More collection sites and higher recovery targets are coming as Ontario moves to address tire collection backlogs and disruptions.
September 30, 2026 — Ontario is expanding its tire recycling requirements to improve collection and reduce the number of used tires accumulating at automotive businesses and other collection locations.
Under regulatory amendments announced Sept. 21, the province is increasing the tire management target from 65 percent to 80 percent, effective for 2026 and every year thereafter. The province says the higher target will require tire producers and producer responsibility organizations (PROs) to collect and manage more used tires.
The biggest change for businesses that generate used tires will come in 2027, when the required collection network expands from approximately 4,300 sites to 6,500 across Ontario. The additional 2,200 sites must include at least 220 in Northern Ontario.
What this could mean for collision shops
For shops, the immediate issue is collection reliability. Ontario says the changes are intended to address existing backlogs and improve the reliability of tire collection services for communities and businesses.
The expanded network should provide producers and PROs with more locations to collect used tires, potentially reducing the accumulation of tires at automotive facilities waiting for pickup.
The revised regulation also establishes requirements governing collection sites. Sites must be readily accessible to the public, and non-municipal collection sites must accept tires during normal business hours year-round. Collection sites must also accept tires that remain mounted on rims.
For shops, however, the changes do not mean that every collision repair facility will automatically become a collection site. The obligations are placed primarily on tire producers and the organizations responsible for fulfilling their producer-responsibility obligations.
More accountability for PROs
Beginning in 2027, producer responsibility organizations will have to report their tire collection networks to the province and will face new rules governing changes to collection sites during the year. The amendments also establish rules for shared collection sites.
Ontario is also removing the previous $1-million cap on administrative penalties for certain regulatory contraventions. The province says the change is intended to ensure regulated parties do not benefit financially from non-compliance.
What shops should watch
For collision repairers, dealerships, tire retailers and other businesses handling significant volumes of used tires, the practical question is whether the expanded network translates into faster, more predictable pickups.
The first major test will come in 2027, when the additional collection sites must be in place.
Bottom line: Ontario is putting more responsibility on producers and PROs to collect and manage used tires. For shops that have experienced tire-pickup delays or backlogs, the objective is straightforward: more collection capacity and fewer tires sitting around the shop.