The business closed or went bankrupt, can I get my money back?
In the United States? This answer is Québec and Canadian law. The US side of this site answers different questions, state by state: different law, and different coverage. Go to the US side
Short answer
Two separate routes exist, and neither guarantees a full refund. In a bankruptcy, s. 124 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act provides that a creditor who does not prove their claim with the trustee is not entitled to share in any distribution; s. 136 sets the order of priority of payment, subject to the rights of secured creditors. Separately, the Office de la protection du consommateur writes on its Compensation page that "Compensation is available where a merchant has provided a security to the Office", including following a business closure or bankruptcy.
In detail
A bankruptcy changes the consumer's role: they become a creditor. Section 124 draws the direct consequence · without a proof of claim filed, no share. Subsection (2) states that a claim is proved "by delivering to the trustee a proof of claim in the prescribed form", and subsection (4) that it contains a detailed statement of account.
The order in which the money is distributed is set out in s. 136(1), which opens with "Subject to the rights of secured creditors". A consumer who paid a deposit is generally an unsecured creditor: they come after secured creditors in that order, which is why a partial refund, or none, is a possible outcome. The precise time limits for filing a proof of claim are not in s. 124: they belong to the Bankruptcy and Insolvency General Rules and to the trustee's notices, which were not read here.
The second route does not go through the trustee. The Office de la protection du consommateur administers a compensation mechanism that depends on a security provided by the merchant. Its page lists three situations: a business closure or bankruptcy; a tourism service provider (air carrier, hotel, cruise line) that failed to deliver the services purchased from a travel agent; a judgment rendered against a merchant that failed to abide by a law of which the Office oversees the enforcement.
A third possibility exists where payment was made by credit card following a distance contract: s. 54.13 of the Consumer Protection Act gives the merchant 15 days to refund after cancellation, and s. 54.14 allows a chargeback request to the card issuer within 60 days of the default.
What to document
The invoice or contract, with its date. The method of payment · a bank or card statement carries a date no one disputes. Exchanges with the merchant, with their timestamps. The condition of the goods when the problem appeared: a photograph carries its date; a recollection does not.
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Official sources
- art. 124(1) de la Loi sur la faillite et l'insolvabilité (L.R.C. 1985, ch. B-3) · read on 2026-08-09
Related questions
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What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.