BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 869
Author: Yee (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/25/11
AYES: Price, Emmerson, Corbett, Correa, Hernandez, Negrete
McLeod, Vargas, Walters, Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Automotive repair dealers: airbags
SOURCE : Center for Auto Safety
Certified Automotive Parts Association
DIGEST : This bill increases the penalty for a person
who, after preparing a written estimate to repair a
deployed airbag, fails to properly repair and restore that
airbag to its original condition.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Establishes the Bureau of Automotive Repair under the
Supervision and control of the Director of Consumer
Affairs.
2. Establishes a misdemeanor penalty of up to six months in
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jail, a $1,000 fine, or both for a person who fails to
comply with the Automotive Repair Act, except as
specified.
3. Requires that if a vehicle was originally manufactured
with a "supplemental restraint system" Ýwhich includes
airbags] the reconstructed Ý"salvaged vehicle"] shall
also be equipped with a supplemental restraint system in
good working order that meets applicable federal motor
vehicle safety standards and conforms to the
manufacturer's specifications for that vehicle.
4. Establishes a misdemeanor penalty of up to one year in
jail, a $5,000 fine, or both for a person who installs
or reinstalls for compensation, distributes, or sells a
previously deployed airbag in a vehicle, if the person
knows that the airbag has been previously deployed.
This bill establishes a misdemeanor penalty of up to one
year in jail, a $5,000 fine, or both for an automotive
repair dealer who prepares for a customer a written
estimate that includes replacement of a deployed airbag and
who fails to repair and fully restore the airbag to
original operating condition.
Comments
SB 427 (Negrete McLeod) of 2009 would have established the
same misdemeanor with the same penalties for a violation as
this bill. Additionally, SB 427 would have required the
parts invoice for any replacement airbag installed as part
of the vehicle repair to be attached to the final repair
invoice given to a consumer. Governor Schwarzenegger
vetoed SB 427, citing that it was duplicative of existing
law and, therefore, added very little additional benefit to
consumers.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/11/11)
Center for Auto Safety (co-source)
Center For Automotive Parts Association (co-source)
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Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Association of California Insurance Companies
California Autobody Association
California New Car Dealers Association
Certified Automotive Parts Association
Consumer Federation of California
Consumers Union
Personal Insurance Federation of California
Trauma Foundation
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The California New Car Dealers
Association (CNCDA) supports this bill. The state that
although it is already fraud to invoice a customer for
replaced parts and not do so, it is difficult to prove that
fraud has occurred after the fact. The CNCDA states that
it has had an interest in curbing the nefarious practice of
parts switching and, therefore, support this bill since it
narrowly targets the most egregious example of such conduct
concerning a critical vehicle safety component.
Other supporters agree that the failure to properly replace
an airbag is a serious problem which costs individual
customers thousands of dollars and can even take their
lives. They cite studies by the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration which found that 20 percent of all
deaths in crashes caused by an airbag failure to deploy are
due to the airbag not having been installed in a repair
prior to the crash. The total absence of an airbag was
stated in these studies to be the most common reason for
auto fatalities in cases where the air bag did not deploy.
According to the Center for Auto Safety, in California, at
least 30,000 repairs are performed each year where a
deployed airbag is not replaced. Additionally, there are
no added costs for its implementation; rather, this law
will reduce the costs to society and the state by reducing
the number of deaths and serious injuries in crashes in
California. Also, supporters feel that this bill will help
with the Bureau of Automotive Repair's continuing efforts
to combat auto body fraud.
JJA:do 5/11/11 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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