Do bin rental companies need a City of Ottawa business licence?

No: there is no bin-rental, disposal-bin or waste-hauler category on the City of Ottawa's list of businesses that require a municipal licence. We found no City rule requiring bin rental companies to hold a municipal business licence.

That does not mean companies operate without any permissions. Ontario's waste transportation rules say that unless exempt, environmental permissions for waste transportation systems may include an Environmental Compliance Approval (ECA) or a registration in the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry (EASR), and construction debris is waste under those rules. Whether a particular company holds an ECA, an EASR registration or qualifies for an exemption is something this site does not check and does not verify for any company in the Ottawa Construction Network directory.

What this means for you: ask any company that replies to your request whether it holds an ECA or an EASR registration for the waste it will be hauling. The Ontario government's waste transportation permissions page describes what those permissions cover. The City's list of licensed businesses does include a Salvage Yard category, but we found no bin-rental or hauler category on that list.

A few other things worth confirming in writing before you commit: what the company's cancellation terms are, how and when your card is charged, and what the refused or surcharged items are for your load. Under the Consumer Protection Act, 2002, a future performance agreement over the prescribed amount must be in writing, and you have up to one year to cancel if you do not receive a copy that meets the Act's requirements.