BP BHEAD INT H

AN ACT Relating to the motor vehicle lemon law; and amending RCW 19.118.021.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 19.118.021 and 1995 c 254 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Board" means new motor vehicle arbitration board.

(2) "Collateral charges" means any sales or lease related charges including but not limited to sales tax, use tax, arbitration service fees, unused license fees, unused registration fees, unused title fees, finance charges, prepayment penalties, credit disability and credit life insurance costs not otherwise refundable, any other insurance costs prorated for time out of service, transportation charges, dealer preparation charges, or any other charges for service contracts, undercoating, rustproofing, or factory or dealer installed options.

(3) "Condition" means a general problem that results from a defect or malfunction of one or more parts, or their improper installation by the manufacturer, its agents, or the new motor vehicle dealer.

(4) "Consumer" means any person who has entered into an agreement or contract for the transfer, lease, or purchase of a new motor vehicle, other than for purposes of resale or sublease, during the duration of the warranty period defined under this section.

(5) "Court" means the superior court in the county where the consumer resides, except if the consumer does not reside in this state, then the superior court in the county where an arbitration hearing or determination was conducted or made pursuant to this chapter.

(6) "Incidental costs" means any reasonable expenses incurred by the consumer in connection with the repair of the new motor vehicle, including any towing charges and the costs of obtaining alternative transportation.

(7) "Manufacturer" means any person engaged in the business of constructing or assembling new motor vehicles or engaged in the business of importing new motor vehicles into the United States for the purpose of selling or distributing new motor vehicles to new motor vehicle dealers. "Manufacturer" does not include any person engaged in the business of set-up of motorcycles as an agent of a new motor vehicle dealer if the person does not otherwise construct or assemble motorcycles.

(8) "Motorcycle" means any motorcycle as defined in RCW 46.04.330 which has an engine displacement of at least seven hundred fifty cubic centimeters.

(9) "New motor vehicle" means any new self-propelled vehicle, including a new motorcycle, primarily designed for the transportation of persons or property over the public highways that was originally purchased or leased at retail from a new motor vehicle dealer or leasing company in this state, and that was initially registered in this state or for which a temporary motor vehicle license was issued pursuant to RCW 46.16.460, but does not include vehicles purchased or leased by a business as part of a fleet of ten or more vehicles at one time or under a single purchase or lease agreement. If the motor vehicle is a motor home, this chapter shall apply to the self-propelled vehicle and chassis, but does not include those portions of the vehicle designated, used, or maintained primarily as a mobile dwelling, office, or commercial space. The term "new motor vehicle" does not include trucks with nineteen thousand pounds or more gross vehicle weight rating. The term "new motor vehicle" includes a demonstrator or lease-purchase vehicle as long as a manufacturer's warranty was issued as a condition of sale. "New motor vehicle" includes a snowmobile as defined in RCW 46.10.010 and a personal watercraft as defined in RCW 88.12.010.

(10) "New motor vehicle dealer" means a person who holds a dealer agreement with a manufacturer for the sale of new motor vehicles, who is engaged in the business of purchasing, selling, servicing, exchanging, or dealing in new motor vehicles, and who is licensed or required to be licensed as a vehicle dealer by the state of Washington. "New motor vehicle dealer" also includes a vessel dealer registered or required to be registered under chapter 88.02 RCW and includes a snowmobile dealer registered or required to be registered under chapter 46.10 RCW.

(11) "Nonconformity" means a defect, serious safety defect, or condition that substantially impairs the use, value, or safety of a new motor vehicle, but does not include a defect or condition that is the result of abuse, neglect, or unauthorized modification or alteration of the new motor vehicle.

(12) "Purchase price" means the cash price of the new motor vehicle appearing in the sales agreement or contract.

(a) "Purchase price" in the instance of a lease means the actual written capitalized cost disclosed to the consumer contained in the lease agreement. If there is no disclosed capitalized cost in the lease agreement the "purchase price" is the manufacturer's suggested retail price including manufacturer installed accessories or items of optional equipment displayed on the manufacturer label, required by 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1232.

(b) "Purchase price" in the instance of both a vehicle purchase or lease agreement includes any allowance for a trade-in vehicle but does not include any manufacturer-to-consumer rebate appearing in the agreement or contract that the consumer received or that was applied to reduce the purchase or lease cost.

Where the consumer is a subsequent transferee and the consumer selects repurchase of the motor vehicle, "purchase price" means the consumer's subsequent purchase price. Where the consumer is a subsequent transferee and the consumer selects replacement of the motor vehicle, "purchase price" means the original purchase price.

(13) "Reasonable offset for use" means the definition provided in RCW 19.118.041(1)(c) for a new motor vehicle other than a new motorcycle. The reasonable offset for use for a new motorcycle shall be computed by the number of miles that the vehicle traveled before the manufacturer's acceptance of the vehicle upon repurchase or replacement multiplied by the purchase price, and divided by twenty-five thousand.

(14) "Reasonable number of attempts" means the definition provided in RCW 19.118.041.

(15) "Replacement motor vehicle" means a new motor vehicle that is identical or reasonably equivalent to the motor vehicle to be replaced, as the motor vehicle to be replaced existed at the time of original purchase or lease, including any service contract, undercoating, rustproofing, and factory or dealer installed options.

(16) "Serious safety defect" means a life-threatening malfunction or nonconformity that impedes the consumer's ability to control or operate the new motor vehicle for ordinary use or reasonable intended purposes or creates a risk of fire or explosion.

(17) "Subsequent transferee" means a consumer who acquires a motor vehicle, within the warranty period, as defined in this section, with an applicable manufacturer's written warranty and where the vehicle otherwise met the definition of a new motor vehicle at the time of original retail sale or lease.

(18) "Substantially impair" means to render the new motor vehicle unreliable, or unsafe for ordinary use, or to diminish the resale value of the new motor vehicle below the average resale value for comparable motor vehicles.

(19) "Warranty" means any implied warranty, any written warranty of the manufacturer, or any affirmation of fact or promise made by the manufacturer in connection with the sale of a new motor vehicle that becomes part of the basis of the bargain. The term "warranty" pertains to the obligations of the manufacturer in relation to materials, workmanship, and fitness of a new motor vehicle for ordinary use or reasonably intended purposes throughout the duration of the warranty period as defined under this section.

(20) "Warranty period" means the period ending two years after the date of the original delivery to the consumer of a new motor vehicle, or the first twenty-four thousand miles of operation, whichever occurs first.