Florida Senate - 2021 SB 906
By Senator Stewart
13-00463-21 2021906__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to motor vehicle glass; amending s.
3 559.920, F.S.; prohibiting motor vehicle repair shops
4 and their employees from offering anything of value to
5 a customer in exchange for making an insurance claim
6 for motor vehicle glass replacement or repair,
7 including offers made through certain persons;
8 providing that the failure of a motor vehicle shop or
9 one of its employees to provide certain written notice
10 to consumers regarding recalibration of safety-related
11 systems is an unlawful act; creating s. 559.9201,
12 F.S.; defining terms; providing requirements that must
13 be met in order for an assignment agreement to be
14 valid; requiring an assignee to hold harmless an
15 assignor when certain requirements are not satisfied;
16 requiring that an assignment agreement be provided to
17 an insurer at a specified time; providing requirements
18 relating to service of written notices of intent to
19 initiate litigation; requiring insurers to respond to
20 a notice within a specified timeframe; requiring
21 insurers to have certain procedures relating to
22 disputes; providing an effective date.
23
24 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
25
26 Section 1. Section 559.920, Florida Statutes, is amended to
27 read:
28 559.920 Unlawful acts and practices.—It shall be a
29 violation of this act for any motor vehicle repair shop or
30 employee thereof to do any of the following:
31 (1) Engage or attempt to engage in repair work for
32 compensation of any type without first being registered with or
33 having submitted an affidavit of exemption to the department.;
34 (2) Make or charge for repairs which have not been
35 expressly or impliedly authorized by the customer.;
36 (3) Misrepresent that repairs have been made to a motor
37 vehicle.;
38 (4) Misrepresent that certain parts and repairs are
39 necessary to repair a vehicle.;
40 (5) Misrepresent that the vehicle being inspected or
41 diagnosed is in a dangerous condition or that the customer’s
42 continued use of the vehicle may be harmful or cause great
43 damage to the vehicle.;
44 (6) Fraudulently alter any customer contract, estimate,
45 invoice, or other document.;
46 (7) Fraudulently misuse any customer’s credit card.;
47 (8) Make or authorize in any manner or by any means
48 whatever any written or oral statement which is untrue,
49 deceptive or misleading, and which is known, or which by the
50 exercise of reasonable care should be known, to be untrue,
51 deceptive or misleading.;
52 (9) Make false promises of a character likely to influence,
53 persuade, or induce a customer to authorize the repair, service,
54 or maintenance of a motor vehicle.;
55 (10) Substitute used, rebuilt, salvaged, or straightened
56 parts for new replacement parts without notice to the motor
57 vehicle owner and to her or his insurer if the cost of repair is
58 to be paid pursuant to an insurance policy and the identity of
59 the insurer or its claims adjuster is disclosed to the motor
60 vehicle repair shop.;
61 (11) Cause or allow a customer to sign any work order that
62 does not state the repairs requested by the customer or the
63 automobile’s odometer reading at the time of repair.;
64 (12) Fail or refuse to give to a customer a copy of any
65 document requiring the customer’s signature upon completion or
66 cancellation of the repair work.;
67 (13) Willfully depart from or disregard accepted practices
68 and professional standards.;
69 (14) Have repair work subcontracted without the knowledge
70 or consent of the customer unless the motor vehicle repair shop
71 or employee thereof demonstrates that the customer could not
72 reasonably have been notified.;
73 (15) Conduct the business of motor vehicle repair in a
74 location other than that stated on the registration
75 certificate.;
76 (16) Rebuild or restore a rebuilt vehicle without the
77 knowledge of the owner in such a manner that it does not conform
78 to the original vehicle manufacturer’s established repair
79 procedures or specifications and allowable tolerances for the
80 particular model and year.; or
81 (17) Offer to a customer a rebate, gift, gift card, cash,
82 coupon, or any other thing of value in exchange for making an
83 insurance claim for motor vehicle glass replacement or repair,
84 including an offer made through a nonemployee who is compensated
85 for the solicitation of insurance claims.
86 (18) Pursuant to the repair or replacement of motor vehicle
87 glass for motor vehicles equipped with safety-related systems
88 requiring calibration, fail to provide written notice to the
89 consumer that repair or replacement will require recalibration
90 of safety-related systems and whether that calibration will be
91 performed and meet or exceed the manufacturer’s procedures or
92 specifications, and, if recalibration is not performed or not
93 completed successfully, written notice to the consumer that the
94 vehicle should be taken to be recalibrated by a professional
95 capable of performing a recalibration that meets or exceeds the
96 manufacturer’s procedures or specifications. Written notice must
97 be in at least 12-point type.
98 (20)(17) Perform any other act that is a violation of this
99 part or that constitutes fraud or misrepresentation.
100 (19)(18) Violate any provision of s. 713.585.
101 Section 2. Section 559.9201, Florida Statutes, is created
102 to read:
103 559.9201 Repairs pursuant to assignment agreements.—
104 (1) As used in this section, the term:
105 (a) “Assignee” means a person who is assigned post-loss
106 benefits under comprehensive or combined additional coverage
107 under a motor vehicle insurance policy for windshield damage
108 through an assignment agreement.
109 (b) “Assignment agreement” means any instrument by which
110 post-loss benefits under comprehensive or combined additional
111 coverage under a motor vehicle insurance policy for windshield
112 damage are assigned, transferred, or acquired in any manner, in
113 whole or in part, to or from a person providing services to
114 repair or replace motor vehicle glass.
115 (c) “Assignor” means a person who assigns post-loss
116 benefits under comprehensive or combined additional coverage
117 under a motor vehicle insurance policy for windshield damage to
118 another person through an assignment agreement.
119 (2) In order for an assignment agreement to be valid:
120 (a) The assignment agreement must include all of the
121 following:
122 1. A written repair estimate prepared pursuant to s.
123 559.905 which cannot be waived, with a clearly defined total
124 amount to be billed to the insurer.
125 2. The following disclosure in at least 16-point type:
126
127 ...(INSERT ASSIGNEE NAME)... HAS TAKEN AN ASSIGNMENT
128 OF BENEFITS FOR YOUR COMPREHENSIVE OR COMBINED
129 ADDITIONAL COVERAGE UNDER YOUR MOTOR VEHICLE INSURANCE
130 POLICY. ...(INSERT ASSIGNEE NAME)... INTENDS TO FILE A
131 CLAIM WITH YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY, AND MAY ALSO BE
132 ENTITLED TO FILE A LAWSUIT IN YOUR NAME, PURSUANT TO
133 THIS ASSIGNMENT OF BENEFITS AGREEMENT. BY SIGNING THIS
134 ACKNOWLEDGMENT, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT ...(INSERT
135 ASSIGNEE NAME)... INTENDS TO FILE A CLAIM WITH YOUR
136 INSURANCE COMPANY AND THAT A LAWSUIT REGARDING YOUR
137 INSURANCE POLICY MAY BE FILED IN YOUR NAME.
138
139 3. The assignee’s name, telephone number, address, and
140 registration number from the certificate issued by the
141 department pursuant to s. 559.904 and the assignor’s name,
142 telephone number, address, and signature.
143 (b) The assignee must, at the time of providing an
144 assignment agreement to the consumer, comply with s.
145 559.920(18).
146 (c) The assignment agreement may not include services not
147 provided, including, but not limited to, recalibration of
148 safety-related systems.
149
150 An assignee that fails to meet these requirements for a valid
151 assignment under this subsection must hold harmless the assignor
152 for any costs that may be greater than the amount covered by the
153 assignor’s insurer.
154 (3) The assignment agreement must be provided to the
155 insurer at the time of filing the claim with the insurer.
156 (4)(a) An assignee must provide the insurer and the
157 assignor with a written notice of intent to initiate litigation
158 before filing suit under the policy. Such notice must be served
159 by certified mail, return receipt requested, or electronic
160 delivery at least 30 days before filing suit. The notice must
161 specify the damages in dispute, the amount claimed, and a
162 presuit settlement demand. Concurrent with the notice, and as a
163 precondition to filing the suit, the assignee must provide the
164 insurer and the assignor a detailed written invoice of services,
165 including itemized information on equipment, materials, and
166 supplies; the number of labor hours; and, in the case of work
167 performed, proof that the work has been performed in accordance
168 with accepted industry standards.
169 (b) After receiving the notice specified in paragraph (a),
170 an insurer must respond in writing to the notice within 15 days.
171 An insurer must have a procedure for the prompt investigation,
172 review, and evaluation of the dispute stated in the notice and
173 must investigate each claim contained in the notice in
174 accordance with the Florida Insurance Code.
175 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.