(a) Except as provided in subdivisions (b) and (d), a junk dealer or recycler shall not purchase bulk merchandise pallets marked with an indicia of ownership from any person or entity other than the indicated owner.

(b) (1) If the seller is not the indicated owner, a junk dealer or recycler may purchase bulk merchandise pallets if the seller provides one of the following:

Terms Used In California Business and Professions Code 21609.7

  • junk: means any and all secondhand and used machinery and all ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals and alloys, including any and all secondhand and used furniture, pallets, or other personal property, other than livestock, or parts or portions thereof. See California Business and Professions Code 21600
  • junk dealer: includes any person engaged in the business of buying, selling and dealing in junk, any person purchasing, gathering, collecting, soliciting or traveling about from place to place procuring junk, and any person operating, carrying on, conducting or maintaining a junk yard or place where junk is gathered together and stored or kept for shipment, sale or transfer. See California Business and Professions Code 21601
  • license: means license, certificate, registration, or other means to engage in a business or profession regulated by this code or referred to in Section 1000 or 3600. See California Business and Professions Code 23.7

(A) A receipt from the indicated owner verifying the seller’s current ownership.

(B) A document indicating that the seller is authorized by the indicated owner to sell the merchandise pallets.

(2) Copies of these documents shall be maintained by the junk dealer or recycler as part of the written record of the transaction.

(c) For a single purchase transaction involving five or more bulk merchandise pallets marked with indicia of ownership where the seller is not the indicated owner, the junk dealer or recycler shall make payment only by a check mailed to the address shown on the driver’s license or other government-issued photo identification provided by the seller or by cash or check collected by the seller on or after the third business day following the date of the transaction.

(d) Nothing in this section prohibits a junk dealer or recycler from acquiring good faith possession of merchandise pallets based on the representations of the seller that the indicated owner cannot be located or has failed to retrieve the merchandise pallets on a timely basis. If the indicated owner can be located, a junk dealer or recycler who acquires good faith possession shall give notice of good faith possession to the indicated owner of the merchandise pallets. The seller shall retain a copy of this notice of good faith possession for at least two years. A junk dealer or recycler who acquires good faith possession may require payment of reasonable storage fees for the merchandise pallets if the indicated owner demands a return within 35 calendar days after the junk dealer or recycler notifies the indicated owner of having acquired good faith possession. After 35 calendar days from when the junk dealer or recycler provides notice of good faith possession to the indicated owner, the owner shall be deemed to have relinquished possession of the merchandise pallets, at which time the junk dealer or recycler may either sell the pallets or charge reasonable storage fees if the indicated owner demands a return and the pallets are still in the possession of the junk dealer or recycler.

(1) The notice of good faith possession shall contain all of the following information:

(A) The date of the good faith possession.

(B) The name and contact information of the junk dealer or recycler that has acquired good faith possession of the merchandise pallets.

(C) The location of where the merchandise pallets are held.

(D) The number of merchandise pallets acquired.

(E) The date on or after which the merchandise pallets will be deemed relinquished to the junk dealer or recycler.

(2) The notice of good faith possession shall be shall be sent by mail or email to the indicated owner at the indicated owner’s physical or email address, if known.

(e) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Bulk merchandise pallets” means plastic or wood containers, carriers, or holders used by a manufacturer or distributor for bulk transport of merchandise to wholesale or retail outlets.

(2) “Indicia of ownership” means words, symbols, or registered trademarks printed, stamped, etched, attached, or otherwise displayed on the exterior surface of the merchandise pallet that reasonably identifies the owner.

(Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 521, Sec. 1. (AB 1760) Effective January 1, 2023.)

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