Signed an inspection contract at the house in Orleans: can I cancel?

A contract signed in person at the property for more than $50 may be a "direct agreement" under Ontario's Consumer Protection Act, 2002, which can give you a 10-day cancellation right after you receive a written copy of the agreement. Whether your inspection contract qualifies depends on how the agreement was formed and what it contains, and that is a question for a lawyer rather than something this site can answer definitively.

The Consumer Protection Act, 2002 deems services supplied under a consumer agreement to be of a reasonably acceptable quality, and any term in the contract that tries to eliminate that protection is void. Beyond that statutory floor, we found no government rule on refunds, report delivery times, or liability-limitation clauses in home inspection contracts, so the enforceability of any specific term in your agreement is genuinely a legal question.

A few things worth checking on your own before you call anyone:

• Does your signed contract include a written copy you received at or after signing? The 10-day window, if it applies, runs from when you receive that copy.
• Does the contract name a cancellation procedure or a notice address? Follow whatever it says while you sort out your rights.

Ontario.ca's consumer complaint page notes that the Ministry may not be able to help with quality complaints beyond the basic guarantees in consumer protection law, or with complaints older than two years. That page is a starting point if a dispute arises later.

Ask a lawyer whether the 10-day right applies to your contract and what notice to give, before the inspection date arrives.