RALEIGH, N.C. -

The North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association applauded Gov. Pat McCrory signing several new motor vehicle franchise law provisions into the books last week.

The signed measure — Senate Bill 717 — covers many areas of the North Carolina Motor Vehicle Dealers and Manufacturers Licensing Law, including:

— Ability of dealers to offer non-manufacturer ancillary products to consumers
— Dealership vendor choice
— Dealership staffing
— Warranty reimbursement
— Protection of dealership customer data

A segment of the signed law that goes into effect Oct. 1 states “nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to preclude a manufacturer from establishing sales contests or promotions that provide or award dealers or consumers rebates or incentives, provided, however, that the manufacturer complies with all of the following conditions.”

Those conditions with respect to manufacturer to consumer rebates and incentives include:

1. Permit all of the manufacturer's franchised dealers in North Carolina to offer the rebate or incentive.

2. Be uniformly applied and administered to all eligible consumers.

With respect to manufacturer to dealer rebates and incentives, the new law states that the rebate or incentive program shall abide by three parts, including:

1. Be based solely on the dealer’s actual or reasonably anticipated sales volume or on a uniform per vehicle sold or leased basis.

2. Be uniformly available, applied, and administered to all of the manufacturer’s franchised dealers in this state.

3. Provide that any of the manufacturer’s franchised dealers in this state may, upon written request, obtain the method or formula used by the manufacturer in establishing the sales volumes for receiving the rebates or incentives and the specific calculations for determining the required sales volumes of the inquiring dealer and any of the manufacturer’s other franchised dealers  located within 75 miles of the inquiring dealer.

According to the new provisions, “Nothing contained in this subdivision shall prohibit a manufacturer from providing assistance or encouragement to a franchised dealer to remodel,  renovate, recondition, or relocate the dealer’s existing facilities, provided that this assistance, encouragement, or rewards are not determined on a per-vehicle basis.

“It is unlawful for any manufacturer to charge or include the cost of any program or policy prohibited under this subdivision in the price of new motor vehicles that the manufacturer sells to its franchised dealers or purchasers located in this state,” the law goes on to state.

The bill received overwhelming support and was approved by a 108-1 vote in the House and a final 42-0 concurrence vote in the Senate.

“North Carolina’s franchised car, truck and motorized RV dealers thank  the General Assembly for their support of Senate Bill 717,” said Omnia Fowler, NCADA chairman and dealer principal at The Modern Automotive Group in Winston-Salem, N.C.

“This legislation further strengthens our state’s franchise law, leveling the playing field between the local dealer and the out-of-state manufacturers,” Fowler continued.

NCADA general counsel and lobbyist John Policastro added, “This important legislation will assist North Carolina’s franchised dealers in their continuing effort to provide the highest quality services to their customers, as well as continue to help our state’s economy grow.”

The complete new legislation can be downloaded here.

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