(a) Before beginning any repair work on a motor vehicle, an automotive repair facility shall inform the consumer for whom the repairs are to be done of the following rights:
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 66-19-104
Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) That a consumer:
(A) May request a written estimate for repairs that cost in excess of two hundred fifty dollars ($250); and(B) May not be charged an amount over twenty-five percent (25%) in excess of the written estimate without the consumer’s consent or good faith attempt to acquire the consent; and(2) That repairs not originally authorized by the consumer may not be charged to the consumer without the consumer’s consent unless a repair facility makes a good faith attempt to acquire the consent prior to providing additional repairs. A good faith attempt shall entail at least an attempted telephone call to the consumer.(b) The consumer’s rights provided in subsection (a) shall be:
(1) Displayed immediately before the space for the signature of the consumer conspicuously in easily readable type;(2) Physically separated from the other terms of the form used for authorization of repairs; and(3) Listed under the printed heading “Consumer’s Rights.”(c) If any automotive repair facility informs a consumer orally of the consumer’s rights, the facility shall record in writing:
(1) The name of the persons who were notified or whom the facility attempted to notify;(2) The date and time of the notification or attempt; and(3) The signature of the person who made the notification or attempted notification.(d) Failure to comply with this section shall abrogate the repair facility’s rights under § 66-19-103.(e) Nothing in this section shall apply to any person or entity licensed under title 55, chapter 17.
