Canada ELD Certification Process: What You Need to Know

Back on June 12^th, Canada’s mandate for commercial vehicles to use Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs), took effect. The federal government and provincial regulators previously announced that enforcement of the mandate will happen slowly and within time. It was agreed upon, within all entities across Canada’s provinces and territories, that the enforcement of the ELD mandate, with penalty, would begin June 2022.

Now, frustration is being experienced amongst carriers because of the lack of a large roster of approved ELDs. ELDs are slowly starting to emerge from Canada’s third-party certification process. Pedigree Technologies recently became the fourth ELD certified to run in Canada, as well as, Hutch Systems, Diesel Tech Industries and Assured Tracking, reported by Freightwaves.

What are the requirements for existing ELDs?

ELDs are required to go through a review process by one of three certifying bodies, which then are accredited by Transport Canada. Besides the Canadian hours-of-service regulations that they must follow, the ELDs also have to meet detailed technical requirements and testing procedures used by the certifying bodies.

“The Canada ELD certification process was very rigorous and detailed,” Joshua DeCock, Pedigree’s vice president of product management, told Freightwaves. DeCock also mentioned that part of the reason he thinks ELD manufacturers are running into issues with certification, is the differences between Transport Canada’s and the third-party certification bodies have regarding the technical requirements and testing procedures. All of that being said, DeCock says they have had a good experience working with FPInnovations, one of the three certifying bodies ELDs have the ability to use when going through the review process and will continue to seek additional ELD certifications.

Canadian officials reasoning for the rigorous certification requirements is ensuring that ELDs on the market are less susceptible to manipulation. The U.S. on the other hand, does it a little differently, as they self-certify their devices. If you would like to learn more about the Canada ELD Certification or how this impacts you, contact our team today!