Sections
§ 4083 Title of chapter
§ 4084 Legislative findings
§ 4085 Definitions
§ 4086 Warranty and predelivery obligations to new motor vehicle dealers
§ 4087 Transportation damages
§ 4088 Product liability indemnification
§ 4089 Termination; cancellation or nonrenewal
§ 4090 Notification of termination; cancellation and nonrenewal
§ 4091 Payments
§ 4092 Dealership facilities assistance upon termination, cancellation, or nonrenewal
§ 4093 Right of designated family member to succeed in ownership
§ 4094 Refusal to honor succession to ownership; notice required
§ 4095 Burden of proof
§ 4096 Unlawful acts by manufacturers or distributors
§ 4097 Manufacturer violations
§ 4098 Limitations on establishing or relocating dealers
§ 4099 Civil actions for violations
§ 4100 Applicability
§ 4100a Agreements governed
§ 4100b Enforcement; Transportation Board
§ 4100c Financing; Vermont Transportation Board
§ 4100d Statute of limitations
§ 4100e Right of first refusal
§ 4100f Severability

Terms Used In Vermont Statutes > Title 9 > Chapter 108 - Motor Vehicle Manufacturers, Distributors, and Dealers Franchising

  • add-on discount membership program: is a program that entitles consumers to receive discounts, rebates, rewards, or similar incentives on the purchase of goods or services or both, sold to a consumer during the purchase of a different good or service using the same billing information. See
  • agency: means a person who, for fees, dues, or on a cooperative basis, regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling or evaluating information concerning a consumer's credit or other information for the purpose of furnishing a credit report to another person. See
  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
  • Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
  • billing information: includes the full account number and routing number and, if necessary, the name of the financial institution holding the account. See
  • Board: means the Transportation Board as established in 19 V. See
  • Charitable: means related to a charitable purpose. See
  • Charitable organization: means any organization that is or holds itself out to be furthering any charitable purpose. See
  • Charitable purpose: means any benevolent, educational, philanthropic, humane, patriotic, social welfare, advocacy, public health, environmental conservation, or civic objective or any objective of law enforcement officers, firefighters, or other persons who protect the public safety. See
  • Coerce: means the failure to act in a fair and equitable manner in performing or complying with any terms or provisions of a franchise or agreement; provided, however, that recommendation, persuasion, urging, or argument shall not be synonymous with coerce or lack of good faith. See
  • Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Consumer: means any person who purchases, leases, contracts for, or otherwise agrees to pay consideration for goods or services not for resale in the ordinary course of the person's trade or business but for the person's use or benefit or the use or benefit of a member of the person's household, or in connection with the operation of the person's household or a farm whether or not the farm is conducted as a trade or business, or a person who purchases, leases, contracts for, or otherwise agrees to pay consideration for goods or services not for resale in the ordinary course of the person's trade or business but for the use or benefit of the person's business or in connection with the operation of the person's business. See
  • Consumer: means a natural person other than a protected consumer. See
  • Consumer who is subject to a protected consumer security freeze: means a natural person:

  • Contribution: means the grant, promise, or pledge of money, credit, financial assistance, or other goods or services in part or in whole for a charitable purpose. See
  • Contributor: means a person who makes a contribution. See
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Credit report: A detailed report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit bureau and used by a lender in determining a loan applicant's creditworthiness. Source: OCC
  • Credit report: means any written, oral, or other communication of any information by a credit reporting agency bearing on a consumer's credit worthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living, including an investigative credit report. See
  • Credit Score: A number, roughly between 300 and 800, that measures an individual's credit worthiness. The most well-known type of credit score is the FICO score. This score represents the answer from a mathematical formula that assigns numerical values to various pieces of information in your credit report. Source: OCC
  • Dealership facilities: means the real estate, buildings, fixtures, and improvements that have been devoted to the conduct of business under the franchise by the new motor vehicle dealer. See
  • Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
  • Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
  • Designated family member: means the spouse, child, grandchild, parent, brother, or sister of the owner of a new motor vehicle dealer who, in the case of the owner's death, is entitled to inherit the ownership interest in the new motor vehicle dealer under the terms of the owner's will, or who has been nominated in any other written instrument, or who, in the case of an incapacitated owner of a new motor vehicle dealer, has been appointed by a court as the legal representative of the new motor vehicle dealer's property. See
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Distributor: means any person, resident or nonresident, who in whole or in part offers for sale, sells, or distributes any new motor vehicle to new motor vehicle dealers or who maintains factory representatives or who controls any person, firm, association, corporation, or trust, resident or nonresident, who in whole or in part offers for sale, sells, or distributes any new motor vehicle to new motor vehicle dealers. See
  • Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
  • Factory branch: means a branch office maintained by a manufacturer for the purpose of selling, or offering for sale, vehicles to a distributor or new motor vehicle dealer, or for directing or supervising in whole or in part factory or distributor representatives. See
  • Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
  • Fees: shall mean earnings due for official services, aside from salaries or per diem compensation. See
  • following: when used by way of reference to a section of the law shall mean the next preceding or following section. See
  • Franchise: means all agreements and contracts between any new motor vehicle manufacturer, written or otherwise, and any new motor vehicle dealer that relate to the operation of the franchise and purport to fix the legal rights and liabilities of the parties to such agreements or contracts, including agreements pursuant to which the dealer purchases and resells the franchise product, performs warranty and other service on the manufacturer's products, leases or rents the dealership premises or agreements concerning the dealership premises, or construction or renovation of the dealership premises. See
  • Franchisee: means a new motor vehicle dealer who enters into or is currently a party to a franchise with a franchisor. See
  • Franchisor: means any manufacturer, distributor, distributor branch or factory branch, importer, or other person, partnership, corporation, association, or entity, whether resident or nonresident, that enters into or is currently a party to a franchise with a new motor vehicle dealer. See
  • Fundraising campaign: means an effort undertaken during a specific time period by a paid fundraiser to solicit contributions on behalf of a charitable organization. See
  • Good faith: means honesty in fact and the observation of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing in the trade as defined and interpreted in 9A V. See
  • Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. Source: FDIC
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Line-make: means motor vehicles that are offered for sale, lease, or distribution under a common name, trademark, service mark, or brand name of the franchisor or manufacturer of the motor vehicle. See
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • Manufacturer: means any person, resident or nonresident, who manufactures or assembles new motor vehicles, or imports for distribution through distributors of motor vehicles, or any partnership, firm, association, joint venture, corporation, or trust, resident or nonresident, that is controlled by the manufacturer. See
  • Markup: The process by which congressional committees and subcommittees debate, amend, and rewrite proposed legislation.
  • Month: shall mean a calendar month and "year" shall mean a calendar year and be equivalent to the expression "year of our Lord. See
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • Motor home: means a motor vehicle that is primarily designed to provide temporary living quarters, built into as an integral part of, or permanently attached to, a self-propelled motor vehicle chassis or van. See
  • Motor vehicle: means every vehicle intended primarily for use and operation on the public highways that is self-propelled, not including farm tractors and other machines and tools used in the production, harvesting, and care of farm products. See
  • New motor vehicle: means a vehicle that has been sold to a new motor vehicle dealer and that has not been used for other than demonstration purposes and on which the original title has not been issued from the new motor vehicle dealer. See
  • New motor vehicle dealer: means any person who holds, or held at the time a cause of action under this chapter accrued, a valid sales and service agreement, franchise, or contract granted by the manufacturer or distributor for the retail sale of the manufacturer's or distributor's new motor vehicles, is not affiliated by ownership or control with a franchisor, and is engaged in the business of any of the following with respect to new motor vehicles or the parts and accessories for those new motor vehicles:

  • Non-franchised zero-emission vehicle manufacturer: means a manufacturer that:

  • Owner: means any person holding an ownership interest in the business entity operating as a new motor vehicle dealer or under a franchise as defined in this chapter either as a corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, or other legal entity. See
  • Paid fundraiser: means a person who, for financial consideration, solicits contributions from persons in this State, either directly or through employees, agents, or those with whom the paid fundraiser is in privity. See
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Person: means every natural person, partnership, corporation, association, trust, estate, or any other legal entity. See
  • personal information: includes any list, description, or other grouping of consumers and publicly available information pertaining to the consumers that is derived using any nonpublic personal information other than publicly available information. See
  • Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
  • Protected consumer: means a natural person who, at the time a request for a security freeze is made, is:

  • Protected consumer security freeze: means :

  • real estate: shall include lands, tenements, and hereditaments and all rights thereto and interests therein, and pews or slips in places of public worship shall be treated as real estate. See
  • Record: means a compilation of information that:

  • Relevant market area: means the area within a radius of 25 miles around an existing dealer or the area of responsibility defined in the franchise, whichever is greater; except that, where a manufacturer is seeking to establish an additional new motor vehicle dealer and there are one or more existing new motor vehicle dealers of the same line-make within a 10-mile radius of the proposed dealer site, the "relevant market area" shall in all instances be the area within a radius of 10 miles around an existing dealer. See
  • Representative: means a person who provides to a consumer reporting agency sufficient proof of authority to act on behalf of a protected consumer. See
  • Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
  • said: when used by way of reference to a person or thing shall apply to the same person or thing last mentioned. See
  • Security freeze: means a notice placed in a credit report, at the request of the consumer, pursuant to section 2480h of this title. See
  • Seller: means a person regularly and principally engaged in a business of selling goods or services to consumers. See
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • services: shall include any objects, wares, goods, commodities, work, labor, intangibles, courses of instruction or training, securities, bonds, debentures, stocks, real estate, or other property or services of any kind. See
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
  • Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
  • Sufficient proof of authority: means documentation that shows that a person has authority to act on behalf of a protected consumer, including:

  • Sufficient proof of identification: means information or documentation that identifies a protected consumer or a representative, including:

  • third-party discount membership program: is a program that entitles consumers to receive discounts, rebates, rewards, or similar incentives on the purchase of goods or services or both, in whole or in part, from any third party. See
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
  • Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. Source: OCC
  • Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.