility bills.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Credit undo

A mother who receives support for her adult child with disabilities sought our help after she inadvertently provided inaccurate information to FRO, resulting in the termination of her support and a $21,000 credit to the payor.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Sharing the wealth

The family of a man who won $2,000 in the lottery but died before he could collect the prize sought our help in dealing with OLG officials, whom they had contacted several times over the course of four months.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Unsigned but delivered

A woman placed an order with the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) on October 17, 2018, the first day that recreational cannabis became legal in Canada.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Coming up empty

A cannabis purchaser received a delivery from the OCS that turned out to be an empty box.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Cracking the code

A small business owner sought our help after he was ordered to install fire detectors and alarms on his property, noting that he could not access the technical standard of the Ontario Fire Code that was cited in the order.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Fine treatment

A man who wanted to dispute a $40 parking ticket told municipal staff he would call back to schedule a hearing, but when he did so, he was told it had already taken place.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Pothole role

When a snowplow hit a pothole, digging up asphalt and other debris, it dumped the pile in a woman’s front yard and left a larger hole in the road. She complained to us after the municipal crew she called only filled the potholes, leaving the debris in her yard.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Water pressure

A man who received a water bill for more than $700 – around seven times more than his usual charge – called us in frustration when the local water company told him his previous bills were only estimates, but this one was based on actual use, and they could not alter his bill.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Photo proof

After we made inquiries about a man’s complaint that the required notice of a proposed zoning by-law amendment was not posted on the relevant property, the municipality changed its practices.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Technical difficulty

A Grade 10 student was disappointed to receive a failing grade on the writing component of the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Oh brother

In a case that officials called “unprecedented,” a brother and sister complained to us about difficulties in applying to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) – one to attend college, the other university.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Changed course

A student who was close to completing her program at a college of applied arts and technology was unsure if she had all the credits she needed for her diploma, so she enrolled in an extra course just in case.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Mail fail

A commercial truck driver complained to us that his licence had been downgraded and he had not been able to get an explanation or assistance from ServiceOntario or DriveTest.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Passed test

A 74-year-old woman who delayed a required driver’s test so she could have hip surgery sought our help after the Ministry cancelled her driver’s licence. She was required to take several tests to keep her licence after having a car accident.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Proof of payment

A driver who required his licence for work sought our help when it was suddenly suspended due to a fine he had incurred 27 years earlier. He had been convicted of impaired driving in 1990 and fined $735.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Welcome home

A woman who had lived abroad for many years returned to Ontario and applied to exchange her foreign licence for an Ontario licence.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

A second look

A transgender woman complained that the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) had improperly refused her application for prior approval for breast reconstruction surgery.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Uncovered

A concerned social worker at a psychiatric hospital asked us if we could help a patient whose OHIP coverage had been suddenly cancelled.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Caught in the web

A woman complained to us that the Registrar General’s website froze when she was in the midst of applying for death certificates for two family members.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

What to expect

An international student who had completed post-secondary studies in Ontario and was now employed sought our help in communicating with ServiceOntario about getting an Ontario Health card.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Welcome change

A transgender man seeking a name change complained to us when his application was rejected because the sex on his birth certificate differed from the gender on his name change application.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

Harsh choice

A provincial government employee complained to us that the practices of the Workplace Discrimination and Harassment Prevention Office (WDHP) were onerous and unfair.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

All’s well that ends well

After our staff assisted a Tesla owner in having his Electric and Hydrogen Vehicle Incentive Program application approved, he returned to us for help in February 2019, after he received only half of his $14,000 rebate.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

On the hook

A woman who runs a commercial fishing business complained that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry had not responded to her request for a refund of more than $31,000 she had overpaid in Crown lease fees over several years.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 25, 2019

25 June 2019

A parent error

A father complained to us that FRO had collected thousands of dollars of support payments from him for 14 years, even though his daughter was no longer in the care of her mother but had been made a Crown ward.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 31, 2019

31 May 2019

Coverage confusion

A pregnant youth called us for help when she went for an ultrasound and was told her health card was cancelled.

Issue: Rights (healthcare)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 31, 2019

31 May 2019

Staying connected

A young person in a treatment group home called us, saying she felt like she had no one to talk to.

Issue: Rights (fairness)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

May 31, 2019

31 May 2019

Moving on

A 15-year-old who had been in a group home for three years sought our help in moving into a foster home where he could become more independent.

Issue: Children’s aid society; Rights (placement)

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Identity crisis

An elderly woman needed our help with obtaining new identification after she lost her OHIP card, her primary photo ID.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Family re-covered

We helped a father renew his daughter’s OHIP card after she had gone three years without a valid one and her application had been rejected.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

It’s where you live

A woman who moved to Ontario from Alberta for work sought our help after her application for OHIP coverage was rejected due to inadequate proof that she resided in Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

The long and short of it

A mother of two boys complained to our Office when she had trouble changing her children’s names on their birth certificates, documents they needed soon to make a trip to Disneyland in the U.S.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Born free

An almost-retired man who wanted to get a passport to travel sought our help after three frustrating years of trying to obtain a birth certificate from the Office of the Registrar General.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Month to month

A man sought our help with his local hydro company, which was sending him late notices and charging him interest on his quarterly water heater rental bill.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Connection made

A woman was trying without success to have hydro reconnected at a rental property and was concerned about a delay and lack of communication from the local hydro company.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Builder beware

A man who has physical disabilities and cancer was issued a grant from the province’s Home and Vehicle Modification Program (HVMP) to build a porch lift at his home.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Thanks a lot

A man who built an apartment building on a vacant lot in 2012 sought our help with MPAC regarding the adjusted assessment value of his property.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Cost of living

After waiting many months for a response from Ministry officials about his experience, a man who had to relocate from Northern Ontario to Toronto for a lung transplant finally had his voice heard through our Office.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Split difference

A divorced recipient of Trillium Drug Plan coverage complained to us that his access to the benefit was affected because his ex-wife would not provide a letter stating that he was no longer covered by her private insurance.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

It’s in the (e)mail

A woman contacted our Office after learning her OHIP coverage had been suspended while she was studying outside of Ontario, despite the fact that she had emailed her renewal documents to OHIP several times.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Hits the spot

When a woman hit a pothole on a county road that damaged her vehicle, she tried to seek reimbursement.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Change of address

An inmate who tried repeatedly to get information from the Ministry of Transportation about his driving record and other issues complained that he could not get information from officials during the 20 minutes of phone time he was allowed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Have licence, will travel

A woman seeking to renew her driver’s licence was given a temporary one, valid for three months, and told her new licence would be mailed in 6-8 weeks.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Bugs in the system

An elderly woman contacted us after she was unable to get provincial officials to respond to her about a blocked highway culvert near her home that had become a mosquito breeding ground.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

On the road again

An Ontario man who had temporarily moved to B.C. was told upon his return that his motorcycle licence had been cancelled and he would have to go through the testing process again.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Just missed the mark

A mother of three who was enrolled in a combined college and university nursing program was not allowed to progress to the university portion of the program because her grade in a college course was 1.5% below the required threshold.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Right to appeal

A university student contacted our Office with several concerns, including a stalled academic appeal, the conduct of one of his professors, administrative fees, and the university’s unwillingness to release his official transcript.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Searching for answers

A father contacted us after he went to pick up his daughters at their after-school program and discovered they were off premises without any prior notice.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

To fee or not to fee

Our staff helped two parents whose local school board wanted to charge them more than $6,000 in tuition for their son because his legal guardian lived outside of Ontario – even though the boy did not live with the guardian.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Bus fuss

A mother of two sought our help after she was unable to get a response from her school board about why she could not get busing for her four-year-old son, even though her eight-year-old son was being bused to a school closer to home.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Up to code

A man contacted us after getting no response to a complaint about his local Chief Building Official.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Making it clear

A woman renting a basement apartment sought our help after a municipal construction crew broke a water pipe near her unit, flooding her apartment and damaging her belongings.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Faster lane

We helped a man who waited more than a year to hear back from his municipality about purchasing a portion of the laneway behind his house.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Code found

A mall developer told us that local councillors were interfering with the development of her project, but she believed the municipality did not have a code of conduct or integrity commissioner.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Double trouble

A mother and adult daughter, both ODSP recipients who live together, complained to us about a mixup after the daughter successfully applied for ODSP for herself from a different office than the one where her mother was a client.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Mailbox full

A man whose shelter allowance was terminated by the ODSP without notice complained to us after his case worker did not respond to several email messages.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Brother’s keeper

We helped sort out a case of mistaken identity between the FRO and a man who could not insure his house because a writ was registered in his name for unpaid support obligations – even though it was his brother who actually owed support arrears.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Cold case

A man contacted our office after the FRO issued an order to garnish his Old Age Security payments and his federal pension, according to a court order from 1982.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Sharing the wealth

A woman who was owed more than $17,000 in spousal and child support came to our Office for help in liaising with FRO officials.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Clearer definition

An ODSP recipient complained to us about the Social Justice Tribunal of Ontario’s decision on her eligibility for the ODSP’s Work-Related Benefit.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Lost and found

We referred a man to the right internal complaint mechanism at the Office of the Children’s Lawyer so he could voice concerns about delays in receiving documents and in setting his court date, all of which resulted in added legal costs for him.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Weekend schedule

A man serving weekend time in jail who required anxiety medication three times a day sought our help because the correctional facility would not give him his medication on Saturday mornings when he arrived, or on Sunday evenings before he left.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

About time

We helped a woman from Manitoba who had struggled for six months to get Legal Aid Ontario to recognize her approval for legal aid in a custody case in Ontario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 26, 2018

26 June 2018

Welcome assist

A woman who broke her collarbone before she was sent to jail complained to us that she had been waiting for eight days for a sling for her arm.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Advisor apology

A man contacted our Office in frustration after the WSIAT heard only one of several claims he had filed, when he was expecting to have them all heard at the same time.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

All wet

After a man complained to us that his municipality had not responded to his letter about flood damage to his basement, municipal staff initially told us they didn’t answer because they deemed the complaint to be without merit.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Better late than never

A mortgage broker sought our help with a delay in renewing his licence through FSCO. His brokerage firm had missed the deadline to pay the $800 renewal fee to FSCO, which in turn failed to process the renewal before his licence expired.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Building good policies

A man who had a complaint about his municipality’s chief building official contacted our Office because his municipality did not have a code of conduct in place, even though this is required by the Building Code Act.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Cleared to drive

A driver who moved to Ontario from British Columbia complained to our office that his job was at risk because of an impaired driving conviction from 13 years earlier.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Credit deserved

The parent of a high school student with autism spectrum disorder contacted us after she was informed by her son’s school that he would not receive credit for one of his courses because he had not met course expectations.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Delay headache

A woman whose migraine medication is covered through the Exceptional Access Program contacted us because she was worried about how long it was taking the program to approve a renewal of her prescription.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Found money

A woman who was owed more than $100,000 in support payments complained to us about FRO’s lack of enforcement action against her ex-husband, even though she had provided information about his assets, finance and employment situation.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Got him covered

A man who had lost all of his identification a few years earlier sought our help because he was unable to get health coverage through OHIP.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Identity issue

A woman who had surrendered her driver’s licence for medical reasons complained to us that she was having trouble obtaining a photo identification card from ServiceOntario.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Looking for answers

A student complained to us that his university had failed to respond to him on several matters, including a grade appeal, requests for a bursary and a refund for a dropped course.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Message mistake

After an ODSP recipient left her case worker a message asking about reporting employment income, she was surprised to discover her benefit entitlement was suspended.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Monitors, not medics

The mother of a five-year-old girl with medical needs enrolled her in a special program after she was told a bus monitor would be assigned to administer the child’s medication if needed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Motherhood issue

An inmate who was 29 weeks into a high-risk pregnancy contacted us in fear that she would lose her baby due to lack of care. She complained of delays in being referred to prenatal appointments, in being taken to hospital, and in accessing her health record.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Name changer

In 2001, after years of using his stepfather’s surname, a man decided to revert to his original birth surname. He was issued a short-form Ontario birth certificate reflecting the change.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

No place like home

The parents of two adult sons with highly complex medical needs and developmental disabilities contacted our Office because they felt they were in crisis. They wanted to continue to care for their sons at home, but were experiencing their own health challenges.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Not a loan

A student who moved back home to live with her parents in the last semester of her two-year college program complained that her OSAP funding was denied.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Photo finish

A man who needed a new driver’s licence for work complained to our Office that he could not get one because he didn’t have adequate photo identification.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Powerful gesture

A man was upset that it took the Ontario Electricity Support Program six months to process his application, even though its website says it should take 6-8 weeks.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Privacy dependent

The widow of a man killed in a workplace accident complained to us that WSIB would not extend survivor benefits to her son, because it had no evidence that the worker, who was not the boy’s biological father, was his legal parent at the time of the accident.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Rude awakening

A man complained to his municipality after a member of council called him names in an email. He was not satisfied when the mayor offered to bring him and the councillor together for a private meeting.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Security risk

An inmate who had been in segregation for nine months – because the facility had concerns about his and others’ safety and security – complained to our office that it was harming his mental health and he needed to see a psychiatrist.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Sold out

A man contacted our Office after his municipality closed and sold a road allowance adjacent to his property. His family had used the land to access the river, but they were not notified by the municipality or given the chance to purchase a portion of the land, contrary to municipal policy.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Sweet relief

An inmate with diabetes who needed to take insulin before his meals complained to our office that correctional staff could only give it to him after meals.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Tale of two cities

A Toronto woman who was seeking rapid reinstatement of ODSP benefits was staying with a relative in Oshawa while undergoing medical treatment. The ODSP office in Oshawa told her she would have to apply through their Toronto office – but she was too ill to travel, and worried that she could not make ends meet without benefits.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

To be fair

A student who had been expelled from university after an academic fraud inquiry complained to us that the university failed to respond to its own ombudsman’s report on his case, which raised concerns about the fairness of the inquiry and the sanctions it imposed.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Wires crossed

We received complaints from four residents in one building who each received catch-up bills from their municipal hydro company for $2,000-5,000.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

June 27, 2017

27 June 2017

Zero balance

A student enrolled in a college’s early childhood education program, but was unable to attend. She did inform the college, but because she missed the deadline to withdraw from the course.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Guard let down

A man who needed to renew his Ontario Security Guard licence for work contacted our Office for help in speeding up the process with the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Special(ist) case

A transgender man complained to our Office because he was having difficulty obtaining an updated birth certificate from the Registrar General.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

New identity

After living on the streets for many years, a man sought our help in obtaining valid identification so he could apply for full-time work.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Sorry situation

A man with a visual impairment complained to our Office that an LCBO cashier would not sell him wine unless his 19-year-old son, who was not making a purchase but only accompanying him to provide assistance, showed identification.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Costly mistakes

After members of her family complained to our Office, we discovered the OPGT had made numerous errors in managing a woman’s affairs – failing to pay her mortgage and utilities for several months.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Signal co-ordination

After narrowly escaping being hit by an Ontario Northland Railway train near her home, a woman requested an automatic signal be installed to prevent future incidents.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

System error

After a 30-day suspension, a woman visited a ServiceOntario office and paid the $150 fee to have her licence reinstated.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Bureaucratic brake

A senior complained that after he sent a medical report to the Ministry as required for his driver’s licence, he was told it could not be found and he would have to submit it again.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Welcome home

A senior contacted our Office after restrictions were placed on his visits with his wife at her long-term care home, after he raised concerns with a nurse about his wife’s care.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Fire protection

A man whose home and important documents were destroyed by fire complained that he was having trouble renewing his Ontario health card.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Retroactive relief

After the Trillium Drug Program denied a woman drug benefits that she had previously received, our staff raised the case with a senior analyst at the Ministry, who found the information she had submitted about her private insurer’s drug coverage had been inconsistent.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Finding compassion

A woman complained to our Office on behalf of her 34-year-old daughter, who requires a specially-made drug at a cost of $200 per month.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Timely medicine

A mother whose son has a developmental disability and is medically fragile complained that her son’s medication costs were no longer being covered since he had been placed in a group home funded by the Ministry of Community and Social Services.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Unfinished business

A man complained to our Office about the WSIB after he had not received an update on his compensation application for almost a year.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Billing bungle

A man complained after he received a municipal hydro bill of $1,300, when his normal monthly bill was around $29.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Fee factor

A homeowner complained that a $1,950 fee he paid to make a severance application was not refunded when his application was denied.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Snow problem

A man told our Office he had tried for 10 years to find out why the municipality removed the snow from the sidewalk in front of his neighbours’ homes, but not his.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Distance discount

A distance education student complained he was asked to pay fees for various services only available on campus, such as student lifestyle fees.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Admit one

A would-be Bachelor of Education student complained that he was denied admission because of a mistake in his application due to a miscommunication with the university.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Fail safe

A student complained that he had failed a course due to false information provided to his professor by a teaching assistant.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Second chance

A PhD student who was given no opportunity to repeat his final exam when he failed on his first try after 16 months of course work complained to our Office that he had hit a dead end in the university’s appeal process.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Teachable moment

After a teacher-in-charge kept a student out of class for more than two hours over an incident, the student’s mother complained to us about the board’s response to her concerns.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Better, not late

The mother of a kindergarten student with special needs complained that her son’s bus was repeatedly late and that he had once been dropped off at the wrong address.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

The safer way

The mother of a Grade 4 student was concerned for her son’s safety because he had to cross a busy intersection on his walk to school.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

No place like home

A mother of a teenage boy with autism sought our Office’s help after her son was restricted to 45 minutes of school per day due to behavioural issues.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Cars curbed

A woman complained to us after trying for months to get a school board to respond to her safety concerns about vehicles regularly driving up onto a curb on school property near an entrance for young children.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Back in action

An Everest College student who was away from the school on medical leave when it abruptly closed was turned down for assistance in enrolling in a new program because his college record did not list him as an active student at the time of the closure.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Too far to go

A mother who had been commuting two hours every day to attend classes at an Everest College campus applied for funding to resume her studies elsewhere after the college closed.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Buy the book

A student who bought $1,000 worth of textbooks for her studies at the suddenly-closed Everest College complained that foot-dragging by officials at the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities caused her to miss a deadline to receive a 60% refund on the books, which were now worthless to her.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Pressed for cash

A college student who was taking “compressed” courses over the summer questioned why she didn’t qualify for full-time OSAP funding, as her college had previously determined that her compressed course load made her eligible.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

No answer

A woman on a waiting list for a popular, limited-enrolment college program called our Office for help when she could not get any information from the college about whether she had been accepted.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Painful delay

A woman who was seriously injured in a car accident complained that she waited seven months to receive her application for ODSP benefits.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Held at the border

A mother whose support payments from her ex-husband were collected through an enforcement agency in the U.S. complained that the FRO would not release any of it to her because it didn’t have the necessary documentation from a U.S. court.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Follow the money

A mother of two complained that FRO officials had not done enough to collect the more than $30,000 in support owed by her ex-husband, even though they knew where he worked.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

An arresting mistake

A father contacted us from jail after he was arrested for failing to pay child support arrears to the Family Responsibility Office.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Justice delayed

An inmate complained that he had sat in jail for days after becoming eligible for parole because a parole hearing had not been scheduled for him.

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November 8, 2016

8 November 2016

Best defence

A senior who was charged with threatening police complained that Legal Aid Ontario told him he was no longer eligible for their services after the Crown decided it would not seek to put him in jail if convicted.

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October 19, 2016

19 October 2016

Outside the zone

A father contacted us when the principal at his daughter’s school told him she could no longer attend the school, since the family lived outside the catchment area.

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September 30, 2016

30 September 2016

Uncredited

A man complained to us that he received a water bill and a late payment penalty even though he had a $600 credit with the utility. Our staff contacted the municipality and discovered that the man’s original account had been closed and a new account had been set up without the credit being transferred over.

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August 31, 2016

31 August 2016

Rental funding issues

A woman applied for Ontario Works benefits and was told she qualified for $1,850 to cover the first and last month's rent payments for an apartment she was moving into in August.

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August 31, 2016

31 August 2016

A matter of exposure

A student complained that one of his female classmates was refused entry into class for having her shoulders exposed.

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August 31, 2016

31 August 2016

Entry Prohibited

A woman complained to us after she and her husband received a ‘Notice of Prohibition of Entry’ from a board in October 2012, with no end date or written rationale provided.

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July 29, 2016

29 July 2016

A processing predicament

A woman complained to us after her acceptance into a university program through the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC), was somehow not processed, meaning she lost her spot and was put on a wait list.

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July 29, 2016

29 July 2016

No parking

A ​woman who was working temporarily in Ontario and renting a house with no private parking complained to us when the municipality denied her a street parking permit because her vehicle had out-of-province plates.

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June 30, 2016

30 June 2016

Taking the long way home

A mother felt that her daughter's school board didn't follow its own rules after she tried to appeal a change to her daughter's school bus route, which effectively doubled the amount of time her daughter spent on the bus.

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May 31, 2016

31 May 2016

Bus stop safety concerns

A parent complained to our office after a school board decided to move their child's bus stop 300 metres to a busier intersection.

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April 29, 2016

29 April 2016

Clarifying our jurisdiction

A town clerk contacted our office after the local council, which was considering establishing a code of conduct, expressed the view that it did not need to appoint an Integrity Commissioner, because any complaints related to the code of conduct could be forwarded to the Ombudsman for review.

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April 29, 2016

29 April 2016

A learning experience

A would-be Bachelor of Education student complained that he was denied admission because he included a one-on-one teaching experience in his application - he said the university did not make it clear that he should not do so.

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April 29, 2016

29 April 2016

Clarifying the process

A parent complained to our office after the school board looked into her conflict-of-interest complaint about two trustees who participated in decisions to close a local high school.

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March 31, 2016

31 March 2016

Rural bus route dilemma

A woman contacted our Office when she discovered the school board would only bus her granddaughter to a school that was more than twice as far away as the next closest option.

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March 31, 2016

31 March 2016

Denied assistance

A homeless teenager who could not live with either parent was denied assistance through Ontario Works and was not provided with anything in writing about how to appeal the decision.

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February 29, 2016

29 February 2016

Calculated distance

We received a complaint that several students in the same neighbourhood were deemed ineligible for busing despite believing they lived within the school's distance requirements policy, and that the board would not provide the walk distance calculation to the complainant or other parents.

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February 29, 2016

29 February 2016

Lack of clear mechanism

We received complaints of alleged violations of the councillor code of conduct in a township.

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January 29, 2016

29 January 2016

Home school solution

A teenage boy with autism who was only permitted to attend class for 45 minutes a day due to aggression issues was refusing to return to school because of an incident when police were called.

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December 31, 2015

31 December 2015

In need of a space

A primary school student with special needs was put on a waiting list for placement in a support program for children with autism. The boy's mother was told that a spot was unlikely to become available soon. Concerned that her child's needs were not being met, she escalated her concerns with the school board and then called our Office.

Topics include:Les sujets incluent:

November 30, 2015

30 November 2015

Improving busing services

The mother of a kindergartner with special needs contacted the Office with concerns about busing services.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

A sign of relief

A mother was concerned about the lack of support and funding for her 19-year-old son, who has autism and aggressive behavioural issues. He had recently been taken to hospital by police after an incident when he became agitated and violent.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Burden of proof

A woman turned to the Ombudsman for help when she had trouble renewing her Ontario Health Insurance Plan coverage. She had been living with friends and was struggling to provide proof that she was an Ontario resident so she could renew her OHIP card before it expired on September 30.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Electrifying error

A woman was frustrated and confused by a dramatic increase in her electricity bills after her meter was changed in August 2013 – from $244 that July, to $403 in August, and up to $1,700 in January 2014.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Overbill overkill

A farmer was concerned about the high electricity bills he received for the first six months of 2014, even though his corn dryer – the machine on his farm using the highest amount of electricity – wasn’t in use. His bills were close to $9,000, including $843 in delivery charges on $112 worth of electricity.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Handling with care

The aunt and uncle of a 16-year-old boy with Down Syndrome needed help finding the boy a place to live after his mother died of cancer. They were concerned that they would not be able to care for him because they lived 270 kilometres away, both worked odd hours, and, due to their age, wouldn’t be able to look after him on a long-term basis.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Pearly rights

A woman whose teeth had been damaged as a result of physical abuse by her partner years earlier contacted the Ombudsman for help in obtaining funds to have them fixed.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Insuring a house is in order

Three months after his partner died, a widower contacted us because he had not received the coroner’s report, despite writing the local coroner’s office twice. His partner had died of what appeared to be a drug overdose and he needed the coroner’s report to obtain life insurance payments.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Wrong, wrong, wrong

A woman complained to the Ombudsman in May 2013 that her ex-husband owed $46,000 in spousal support and the FRO was not enforcing a court order that he pay it.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Labour pain

A woman came to us after she could not reach her ODSP case worker for two months. The woman was receiving Employment Insurance benefits of $295 per week, which were deducted from her monthly ODSP cheque of $1,842, but they had ended two months earlier. Despite this, the ODSP continued to take deductions from her cheque.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Return to sender, address unknown

A man contacted our Office in frustration when the Ministry repeatedly sent mail to his address for a former tenant. He had returned the envelopes several times with a note stating “this person does not reside at this address,” but the Ministry mail did not stop.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Good medicine

A woman who was experiencing a third occurrence of HER2-positive breast cancer was denied funding by the Ministry for the chemotherapy drug Kadcyla, although it was prescribed by her oncologist. The Ministry would fund the drug for women experiencing a second occurrence of the disease, but not a third – despite scientific evidence that women with third and even fourth occurrences did benefit from the drug.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Lost in the mail

A 62-year-old woman with Crohn’s disease required infusions every eight weeks at a cost of $4,542.76 per treatment. The woman’s private insurance covered 80% of the costs, while the Trillium Drug Program reimbursed her for the remainder, but she was reaching the lifetime maximum for her private insurance coverage and it was about to end.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Failure to communicate

After the removal of a benign brain tumour, a woman in her 20s suffered a stroke that left her unsteady on her feet, needing assistance to use the bathroom, and with speech difficulties. She had to be hospitalized several times and was placed in the complex care unit of a local hospital for four months.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

No time to lose

An inmate was told after a colonoscopy that he likely had bowel cancer and would need surgery immediately – within a week. However, the jail’s doctor told him the facility had no paperwork from the specialist, and it would be up to four weeks before he could even get an appointment for surgery.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Tuition restitution

A student from outside of Canada, who was married to a Canadian citizen, chose to enter the country on an international student visa because it would be processed faster than her spousal visa.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Past the due date

The mother of a young man with significant mental health problems came to the Ombudsman because her son, who was receiving ODSP benefits, had been threatened with eviction from his group home because his rent had not been paid via ODSP.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Crisis of care

The family of a 69-year-old woman with developmental disabilities contacted the Ombudsman because they could no longer care for her. She was in hospital after she was assaulted at her day program, but would have nowhere to live after she was discharged.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Misplaced identity

A new driver complained to our Office after waiting six months for his permanent driver’s licence. He had passed the written test and turned over his Ontario-issued government photo ID to ServiceOntario, expecting a replacement card in the mail, but he never received it.

 

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

New drug, new hope

After a woman was denied funding for a drug to treat neuropathic pain, her husband came to the Ombudsman for help. The woman has a rare neurological disease and her condition, which is considered palliative, means she has considerable muscle and nerve pain. One of the drugs that helped her pain, Sativex, was only approved for patients with multiple sclerosis, or palliative cancer patients with refractory pain.

 

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Excruciating wait

An inmate had been waiting for months to have a wisdom tooth extracted and was in severe pain, to the point where he had fainted and had to be sent to hospital.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Settling an account

A man contacted our Office because he suspected the Family Responsibility Office had miscalculated the amount he owed for child and spousal support by almost $3,800. He had written the FRO three times in the past 18 months, but it did not acknowledge his letters or adjust his account.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Your call is important

A 65-year-old man had his driver’s licence suspended in May 2014 after hospital staff reported to the Ministry of Transportation that he had suffered a fall that knocked him unconscious. After this incident, the man provided the Ministry with letters from three different doctors confirming he was in good health, but two months later, his licence was still suspended.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Going the distance

The owner of a home for adults with mental health issues contacted the Ombudsman, frustrated that he couldn’t get ODSP or Developmental Services Ontario (DSO) to provide funding to take one of his residents to her cancer treatments.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

A matter of time

After signing up for “Back on Track,” a remedial program for people convicted of impaired driving, a man phoned the program to book a one-hour assessment interview. He was given the choice of several time slots. He arrived at 3:30 on the appointed day, believing he was half an hour early for the 4 p.m. slot. Instead, he was told the interview had actually been booked for 3 p.m.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Way out west

A single mother complained to the Ombudsman that she hadn’t received child support payments in six months, despite her daughter, a post-secondary student, still living at home. The father lived in B.C., and as long as the daughter attended school and lived with her mother, he was required to pay monthly support payments.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Rehab reset

A mother complained to the Ombudsman after she was forced to pay $7,000 for a spot for her adult daughter in a residential treatment program for women with substance abuse issues.

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July 28, 2015

28 July 2015

Bullied and baffled

A mother contacted us in frustration because she couldn’t get help for her nine-year-old daughter, who had been severely bullied and injured at school, and was expressing thoughts of self-harm.

 

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June 23, 2014

23 June 2014

Deadline Driven

A driver who suffered what he believed to be a seizure in April 2013 was diagnosed by a neurologist and, as required by the Ministry of Transportation, had his licence suspended pending a medical review. On October 28, 2013, his doctor faxed documentation to the Ministry to prove that he had been seizure-free for six months, and thus eligible to have his licence reinstated.

 

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