GNYADA March 2015 Newsletter

FTC: Settles Case with BMW

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chise, the Warranty Parts Reimburse- ment rate generally reverts to a reduced rate, typically cost plus 40%. Manufacturers consider the reim- bursement rate the selling dealer was receiving to be voided by the Buy/Sell Agreement. To apply for increased reimburse- ment, dealers need either 100 quali- fied customer paid repair orders or 90 days for all repair orders to go for- ward with a new submission. Depending on your volume of war- ranty work, your dealership can antic- ipate very significant parts reimburse- ment increases every month. GNYADA continues to assist dealers, and we have successfully achieved a reimbursement increase on every application submitted. Consumers were led to believe that by using non-OEM parts or service, would void their warranties. BMW has agreed to correct its war- ranty language and refrain from any misleading information regarding warranties all promotional material. It will also mail letters to all affected MINI owners to advise them of their rights. Take-away for dealers: Avoid any statements to consumers that imply that they must return to the dealer- ship for non-covered repair or service work, or that they must use OEM parts in order to preserve their rights under the warranty. Apply for Increased Reimbursement

BMW has recently settled charges brought by the FTC that the automaker violated the Magnuson- Moss Warranty Act when it told con- sumers that using non-OEM parts for maintenance and repairs would void their warranties. The FTC alleged BMW’s MINI Warranty Statements conditioned warranty coverage on having all rou- tine maintenance and repair work done using genuine MINI parts and performed by MINI dealers. The FTC also objected to language that said BMW’s warranty will not cover repairs for parts that include “non- genuine” MINI parts.”

This item is intended as information only and was provided by Stuart A. Rosenthal, Esq. Stuart@Rosenthal.Lawyer.

Dealers Are Cashing in on GNYADA’s Warranty Parts Program

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Hundreds of GNYADA members are receiving fair retail parts reimburse- ment payments resulting in millions of dollars in additional revenue

because they participate in GNYADA’s Warranty Parts

Reimbursement program. This pro- gram assists dealers by relieving the burden of the labor- intensive applica- tion process from dealership man- agers while providing great results. Recent changes to the Franchise Law, which GNYADA advocated for, such as the exclusion of tires, batteries, and routine maintenance from the reim- bursement calculation, enable dealers to increase their warranty parts per- centages whether they have submitted increase applications in the past or this is their first application.

If you would like begin a Warranty Parts Reimbursement submission, please call Bill Cordes 917.763.5318

(cell) or email Phyllis at phyllisa@gnyada.com .

Buy/Sells - A Little Fact When dealers acquire a new fran-

Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association • www.gnyada.com

The Newsletter • April 2015 3