Bill Text: FL S1664 | 2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Vehicle Recalls
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2017-05-05 - Died in Transportation [S1664 Detail]
Download: Florida-2017-S1664-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2017 SB 1664
By Senator Braynon
35-01330-17 20171664__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to vehicle recalls; amending s.
3 320.64, F.S.; prohibiting a licensee from violating
4 the Consumer Automotive Recall Safety Act and rules
5 adopted pursuant to the act; amending s. 320.696,
6 F.S.; requiring a licensee to compensate a motor
7 vehicle dealer for certain recall repairs and costs
8 directly associated with the disposal of certain
9 hazardous materials; creating s. 320.92, F.S.;
10 providing a short title; defining terms; prohibiting
11 certain motor vehicle dealers or rental car companies
12 to loan, rent, or offer for loan or rent a vehicle
13 subject to recalls under certain circumstances;
14 authorizing the motor vehicle dealer or rental car
15 company, after completing certain temporary repairs,
16 to loan or rent the vehicle under certain
17 circumstances; requiring repairs to recalled vehicles
18 once the remedy becomes available to the motor vehicle
19 dealer or rental car company; requiring the Department
20 of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to include a
21 specified recall disclosure statement on each vehicle
22 registration renewal notice; providing for
23 construction; providing an effective date.
24
25 WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes that over the past 5
26 years, automakers and the National Highway Traffic Safety
27 Administration have issued more recalls on new and used motor
28 vehicles than ever before, and
29 WHEREAS, in 2014, more than 63.8 million vehicles were
30 recalled, and
31 WHEREAS, the rate of vehicle recalls has grown
32 exponentially during the past 5 years as 51 million recalls were
33 issued in 2015, 22 million recalls were issued in 2013, and 16.2
34 million were issued in 2012, and
35 WHEREAS, the number of recalls in 2014 is a 190 percent
36 increase from 2013 and a 293.8 percent increase from 2012, and
37 WHEREAS, while federal motor vehicle safety standards are
38 more demanding now than ever before and new vehicles sold today
39 are the safest in history, the exponential growth of recalls
40 issued on motor vehicles has caused confusion and apathy for far
41 too many motor vehicle owners, and
42 WHEREAS, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety
43 Administration and others, about one-third of all recalled
44 vehicles are never repaired by their owners, and
45 WHEREAS, federal regulations now require most vehicle
46 manufacturers to provide motor vehicle safety recall information
47 applicable to the vehicles they manufacture on the Internet and
48 to the public, and
49 WHEREAS, it is the intent of the Legislature to increase
50 consumer awareness of recall notices on their cars and to ensure
51 that the cars that consumers loan or rent that are subject to
52 recalls have been repaired, and
53 WHEREAS, the Legislature further recognizes that the
54 distribution, sale, and service of new motor vehicles in the
55 state vitally affects the state economy and the public welfare,
56 and
57 WHEREAS, the motor vehicle franchise system assures the
58 consuming public of a well-organized distribution system for the
59 availability and sale of new motor vehicles throughout the
60 state, provides a network of quality warranty, recall, and
61 repair facilities to maintain those vehicles, and creates a
62 cost-effective method for the state to police those systems
63 through the licensing and regulation of private sector
64 franchisors and franchisees, and
65 WHEREAS, state franchise laws require manufacturers to
66 provide reasonable reimbursement to dealers for warranty and
67 recall work, but fail to establish guidelines for compensating
68 franchisee disposal costs associated with hazardous waste
69 generated by repairs on recalled vehicles, and
70 WHEREAS, it is the intent of the Legislature to ensure that
71 motor vehicle dealer franchisees are treated fairly by their
72 franchisors and that motor vehicle dealer franchisees are
73 reasonably compensated for repairs on recalled vehicles, NOW,
74 THEREFORE,
75
76 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
77
78 Section 1. Subsection (41) is added to section 320.64,
79 Florida Statutes, to read:
80 320.64 Denial, suspension, or revocation of license;
81 grounds.—A license of a licensee under s. 320.61 may be denied,
82 suspended, or revoked within the entire state or at any specific
83 location or locations within the state at which the applicant or
84 licensee engages or proposes to engage in business, upon proof
85 that the section was violated with sufficient frequency to
86 establish a pattern of wrongdoing, and a licensee or applicant
87 shall be liable for claims and remedies provided in ss. 320.695
88 and 320.697 for any violation of any of the following
89 provisions. A licensee is prohibited from committing the
90 following acts:
91 (41) Violating the Consumer Automotive Recall Safety Act
92 under s. 320.92 or any rule adopted pursuant to the act.
93
94 A motor vehicle dealer who can demonstrate that a violation of,
95 or failure to comply with, any of the preceding provisions by an
96 applicant or licensee will or can adversely and pecuniarily
97 affect the complaining dealer, shall be entitled to pursue all
98 of the remedies, procedures, and rights of recovery available
99 under ss. 320.695 and 320.697.
100 Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
101 320.696, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
102 320.696 Warranty responsibility.—
103 (1)(a) A licensee shall timely compensate a motor vehicle
104 dealer who performs work to:
105 1. Maintain or repair a licensee’s product under a warranty
106 or maintenance plan, extended warranty, certified pre-owned
107 warranty, or a service contract, issued by the licensee or its
108 common entity, unless issued by a common entity that is not a
109 manufacturer; to
110 2. Fulfill a licensee’s delivery or preparation procedures;
111 or to
112 3. Repair a motor vehicle as a result of a licensee’s or
113 common entity’s recall, or a recall conducted pursuant to 49
114 U.S.C. ss. 30118, 30119, and 30120, including any costs directly
115 associated with the disposal of hazardous materials that are
116 associated with a recall repair; or
117 4. Repair a motor vehicle as a result of a licensee’s or
118 common entity’s campaign service, authorized goodwill,
119 directive, or bulletin.
120 Section 3. Section 320.92, Florida Statutes, is created to
121 read:
122 320.92 Consumer Automotive Recall Safety Act.—
123 (1) This section may be known and cited as the “Consumer
124 Automotive Recall Safety Act.”
125 (2) As used in this section, the term:
126 (a)1. “Manufacturer’s recall” means a recall conducted
127 pursuant to 49 U.S.C. ss. 30118, 30119, and 30120.
128 2. A manufacturer’s recall does not include a service
129 campaign or emission recall when the vehicle manufacturer or the
130 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not issued a
131 recall notice to owners of affected vehicles, pursuant to 49
132 U.S.C. s. 30118.
133 (b) “Motor vehicle dealer” has the same meaning as in s.
134 320.27(1)(c).
135 (c)1. “Recall database” means a database from which an
136 individual may obtain, using a vehicle identification number
137 (VIN), the specific manufacturer recall information relevant to
138 a particular vehicle.
139 2. For a vehicle manufacturer that is not subject to the
140 regulations adopted pursuant to s. 31301 of the federal Moving
141 Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, Pub. L. No. 112-141,
142 a recall database is one of the following:
143 a. The recall data on a vehicle manufacturer’s website for
144 a specific vehicle’s line-make.
145 b. The recall data in a vehicle manufacturer’s internal
146 system that provides information to its franchisees on vehicles
147 subject to recall.
148 c. The recall data in sub-subparagraph a. or sub
149 subparagraph b. that is contained in a commercially available
150 vehicle history system.
151 3. For a vehicle manufacturer that is subject to the
152 regulations adopted pursuant to s. 31301 of the federal Moving
153 Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, Pub. L. No. 112-141,
154 a recall database must include, at a minimum, the recall
155 information required pursuant to 49 C.F.R. s. 573.15.
156 (d) “Recall database report” means a report, specific to a
157 vehicle that is identified by its VIN, containing information
158 obtained from a recall database.
159 (e) “Rental car company” means a person or entity in the
160 business of renting passenger vehicles to the public in this
161 state.
162 (3) No later than 48 hours after receiving a notice of a
163 manufacturer’s recall, or sooner if practicable, a motor vehicle
164 dealer or rental car company with a motor vehicle fleet of 34 or
165 fewer loaner or rental vehicles may not loan, rent, or offer for
166 loan or rent a vehicle subject to that recall until the recall
167 repair has been made.
168 (4) If a recall notification indicates that the remedy for
169 the recall is not immediately available and specifies actions to
170 temporarily repair the vehicle in a manner to eliminate the
171 safety risk that prompted the recall, the motor vehicle dealer
172 or rental car company, after having the repairs completed, may
173 loan or rent the vehicle. Once the remedy for the vehicle
174 becomes available to the motor vehicle dealer or rental car
175 company, the motor vehicle dealer or rental car company may not
176 loan or rent the vehicle until the vehicle has been repaired.
177 (5) The department shall include the following recall
178 disclosure statement on each vehicle registration renewal
179 notice:
180
181 NOTICE: MANY VEHICLES HAVE BEEN RECALLED RECENTLY FOR NEEDED
182 REPAIRS. DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN CHECK TO SEE IF YOUR VEHICLE HAS
183 AN UNREPAIRED MANUFACTURER’S SAFETY RECALL? FOR MOST VEHICLES,
184 MANUFACTURER SAFETY RECALLS ARE REPAIRED FOR FREE. YOU CAN CHECK
185 FOR ANY RECALLS AND HOW TO GET THE RECALL REPAIRED AT
186 WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.
187
188 (6) This section may not be construed to create any legal
189 duty of the motor vehicle dealer, rental car company, or
190 department related to the accuracy, errors, or omissions
191 contained in a recall database report or any legal duty to
192 provide information added to a recall database after the motor
193 vehicle dealer, rental car company, or department obtained the
194 recall database report pursuant to subsections (3), (4), and
195 (5).
196 (7) The rights and remedies provided by this section are
197 cumulative and may not be construed as restricting any right or
198 remedy that is otherwise available.
199 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.
