Hello! Im asking the wonderful community here for some advice.

Im curious, what do i need to do to be straight and legal?

(im in Quebec, Canada)

I just bought an old car shop, with a lot of tools and 2 car lifts. Its in good shape.

Ive been working on cars in my home garage for 12 years, so i can do just about anything on them.

Can i get a commercial license? What kind of license do i need? What about insurance? Do i get incorporated ? Whats the process? What do i need to do in order to be allowed to put up my big “OPEN” sign up in the window ?

I dont have a high school diploma or DEP diploma. I learned everything on my own (with the help of others)

Thanks!

  • A_Backer@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I’m not sure for Canada, I’m in California and we have something called the Bureau of Automotive Repair, which is where I’m licensed as a professional repair facility with the state even though I am concentrating mostly on the performance aftermarket.

    Also, insurance. Since you’re a legitimate shop, you should get whatever Canada’s version of garagekeeper’s insurance is (there are a lot of people here who just open “shops” without any license or insurance or anything just because they work on their friend’s cars). I have this in addition to my business owner’s policy. It also covers fire or someone who might get hurt at my business, even fraud issues. I know someone who was in a car accident in a customer car and he had to pay out of pocket to replace it.

    Also, check for used oil pickup or disposal, coolant too. You’ll need to comply with local laws depending on what kind of shop you have. If you’ll be having barrels on site you might have to be signed up with a government agency for compliance.

    I’ll always advocate for education but you seem to be fine since you’re in the position to buy a shop. Check your local province or county or city to see if they might have requirements. Cities here in LA country normally require business licenses in addition to professional license, like my BAR license, but I know some local small businesses that have not filed for that and haven’t had issues.