Who pays if a roll-off bin cracks my interlock driveway in Kanata?

That is a contract question. We found no City of Ottawa by-law or Ontario rule that assigns responsibility when a bin cracks or chips a driveway, so who pays depends on what your agreement with the bin company says before the bin arrives.

Ask the company two things, and get both answers in writing:

• Does it put boards or planks under the bin where it touches the driveway?
• Who pays if the driveway is damaged, and is that written into the agreement?

If the company will not put its answer in writing, that is worth knowing before you book.

A few placement details belong in the same conversation. Bin companies ask for a level spot clear of overhead wires and branches. Measure the space and ask for the bin's outside dimensions in writing. And if the bin will sit partly on the boulevard or the road, that part is on City land and the City's Temporary Construction-related Encroachment (TCE) permit applies.

The written agreement is also where Ontario's Consumer Protection Act, 2002 comes in. A booking made online is an internet agreement, and the supplier has to deliver a copy in writing. A booking for a later drop-off is a future performance agreement, and over $50 it must be in writing (s.22). Read the damage and liability terms in that copy before you confirm.

If the driveway is interlock in Kanata or anywhere else, the question to ask is the same: what goes under the bin, and who pays if a paver cracks.

Get the damage terms in writing before the drop-off date, not after the bin is down.