2023 New York Laws › GBS - General Business › Article 38 - Vessel Dealer Agreements › 813 - Vessel Preparation, Warranty and Warranty Reimbursement.

§  813. Vessel preparation, warranty and warranty reimbursement. 1. If
a manufacturer or distributor requires or permits a  dealer  to  provide
parts  or  to  perform  labor  to  satisfy  a  warranty  created  by the
manufacturer or distributor, the manufacturer or distributor shall:
(a) properly and promptly fulfill its warranty obligations;
(b)  adequately  and  fairly  compensate  the  dealer  for  any  parts
provided,  the  shipping costs for parts provided and labor performed by
the dealer to satisfy the warranty on  a  vessel,  including  the  hull,
motor/engine, component parts, spars, sails and accessories; and
(c)  have the right to audit the dealer's warranty claims for a period
of eighteen months following the submission thereof, and to charge  back
to  the  dealer  any  amounts  paid  on  false, fraudulent, incorrect or
unsubstantiated claims.
2. Compensation by the manufacturer or distributor for parts provided,
the shipping costs for parts provided and labor performed by the  dealer
shall be deemed adequate and fair if:
(a)  the  dealer  is  reimbursed for any parts provided and already in
inventory and the shipping costs for such parts in an  amount  equal  to
the  wholesale  price,  plus  forty percent thereof, provided that in no
case shall such reimbursement exceed  the  retail  price,  and  shipping
costs of the parts provided to the dealer; and
(b)  the dealer is reimbursed for any labor performed at the following
rates:
(i) with respect to the first year of new  dealer  agreements  entered
into on or after the effective date of this article, and with respect to
the  first  year  of  the first renewals of a dealer agreement in effect
prior to the effective date  of  this  article,  when  such  renewal  is
entered  into  on or after the effective date of this article, at a rate
of  not  less  than  seventy-five  percent  of  the  retail  labor  rate
customarily charged and posted therefor,
(ii)  with respect to the second year of new dealer agreements entered
into on or after the effective date of this article, and with respect to
the second year of a renewal of a dealer agreement in  effect  prior  to
the  effective date of this article, when the first year of such renewal
commenced on or after the effective date of this article, at a rate  not
less  than  ninety  percent of the retail labor rate customarily charged
and posted therefor; and
(iii) with respect to the third and any subsequent year of new  dealer
agreements  entered into on or after the effective date of this article,
and with respect to the third and any subsequent year of a renewal of  a
dealer  agreement in effect prior to the effective date of this article,
when the first year of such renewal commenced on or after the  effective
date of this article, at a rate not less than one hundred percent of the
retail labor rate customarily charged and posted therefor.
Nothing  in  this  paragraph shall be deemed to require or provide for
the payment of a lower rate than  is  provided  in  a  dealer  agreement
entered into prior to the effective date of this article or of a renewal
of  a  dealer  agreement, when such renewal is entered into prior to the
effective date of this article.
3. To be entitled to compensation for labor  at  the  dealer's  retail
rate,  the  dealer  shall have posted, in a place conspicuous to service
customers, the rate for labor for nonwarranty work.
4. Except as provided in this section, no manufacturer or  distributor
may  by  agreement  make  restrictions  on  reimbursement  or  otherwise
restrict the nature or extent of parts provided or labor performed by  a
dealer  if  such restriction impairs the dealer's ability to satisfy the
warranty of the manufacturer  or  distributor  in  accordance  with  the
generally  accepted  standards. However, the manufacturer or distributor

may provide printed repair manuals detailing  standard  labor  time  and
parts  required  for  a specific repair to establish set requirements if
such manual is provided to the dealer upon entry into a new contract  or
renewal  of  a contract. Such standards shall reflect the labor time and
parts' standards used by the  manufacturer  on  a  national  level.  Any
repair or parts required by the manufacturer or distributor that are not
in  repair  manuals  will  be  paid  in  actual  billable  hours  by the
manufacturer or distributor.
5. A claim by a  dealer  for  compensation  for  parts  provided,  the
shipping  costs  for  parts  provided  and  labor performed to satisfy a
warranty,  provided  that  the  claim  includes  all   the   information
reasonably  necessary  by  the manufacturer to make a determination upon
the validity of the claim, shall  be  approved  or  disapproved  by  the
manufacturer  or distributor in writing within thirty days of receipt of
the claim  by  the  manufacturer  or  distributor  in  writing,  and  if
approved, shall be paid within thirty days of the approval thereof.