A. No supplier, directly or through an officer, agent, or employee, may terminate, cancel, fail to renew, or substantially change the competitive circumstances of an agreement without good cause.

Terms Used In Virginia Code 59.1-352.3

  • Agreement: means a written or oral contract or agreement between a dealer and a wholesaler, manufacturer, or distributor by which the dealer is granted one or more of the following rights:

    1. See Virginia Code 59.1-352.1

  • Dealer: means a person engaged in the business of selling at retail farm, construction, utility or industrial equipment, implements, machinery, attachments, outdoor power equipment, or repair parts. See Virginia Code 59.1-352.1
  • Good cause: means failure by a dealer to comply with requirements imposed upon the dealer by the agreement if the requirements are not different from those imposed on other dealers similarly situated in this Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 59.1-352.1
  • in writing: include any representation of words, letters, symbols, numbers, or figures, whether (i) printed or inscribed on a tangible medium or (ii) stored in an electronic or other medium and retrievable in a perceivable form and whether an electronic signature authorized by Chapter 42. See Virginia Code 1-257
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
  • Supplier: means a wholesaler, manufacturer, distributor, or any purchaser of assets or stock of any surviving corporation resulting from a merger or liquidation, any receiver or assignee, or any trustee of the original manufacturer, wholesaler, or distributor who enters into an agreement with a dealer. See Virginia Code 59.1-352.1

B. Notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary, a dealer who terminates an agreement with a supplier shall notify the supplier of the termination not less than 90 days prior to the effective date of the termination.

C. A supplier shall provide a dealer with at least 90 days’ written notice of termination of the agreement and a 60-day right to cure the deficiency. If the deficiency is cured within the allotted time, the notice is void. In the case where cancellation of an agreement is based upon the dealer’s failure to capture the share of the market required in the agreement, a minimum 12-month period of time shall have existed where the supplier has worked with the dealer to gain the desired market share. The notice shall state all reasons constituting good cause.

D. Notification under this section shall be in writing and shall be by certified mail or personally delivered to the recipient. It shall contain all of the following:

1. A statement of intention to terminate the dealership;

2. A statement of the reasons for the termination; and

3. The date on which the termination takes effect.

E. The notice and right to cure is not required if the reason for termination, cancellation or nonrenewal is for good cause, as defined in § 59.1-352.1.

2002, c. 898; 2003, c. 797.

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