Welcome to your daily briefing on automotive developments in New Jersey. Today we're covering 8 key stories including updates on new jersey automotive headlines, background & context. Let's dive in.
5 stories
New Jersey legislation S1198 would require dealerships to notify buyers of any open recalls on used motor vehicles offered for sale.
NJ dealerships and sales operations must prepare compliance workflows to avoid liability if this disclosure requirement becomes law.
Golden Wheel Driving has published a summary of New Jersey DMV updates for 2024 covering new fees, services, and regulations.
DMV fee structures and regulatory shifts directly affect dealership transaction costs, compliance workflows, and customer-facing paperwork in New Jersey.
The New Jersey Senate and Assembly have approved Senate Bill 3309, which amends the Franchise Practices Act to create the Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act, now awaiting Governor Phil Murphy's signature.
This legislation directly impacts NJ automotive dealers by establishing new requirements around open recall disclosures and compensation frameworks that could reshape franchise relationships and customer communication obligations.
In 2003, the Motor Vehicle Security and Customer Service Act replaced New Jersey's Division of Motor Vehicles with the new Motor Vehicle Commission.
Understanding the commission's origin helps NJ automotive professionals navigate the regulatory body that oversees vehicle operations and licensing today.
Starting February 1, 2025, the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission will require underage permit holders to complete 50 hours of practice driving, including 10 hours at night.
Automotive professionals in NJ should prepare for increased demand for training services and updated curriculum to meet the new requirements.
Reach professionals in this market
3 stories
Federal law prohibits the sale of new vehicles under an open recall; the rules vary for used vehicles by state. Several states now require dealers to disclose open recalls to used-car buyers and to repair recalled vehicles before sale. Compliance varies widely across regions.
Selling a vehicle with an undisclosed open recall produces consumer-protection exposure and, in some states, automatic rescission rights for the buyer. The cost is far higher than the recall repair would have been.
In emissions-test states, failure paths split into evaporative, OBD-II readiness, and tailpipe categories. Each has different repair pathways and waiver eligibility. The most expensive failure category — evaporative — is also the most often misdiagnosed because the symptom (a check-engine light) overlaps with cheaper repairs.
Misdiagnosed evap repairs commonly run multiple cycles before reaching the actual fix. The wasted-repair cost can exceed the cost of the correct first repair by 3-5x.
A dealer may pull a credit report only with the consumer's authorization or for a specific permissible purpose under FCRA — typically completion of a credit transaction initiated by the consumer. Pulling a credit report based on a sales-floor walk-in without explicit authorization is a violation, even with intent to "save the customer time.".
FCRA violations carry statutory damages even without proof of harm, plus attorney fees. A pattern of unauthorized pulls can produce class-action exposure.
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