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. He told us the person at the counter was unable to provide services in French and did not try to find a French-speaking colleague to help. Our staff …
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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.
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. He finally hung up in frustration, called back and chose …
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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.
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. Our staff contacted the administrative services of the Superior Court to assess the lack of services in French and to …
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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.
Website faux pas
A French-speaking woman sought our help after she encountered difficulties with the website of the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office. Not only was the French version of the site not equivalent to the English version, it also had sections in English. We contacted the manager of the organization, …
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A French-speaking woman sought our help after she encountered difficulties with the website of the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office.
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. We contacted Legal Aid Ontario, which ensured the full translation of the document into French. Learn more about …
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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.
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 …
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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.
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. He was advised by ServiceOntario to contact the Registrar General, whose staff said he would have to submit a …
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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.
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. She complained that each time she brought in the documents they requested, their expectations changed. We …
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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.
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. She went back to the website and filed the application, and alerted the Registrar General of this – but she wound up being charged for two …
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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.
Identity crisis
An elderly woman needed our help with obtaining new identification after she lost her OHIP card, her primary photo ID. She explained that because she was born at home and her birth was never registered, she did not have a birth certificate; nor did she have any immunization records, as her parents …
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An elderly woman needed our help with obtaining new identification after she lost her OHIP card, her primary photo ID.
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. He explained that the family had been homeless for a time during this period, so they were unable to receive renewal notices by mail. When they finally moved …
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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.
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. Over the course of a year, all of the documents she provided to ServiceOntario to show she lived in the province were …
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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.
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. She said miscommunication by ServiceOntario staff about how she should go about amending the boys’ long …
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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.
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. He complained he could not provide proof of his birth. He believed he had been born at home, as there were no …
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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.
Registrar General delays: Faster Service Guaranteed
The Special Ombudsman Response Team's probe of complaints of delays in processing of registrations of births, deaths marriages and name changes found improvements since the previous Ombudsman’s investigation in 2004. In 2007, the government announced guaranteed 15-day service for post-1991 events. …
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The Special Ombudsman Response Team's probe of complaints of delays in processing of registrations of births, deaths marriages and name changes found an improvements since the previous Ombudsman’s investigation in 2004.
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 …
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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.
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 …
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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.
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 …
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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.
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. When his mother followed up …
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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.
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. She tried to …
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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.