80 | 2024 Membership Directory (6) To require any dealer to assent prospectively to a release, assignment, novation, waiver, or estoppel which would relieve any person from liability to be imposed by law or to require any controversy between a dealer and a franchisor to be referred to any person other than the duly constituted courts of the state or the United States if such referral would be binding upon the dealer, provided that this Code section shall not prevent any dealer from entering into a valid release agreement with the franchisor; (7) To fail to observe good faith in any aspect of dealings between the franchisor and the dealer; (8) To deny any dealer the right of free association with any other dealer for any lawful purposes; (9) To engage in any predatory practice or discrimination against any dealer; (10) To propose or make any material change in any franchise agreement without giving the dealer written notice by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery of such change at least 60 days prior to the effective date of such change; (11) To cancel a franchise or to take any adverse action against a dealer based in whole or in part on the failure of the dealer to meet the reasonable performance criteria established by the franchisor in light of existing circumstances, including but not limited to current and forecasted economic conditions or when that failure is due to the failure of the franchisor to supply, within a reasonable period of time, new motor vehicles ordered by or allocated to the dealer; (12) To offer to sell or lease or to sell or lease any new motor vehicle or accessory to any dealer at a lower actual price therefor than the actual price offered to any other dealer for the same model vehicle similarly equipped or same accessory or to use any device, including but not limited to an incentive, sales promotion plan, or other similar program, which results in a lower actual price of a vehicle or accessory being offered to one dealer and which is not offered to other dealers of vehicles of the same line-make or the same accessory; (13) To conduct an audit, investigation, or inquiry of any dealer or dealership as to any activity, transaction, conduct, or other occurrence which took place more than one year prior to such audit, investigation, or inquiry or to base any decision adverse to the dealer or dealership on any activity, transaction, conduct, or other occurrence which took place more than one year prior to such decision or which took place more than one year prior to such audit, investigation, or inquiry or to apply the results of an audit, investigation, or inquiry to any activity, transaction, conduct, or other occurrence which took place more than one year prior to such audit, investigation, or inquiry. If the franchisor has reason to believe that fraudulent or intentionally false claims have been submitted, the franchisor may extend the audit, investigation, or inquiry period beyond the time periods provided in this paragraph; provided, however, that in no event shall the time period be extended beyond four years prior to such audit, investigation, or inquiry; (14) To charge back to, deduct from, or reduce any account of a dealer or any amount of money owed to a dealer by a franchisor any amount of money the franchisor alleges is owed to such franchisor by such dealer as a result of an audit, investigation, or inquiry of such dealer or based upon information obtained by the franchisor through other resources which relates to any transaction that occurred more than one year prior to notice to the dealer of the charge back or deduction, and only if the franchisor can show by a preponderance of evidence that the transaction was fraudulent, intentionally and materially false, not reasonably substantiated, or did not follow the franchisor’s written repair or claim submission requirements. A franchisor shall not change back to, deduct from, or reduce any account of a dealer or any amount owed to a dealer based solely on such dealer’s clerical error that does not put into question the legitimacy of the claim. If a claim is rejected for a clerical error, then the dealer may resubmit a corrected claim within 30 days. If a franchisor alleges that a dealer owes such franchisor any amount of money as a result of an audit, investigation, or inquiry,
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==