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Subchapter 24: Electronic or Home Appliance Service Dealers
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/039.
* Editor's note: there are two sections designated as § 20-410.
It is hereby declared that the business of servicing electronic or home appliances has become the subject of great abuse. The public has been and is unprotected from unethical and financially unstable service dealers. The necessity for legislative intervention to protect the public and legitimate service dealers is hereby declared as a matter of legislative determination.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/039.
Whenever used in this subchapter, the following terms shall mean:
1. "Person" means an individual, firm, partnership, trust, association or corporation.
2. "Complainant" means the customer of a service dealer who has complained concerning an alleged violation of this subchapter, any rule promulgated pursuant thereto, or any practice engaged in by a service dealer or any of his or her employees.
3. "Service dealer" means a person who within the city of New York:
a. advertises that he or she performs repair service on electronic or home appliances, or makes public statements reasonably calculated to lead an ordinary consumer to believe that he or she performs such repair service;
b. solicits or bills a customer for repair service on electronic or home appliances;
c. sells service contracts or maintenance agreements for the performance of repair service on electronic or home appliances and accepts requests for such repair service under such service contracts or maintenance agreements;
d. accepts requests for repair service or receives electronic or home appliances for the performance of repair service; or
e. provides, as part of a sales transaction, repair service, including repair service performed by the seller, subcontractor, or other service repairer; provided, however, that the term "service dealer" shall apply to a manufacturer of electronic or home appliances only when such manufacturer acting as a retailer engages in any of the activities described in this subdivision.
4. "Repair service" or "repair servicing" means the installation, maintenance, repair, replacement, testing, inspection or modification for compensation, other consideration or under a warranty, of electronic or home appliances.
5. "Electronic or home appliance" means any electronic device, or any appliance, that is commonly used in a household, including, but not limited to, televisions, radios, stereo systems, compact disc players, home computer systems, telephones, telephone answering machines, satellite dishes, cameras, calculators, video recorders or players, camcorders or other portable video recording devices, cassette recorders or players, facsimile machines, portable photocopiers, air conditioners, clothes washing machines, clothes dryers, dishwashers, food freezes, refrigerators, stoves, ranges, ovens, microwave ovens or sewing machines.
6. "Service repairer" means a person who performs repair service on electronic or home appliances.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/039.
1. No person shall represent or hold himself or herself out to be, or engage in business as, a service dealer, unless duly licensed pursuant to this subchapter.
2. The commissioner shall require that applicants for licenses issued pursuant to this subchapter be fingerprinted for the purpose of securing criminal history records from the state division of criminal justice services. The applicant shall pay a processing fee as required by the state division of criminal justice services. Fingerprints shall be taken of the individual owner if the applicant is a sole proprietorship; the general partners if the applicant is a partnership; and the officers, principals, directors, and stockholders owning more than ten percent of the outstanding stock of the corporation if the applicant is a corporation. Any person required to be fingerprinted hereunder shall furnish to the department three current passport-size photographs of such person. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the commissioner need not require applicants for licenses required under this subchapter to be fingerprinted if criminal history records concerning such applicants are not available from the state division of criminal justice services.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/039.
The biennial fee for a license or a renewal thereof shall be three hundred and forty dollars.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/039.
a. Any person who violates any provision of this subchapter or any rules promulgated pursuant to this subchapter shall be subject to a civil penalty of: (i) one hundred seventy-five dollars for the first violation; (ii) three hundred dollars for the second violation; and (iii) five hundred dollars for the third and any subsequent violation.
b. Notwithstanding subdivision a of this section, a person shall be subject to a civil penalty of zero dollars for a first violation of subdivision 6 of section 20-417 of this subchapter or any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder if such person proves to the satisfaction of the department, within thirty days of the issuance of the notice of violation and prior to the commencement of an adjudication of the violation, that the violation has been cured. The submission of proof of a cure, if accepted by the department as proof that the violation has been cured, shall be deemed an admission of liability for all purposes. The option of presenting proof that the violation has been cured shall be offered as part of any settlement offer made by the department to a person who has received, for the first time, a notice of violation of subdivision 6 of section 20-417 of this subchapter or any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder. The department shall permit such proof to be submitted electronically or in person. A person may seek review, in the department's administrative tribunal, of the determination that the person has not submitted proof of a cure within fifteen days of receiving written notification of such determination.
c. Notwithstanding subdivision a of this section, the civil penalty for a violation of subdivision 7 of section 20-417 or any rule promulgated pursuant thereto shall be five hundred dollars.
(L.L. 2021/080, 7/18/2021, eff. 11/15/2021)
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 2021/080.
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