13-14-306. Evidence to be considered in determining cause to relocate or establish a new franchised dealership. In determining whether a franchisor has established good cause for relocating an existing franchisee or establishing a new franchised dealership for the same line-make in a given relevant market area, the advisory board and the executive director shall consider:
(1)
the amount of business transacted by other franchisees of the same line-make in that relevant market area, as compared to business available to the franchisees;
Terms Used In Utah Code 13-14-306
Affected municipality: means an incorporated city or town:
(a)
that is located in the notice area; and
(b)
(i)
within which a franchisor is proposing a new or relocated dealership that is within the relevant market area of an existing dealership of the same line-make owned by another franchisee; or
(ii)
within which an existing dealership is located and a franchisor is proposing a new or relocated dealership within the relevant market area of that existing dealership of the same line-make. See Utah Code 13-14-102
board: means the Utah Motor Vehicle Franchise Advisory Board created in Section 13-14-103. See Utah Code 13-14-102
Dealership: means a site or location in this state:
(a)
at which a franchisee conducts the business of a new motor vehicle dealer; and
(b)
that is identified as a new motor vehicle dealer's principal place of business for licensing purposes under Section 41-3-204. See Utah Code 13-14-102
Executive director: means the executive director of the Department of Commerce. See Utah Code 13-14-102
Franchisee: means a person with whom a franchisor has agreed or permitted, in writing or in practice, to purchase, sell, or offer for sale new motor vehicles manufactured, produced, represented, or distributed by the franchisor. See Utah Code 13-14-102
Franchisor: means a person who has, in writing or in practice, agreed with or permits a franchisee to purchase, sell, or offer for sale new motor vehicles manufactured, produced, assembled, represented, or distributed by the franchisor, and includes:
(a)
the manufacturer, producer, assembler, or distributor of the new motor vehicles;
(b)
an intermediate distributor; and
(c)
an agent, officer, or field or area representative of the franchisor. See Utah Code 13-14-102
Line-make: means :
(a)
for other than a recreational vehicle, the motor vehicles that are offered for sale, lease, or distribution under a common name, trademark, service mark, or brand name of the franchisor; or
(b)
for a recreational vehicle, a specific series of recreational vehicle product that:
(i)
is identified by a common series trade name or trademark;
(ii)
is targeted to a particular market segment, as determined by decor, features, equipment, size, weight, and price range;
(iii)
has a length and floor plan that distinguish the recreational vehicle from other recreational vehicles with substantially the same decor, features, equipment, size, weight, and price;
(iv)
belongs to a single, distinct classification of recreational vehicle product type having a substantial degree of commonality in the construction of the chassis, frame, and body; and
for an existing dealership, the geographic area established by the franchisor that the existing dealership is intended to serve; or
(b)
for a new or relocated dealership, the geographic area proposed by the franchisor that the new or relocated dealership is intended to serve. See Utah Code 13-14-102
(2)
the investment necessarily made and obligations incurred by other franchisees of the same line-make in that relevant market area in the performance of their part of their franchisee agreements;
(3)
the permanency of the existing and proposed investment;
(4)
whether it is injurious or beneficial to the public welfare or public interest for an additional franchise to be established, including:
(a)
the impact on any affected municipality;
(b)
population growth trends in any affected municipality;
(c)
the number of dealerships in the primary market area of the new or relocated dealership compared to the number of dealerships in each primary market area adjacent to the new or relocated dealership’s primary market area; and
(d)
how the new or relocated dealership would impact the distance and time that an individual in the new or relocated dealership’s primary market area would have to travel to access a dealership in the same line-make as the new or relocated dealership.
(5)
whether the franchisees of the same line-make in that relevant market area are providing adequate service to consumers for the motor vehicles of the line-make, which shall include the adequacy of:
(a)
the motor vehicle sale and service facilities;
(b)
equipment;
(c)
supply of vehicle parts; and
(d)
qualified service personnel; and
(6)
whether the relocation or establishment would cause any material negative economic effect on a dealer of the same line-make in the relevant market area.
