Updated October 3, 2026 · DF Property Management
Who regulates elevators in Ontario
Elevators, escalators and other lifts are “elevating devices” under the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000 and its Elevating Devices regulation (O. Reg. 209/01). The Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) administers the rules: it licenses devices, registers contractors, inspects equipment and can order a device out of service.
The owner's core obligations
- Licence every device. Each elevating device needs a TSSA licence, renewed annually by the owner. The licence must be posted in the elevator car, next to the device, or where TSSA directs.
- Keep details current. Changes to the information on the licence — such as a change of owner — must be reported to TSSA, generally within 10 days. This matters when you buy a building.
- Use a registered contractor. Maintenance and repair must be done by an elevating devices contractor registered with TSSA, using certified mechanics.
- Maintain the device. Maintenance must follow the regulation and the adopted code, with a maintenance control program for each device.
- Keep the logbook. Each device has a logbook recording maintenance, repairs and replacements. It stays with the device regardless of who the owner or contractor is.
- Act on orders. Comply with TSSA inspection orders by the deadlines given, and keep proof.
Inspections and tests
TSSA carries out periodic inspections on a risk-based schedule. Frequency depends on factors such as the device's past inspection results, its age, the building type, the number of floors and the maintenance contractor's safety record. A clean record generally means less frequent inspections.
Separately, your maintenance contractor performs periodic safety tests required by the code — typically an annual test of safety devices and a more extensive full-load test at longer intervals, commonly every five years. Testing can take most of a day per car. Plan it, and tell tenants well in advance.
Major alterations — a controller replacement or full modernization — generally require design submission to TSSA and an acceptance inspection before the device returns to service.
The maintenance contract
For most owners, the elevator maintenance contract is one of the largest and longest service agreements in the building. Read it carefully before signing or renewing.
| Clause | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Scope | Full maintenance (parts and labour) or examination-only (“oil and grease”) with repairs extra |
| Exclusions | Obsolete parts, vandalism, hoistway components, cabs, door equipment |
| Hours on site | Minimum maintenance visits and time per device per month |
| Callback response | Response time for entrapments and outages, after-hours rates |
| Term and renewal | Length, automatic renewal, notice window to cancel |
| Price escalation | Annual increases and how they're calculated |
| Reporting | Access to the logbook, callback history and test reports |
Automatic renewal clauses with short cancellation windows are common. Diary the notice date the day you sign. If you're buying a building, the elevator contract is one of the first documents to review — it often transfers with the property.
Modernization planning
Elevator controllers and machines typically last 20–30 years before reliability falls off and parts become hard to find. A modernization is a large, slow project, so it belongs in your capital plan years ahead.
- Get an independent condition report. An elevator consultant who doesn't sell equipment can tell you whether a modernization is due or whether targeted upgrades will do.
- Tender the work. Specifications written by a consultant let several contractors price the same scope.
- Plan for downtime. Each car can be out of service for weeks. In a single-elevator building, that means a temporary service plan: stair-climbing assistance, grocery delivery help, temporary relocation for tenants who can't manage stairs.
- Look at non-proprietary equipment. Some controllers can only be serviced by the original manufacturer, which limits future contract competition.
Modernization costs can be eligible capital expenditures for an above-guideline rent increase application, so keep the consultant's report, tender documents and invoices together.
Outages and tenants
Elevator reliability has been a policy issue in Ontario for years, especially in older Toronto towers, and owners should expect scrutiny. Practical steps:
- Tell tenants immediately — notices in the lobby, on each floor and through your tenant portal or text alerts, with an expected return-to-service time.
- Know who needs help. A voluntary list of tenants with mobility needs lets you check on them during outages. The Human Rights Code duty to accommodate applies.
- Push the contractor. Track callback response times and parts lead times. Escalate in writing.
- Post updates. In Toronto, RentSafeTO requires planned and unplanned service disruptions to be posted on the tenant notification board.
- Consider compensation. Prolonged loss of a service can support a tenant application for a rent abatement at the Landlord and Tenant Board. A proactive approach is usually cheaper.
Reading the numbers
You don't need to be an elevator mechanic to manage a contractor. Ask for, and review regularly:
- Callback history — the number of service calls per car per month, and the causes. Repeated door faults or levelling problems on one car point to a maintenance or equipment issue.
- Time on site — compare logged maintenance hours with what the contract promises.
- Entrapments — every one should be logged with response time and cause.
- Open deficiencies — from TSSA inspections and the contractor's own tests, with dates for correction.
Rising callbacks on an ageing car are often the first sign that a modernization belongs in the next three to five years, not the next ten.
Single-elevator buildings
Many mid-rise rental buildings across the GTA — six to ten storeys, built in the 1950s and 1960s along main streets and around transit — have one elevator. There's no backup. For these buildings, maintenance quality matters even more: prioritize a contract with strong callback response terms, keep critical spare parts identified, and plan modernization work with a detailed tenant support plan well before the car comes out of service.
How we manage elevators
For buildings under our apartment building management, we track licence renewals and TSSA orders, review the logbook and callback history every month, and hold contractors to the terms of the contract. We plan annual and five-year testing with tenant notices, and we bring in an independent consultant when a modernization is on the horizon.