It is unlawful and a violation of this code for any manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, or distributor branch licensed under this code to do, directly or indirectly through an affiliate, any of the following:

(a) Prevent, or attempt to prevent, by contract or otherwise, a dealer from acquiring, adding, or maintaining a sales or service operation for another line-make of motor vehicles at the same or expanded facility at which the dealer currently operates a dealership if the dealer complies with any reasonable facilities and capital requirements of the manufacturer or distributor.

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(b) Require a dealer to establish or maintain exclusive facilities, personnel, or display space if the imposition of the requirement would be unreasonable in light of all existing circumstances, including economic conditions. In any proceeding in which the reasonableness of a facility or capital requirement is an issue, the manufacturer or distributor shall have the burden of proof.

(c) Require, by contract or otherwise, a dealer to make a material alteration, expansion, or addition to any dealership facility, unless the required alteration, expansion, or addition is reasonable in light of all existing circumstances, including economic conditions and advancements in vehicular technology. This subdivision does not limit the obligation of a dealer to comply with any applicable health or safety laws.

(1) A required facility alteration, expansion, or addition shall not be deemed reasonable if it requires that the dealer purchase goods or services from a specific vendor when goods or services of substantially similar kind, quality, and general design concept are available from another vendor. Notwithstanding the prohibitions in this paragraph, a manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate may require the dealer to request approval for the use of alternative goods or services in writing. Approval for these requests shall not be unreasonably withheld, and the request shall be deemed approved if not specifically denied in writing within 20 business days of receipt of the dealer’s written request. This paragraph does not authorize a dealer to impair or eliminate the intellectual property or trademark rights of the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate, or to permit a dealer to erect or maintain signs that do not conform to the intellectual property usage guidelines of the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate. This paragraph shall not apply to a specific good or service if the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate provides the dealer with a lump-sum payment or series of payments toward a substantial portion of the cost of that good or service, if the payment is intended solely to reimburse the dealer for the purchase of the specified good or service.

(2) In any proceeding in which a required facility alteration, expansion, or addition is an issue, the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate shall have the burden of proof.

(3) (A) A required facility alteration, expansion, or addition shall not be deemed reasonable if the facility has been modified within the last 10 years at a cost of more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), and the modification was required, or was made for the purposes of complying with a franchisor‘s brand image program, and was approved by the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate.

(B) This paragraph does not apply to a specific facility alteration, expansion, or addition that is necessary to enable the sale or service of zero-emission or near-zero-emission vehicles, as defined in § 44258 of the Health and Safety Code.

(C) This paragraph does not apply to a specific facility alteration, expansion, or addition involving the exercise of the franchisor’s trademark rights that is necessary to erect or maintain signs or to the use of any trademark.

(D) This paragraph does not apply to a specific facility alteration, expansion, or addition that is necessary to comply with any applicable health or safety laws.

(E) This paragraph does not apply to the installation of specialized equipment that is necessary to service a vehicle offered by a franchisor and available for sale by the franchisee.

(F) This paragraph does not apply to voluntary written agreements signed by both parties between a franchisee and a manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate.

(d) (1) Fail to pay to a dealer, within 90 days of termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal of a franchise, all of the following:

(A) The dealer cost, plus any charges made by the manufacturer or distributor for vehicle distribution or delivery and the cost of any dealer-installed original equipment accessories, less any amount invoiced to the vehicle and paid by the manufacturer or distributor to the dealer, for all new and undamaged vehicles with less than 500 miles in the dealer’s inventory that were acquired by the dealer from the manufacturer, distributor, or another new motor vehicle dealer franchised to sell vehicles of the same line-make, in the ordinary course of business, within 18 months of termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal of the franchise.

(B) The dealer cost for all unused and undamaged supplies, parts, and accessories listed in the manufacturer’s current parts catalog and in their original packaging, except that sheet metal may be packaged in a comparable substitute for the original package.

(C) The fair market value of each undamaged sign owned by the motor vehicle dealer and bearing a common name, trade name, or trademark of the manufacturer or distributor if acquisition of the sign was required or made a condition of participation in an incentive program by the manufacturer or distributor.

(D) The fair market value of all special tools, computer systems, and equipment that were required or made a condition of participation in an incentive program by the manufacturer or distributor that are in usable condition, excluding normal wear and tear.

(E) The dealer costs of handling, packing, loading, and transporting any items or inventory for repurchase by the manufacturer or distributor.

(2) This subdivision does not apply to a franchisor of a dealer of new recreational vehicles, as defined in subdivision (a) of § 18010 of the Health and Safety Code.

(3) This subdivision does not apply to a termination that is implemented as a result of the sale of substantially all of the inventory and fixed assets or stock of a franchised dealership if the dealership continues to operate as a franchisee of the same line-make.

(e) (1) (A) Fail to pay to a dealer of new recreational vehicles, as defined in subdivision (a) of § 18010 of the Health and Safety Code, within 90 days of termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal of a franchise for a recreational vehicle line-make, as defined in Section 3072.5, the dealer cost, plus any charges made by the manufacturer or distributor for vehicle distribution or delivery and the cost of any dealer-installed original equipment accessories, less any amount invoiced to the vehicle and paid by the manufacturer or distributor to the dealer, for a new recreational vehicle when the termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal is initiated by a recreational vehicle manufacturer. This paragraph only applies to new and unused recreational vehicles that do not currently have or have had in the past, material damage, as defined in Section 9990, and that the dealer acquired from the manufacturer, distributor, or another new motor vehicle dealer franchised to sell recreational vehicles of the same line-make in the ordinary course of business within 12 months of the termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal of the franchise.

(B) For those recreational vehicles with odometers, paragraph (1) shall apply to only those vehicles that have no more than 1,500 miles on the odometer, in addition to the number of miles incurred while delivering the vehicle from the manufacturer’s facility that produced the vehicle for delivery to the dealer’s retail location.

(C) Damaged recreational vehicles shall be repurchased by the manufacturer provided there is an offset in value for damages, except recreational vehicles that have or had material damage, as defined in Section 9990, may be repurchased at the manufacturer’s option provided there is an offset in value for damages.

(2) Fail to pay to a dealer of new recreational vehicles, as defined in subdivision (a) of § 18010 of the Health and Safety Code, within 90 days of termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal of a franchise, all of the following:

(A) The dealer cost for all unused and undamaged supplies, parts, and accessories listed in the manufacturer’s current parts catalog and in their original packaging, except that sheet metal may be packaged in a comparable substitute for the original package.

(B) The fair market value of each undamaged sign owned by the motor vehicle dealer and bearing a common name, trade name, or trademark of the manufacturer or distributor if acquisition of the sign was required or made a condition of participation in an incentive program by the manufacturer or distributor.

(C) The fair market value of all special tools, computer systems, and equipment that were required or made a condition of participation in an incentive program by the manufacturer or distributor that are in usable condition, excluding normal wear and tear.

(D) The dealer costs of handling, packing, loading, and transporting any items or inventory for repurchase by the manufacturer or distributor.

(f) (1) Fail, upon demand, to indemnify any existing or former franchisee and the franchisee’s successors and assigns from any and all damages sustained and attorney’s fees and other expenses reasonably incurred by the franchisee that result from or relate to any claim made or asserted by a third party against the franchisee to the extent the claim results from any of the following:

(A) The condition, characteristics, manufacture, assembly, or design of any vehicle, parts, accessories, tools, or equipment, or the selection or combination of parts or components manufactured or distributed by the manufacturer or distributor.

(B) Service systems, procedures, or methods the franchisor required or recommended the franchisee to use if the franchisee properly uses the system, procedure, or method.

(C) Improper use or disclosure by a manufacturer or distributor of nonpublic personal information obtained from a franchisee concerning any consumer, customer, or employee of the franchisee.

(D) Any act or omission of the manufacturer or distributor for which the franchisee would have a claim for contribution or indemnity under applicable law or under the franchise, irrespective of and without regard to any prior termination or expiration of the franchise.

(E) Any act or omission of the franchisee that is the result of the franchisee’s use of a service provided by a digital vendor preselected by a franchisor and the use of that service violates California law. For purposes of this subdivision, a “service provided by a digital vendor” includes any electronic system that manages consumer data or generates consumer notices or documentation.

(2) Require a franchisee to indemnify its franchisor, or any third party, for the actions of the franchisee that were properly made in compliance with a franchisor’s policy, program, or requirement.

(3) This subdivision does not limit, in any way, the existing rights, remedies, or recourses available to any person who purchases or leases vehicles at retail.

(g) (1) Establish or maintain a performance standard, sales objective, or program for measuring a dealer’s sales, service, or customer service performance that may materially affect the dealer, including, but not limited to, the dealer’s right to payment under any incentive or reimbursement program or establishment of working capital requirements, unless both of the following requirements are satisfied:

(A) The performance standard, sales objective, or program for measuring dealership sales, service, or customer service performance is reasonable in light of all existing circumstances, including, but not limited to, the following:

(i) Demographics in the dealer’s area of responsibility.

(ii) Geographical and market characteristics in the dealer’s area of responsibility.

(iii) The availability and allocation of vehicles and parts inventory.

(iv) Local and statewide economic circumstances.

(v) Historical sales, service, and customer service performance of the line-make within the dealer’s area of responsibility, including vehicle brand preferences of consumers in the dealer’s area of responsibility.

(B) Within 30 days after a request by the dealer, the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate provides a written summary of the methodology and data used in establishing the performance standard, sales objective, or program for measuring dealership sales or service performance. The summary shall be in detail sufficient to permit the dealer to determine how the standard was established and applied to the dealer.

(2) In any proceeding in which the reasonableness of a performance standard, sales objective, or program for measuring dealership sales, service, or customer service performance is an issue, the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate shall have the burden of proof.

(3) As used in this subdivision, “area of responsibility” has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (z) of Section 11713.3.

(h) Restrict the ability of a dealer to select a digital service of a dealer’s choice that is offered by a vendor of the dealer’s choice, provided that the service offered by the vendor is approved by the manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, or affiliate. Approval for services selected by dealers shall not be unreasonably withheld. For purposes of this subdivision, digital service includes, but is not limited to, internet website and data management services, but does not include warranty repair processes for a vehicle.

(i) Restrict, limit, or discourage a franchisee from checking or verifying the applicability of a technical service bulletin or customer service campaign to any vehicle.

(j) Implement or modify a vehicle reservation system for the sale or lease of motor vehicles that does not comply with either of the following requirements:

(1) Any vehicle reservation system designed, implemented, or controlled by a franchisor that allocates vehicles to franchisees shall use customer dealer selection or other objective criteria to allocate the vehicles.

(2) At least 30 days prior to implementing a vehicle reservation system, a franchisor shall make available to its franchisees a description of the reservation program rules and requirements to franchisees through the system, as applicable. Notice of any change to such criteria shall be provided at least 30 days prior to it becoming effective.

(k) (1) Implement a program or policy that coerces or requires the franchisee to install direct current fast charging stations, unless all of the following are satisfied:

(A) If the program or policy requires public access to the direct current fast charging stations, the franchisor shall reimburse the dealer for one-half of all costs to install and maintain the stations, if the dealer pays the franchisor one-half of the net income generated from the ongoing use of the stations. This subparagraph shall not apply to a manufacturer program or policy that encourages the franchisee to install publicly accessible direct current fast charging stations, if the program or policy reimburses the dealer for no less than one-half of the cost of all direct current fast charging stations subject to the program or policy.

(B) The program or policy does not limit the ability of a franchisee to use all available incentives or utility rate plans to minimize total installation cost.

(C) The program or policy does not require installation of more than the number and type of electric vehicle charging stations reasonably necessary to conduct service and sales operations.

(D) The program or policy must be reasonable in light of supply constraints, time constraints, advancements in vehicular technology, and electric grid integration.

(2) For purposes of this subdivision, the term “coerce” shall mean the use of force or threats to persuade, constrain, or compel a franchisee to take a specific action. “Coerce” includes, but is not limited to, threatening to withhold vehicles or parts from a franchisee or charging a franchisee a higher price for vehicles or parts on the basis of the franchisee refusing, declining, or failing to perform a specific behavior.

(l) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Affiliate” means a person who directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under the common direction and control with, another person. “Control” means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of any person.

(2) “Facility” or “facilities” includes, but is not limited to, premises, places, buildings, or structures.

(3) “Vehicle reservation system” means a process that is used to hold open the opportunity for a specified consumer to place an order for the purchase or lease of a new motor vehicle.

(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 332, Sec. 5. (AB 473) Effective January 1, 2024.)