Find your Senator and share your views on important issues.
Establishes the automobile sales protection act
(D, IP) Senate District
| Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE | |
|---|---|
| Jan 03, 2018 | referred to judiciary |
| Mar 20, 2017 | referred to judiciary |
(D) Senate District
Current Committee: Senate Judiciary Law Section: Personal Property Law Laws Affected: Ren Art 12 §§550 & 551 to be Art 13 §§600 & 601, add Art 12 §§550 - 552, Pers Prop L Versions Introduced in 2015-2016 Legislative Session: S5484
Establishes the automobile sales protection act; provides for a 3 day cooling off period after the purchase of a used car bought at a dealership.
BILL NUMBER: S5275 TITLE OF BILL : An act to amend the personal property law, in relation to establishing the automobile sales protection act PURPOSE : This bill will provide a three-day cooling off period for used vehicle sales. SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS : Section 1: Amends Article 12 and sections 500 and 551 of the personal property law, to change the number to article 13 and sections 600 and 601, respectively, and a new article 12 is added titled the "Automobile Sales Protection Act," with the following provisions: § 550: Auto purchasers may return a used vehicle at any time for any reason to a dealership within three days of driving the vehicle off the lot. Returning the vehicle will result in a full refund of the purchase price, cancellation of any financing, a return of the trade-in or the trade-in's fair market private sale value. The dealer must return the trade-in if it is still available. The cooling off period is cancelled immediately and the sale becomes final if the
buyer either (1) damages the vehicle in any way, (2) materially alters or modifies the vehicle in any way, or (3) drives the vehicle more than 250 miles. § 551: The Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles will establish and distribute a disclosure statement that informs purchasers of used motor vehicles of their right to a three-day cooling off period. The dealer must distribute this form to the consumer, and both the consumer and dealer must sign it. § 552: Any prevailing plaintiff under this article is entitled to reasonable attorney's fees to be paid by the defendant. Section 2: This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law; provided that, effective immediately, the commissioner of motor vehicles is authorized to take any actions necessary to implement the provisions of this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be taken on or before such date. EXISTING LAW : Under current law, no cooling off period exists for automobile purchases. JUSTIFICATION A cooling off period exists for many transactions, but not for motor vehicles. High-pressure sales environments at auto dealerships can result in consumers agreeing to sales and financing terms that they don't necessarily want and can regret upon finalizing a sale. Not having adequate time to review contracts and financing terms can confuse consumers and also results in consumers agreeing to terms that aren't necessarily in their best interest. Providing a cooling off period for new cars poses legitimate concerns, including the fact that the car loses thousands of dollars of value the moment it drives off the lot. The concern of value loss does not generally apply to used cars; providing a cooling off period allows the consumer to utilize the vehicle immediately, simultaneously deters fraud by bad actors, and allows consumers a reasonable timeframe to analyze their retail installment contract/loan and all the terms of the sale before finalizing their decision to purchase. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY : S.5484B (Savino) of 2015- referred to Judiciary Committee S.5484B (Savino) of 2016- referred to Judiciary Committee FISCAL IMPLICATIONS : None. LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS None. EFFECTIVE DATE : This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law; provided that, effective immediately, the commissioner of motor vehicle is authorized to take any actions necessary to implement the provisions of this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be taken on or before such date.
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 5275 2017-2018 Regular Sessions I N S E N A T E March 20, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sens. SAVINO, KLEIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary AN ACT to amend the personal property law, in relation to establishing the automobile sales protection act THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Article 12 and sections 550 and 551 of the personal proper- ty law, as renumbered by chapter 792 of the laws of 1986, are renumbered article 13 and sections 600 and 601, respectively, and a new article 12 is added to read as follows: ARTICLE 12 AUTOMOBILE SALES PROTECTION ACT SECTION 550. COOLING-OFF PERIOD FOR ALL USED CAR SALES MADE AT DEALER- SHIPS. 551. COOLING-OFF PERIOD DISCLOSURE. 552. ATTORNEY'S FEES. § 550. COOLING-OFF PERIOD FOR ALL USED CAR SALES MADE AT DEALERSHIPS. 1. PURCHASERS OF USED VEHICLES AT CAR DEALERS SHALL HAVE A THREE DAY COOLING-OFF PERIOD TO BEGIN AT THE CLOSE OF THE SALE, WHEN THE PURCHASER TAKES THE VEHICLE OFF THE LOT. THIS COOLING-OFF PERIOD SHALL NOT APPLY TO PURCHASES OF NEW VEHICLES. DURING THIS PERIOD, THE CONSUMER MAY RETURN THE USED VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AT ANY TIME, FOR ANY REASON, FOR A FULL REFUND OF THE PURCHASE PRICE, CANCELLATION OF ANY FINANCING, AND A RETURN OF THEIR TRADE-IN, OR ALTERNATIVELY, THE TRADE-IN'S FAIR MARKET PRIVATE SALE VALUE. THE DEALER MUST RETURN THE TRADE-IN IF IT IS STILL AVAILABLE. 2. THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO: (A) ANY USED VEHICLE THAT IS DAMAGED IN ANY WAY DURING THE COOLING-OFF PERIOD, AT WHICH TIME THE SALE SHALL BE DEEMED FINAL; (B) ANY USED VEHICLE THAT IS MATERIALLY ALTERED OR MODIFIED; OR EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10494-01-7 S. 5275 2 (C) ANY USED VEHICLE THAT IS OPERATED MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED FIFTY MILES DURING THE COOLING-OFF PERIOD. § 551. COOLING-OFF PERIOD DISCLOSURE. 1. THE COMMISSIONER OF MOTOR VEHICLES SHALL ESTABLISH AND DISTRIBUTE A DISCLOSURE STATEMENT INFORMING PURCHASERS OF USED MOTOR VEHICLES OF THEIR RIGHTS PURSUANT TO THIS ARTI- CLE. 2. PRIOR TO THE DELIVERY OF ANY USED MOTOR VEHICLE PURCHASED FROM A DEALER, SUCH DEALER SHALL PROVIDE THE PURCHASER WITH THE DISCLOSURE STATEMENT ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION, AND BOTH THE DEALER AND THE PURCHASER SHALL SIGN SUCH STATEMENT. § 552. ATTORNEY'S FEES. ANY PREVAILING PLAINTIFF UNDER THIS ARTICLE SHALL BE ENTITLED TO REASONABLE ATTORNEY'S FEES TO BE PAID BY THE DEFENDANT. § 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law; provided that, effective immediately, the commission- er of motor vehicles is authorized to take any actions necessary to implement the provisions of this act on its effective date on or before such date.
Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.
Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.
Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.
