Fire chiefs are on call 24 hours a day throughout the year with a clearly identified vehicle, equipped with all emergency equipment to enable them to get to an emergency scene quickly. Should a benefit be included in their employment income?
After noting the exclusion from “automobile” (and, thus, from the standby charge and operating expense rules) for clearly marked emergency response vehicles, CRA stated:
[A]n emergency response vehicle…is generally considered to be clearly identified if it is readily identifiable by the general public as a police or fire vehicle because of symbols or lettering on the exterior of the vehicle. …
[I]f … a vehicle that does not meet the definition of automobile, there is still a benefit to the employee under paragraph 6(1)(a) where the vehicle is used for personal purposes. The employer must make a reasonable estimate of the fair market value of that benefit for the employee and include it in the employee's income. [T]he amount to be included in income as a benefit for a vehicle that does not meet the definition of automobile is generally less than the amount that results from the computation of an automobile benefit.