BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1326| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- UNFINISHED BUSINESS Bill No: SB 1326 Author: Roth (D) Amended: 6/18/14 Vote: 21 SENATE BUSINESS, PROF. & ECON. DEV.COMM. : 8-0, 4/7/14 AYES: Lieu, Wyland, Berryhill, Block, Corbett, Galgiani, Hill, Padilla NO VOTE RECORDED: Hernandez, Vacancy SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 4/29/14 AYES: Jackson, Anderson, Corbett, Lara, Leno, Monning, Vidak SENATE FLOOR : 37-0, 5/5/14 AYES: Anderson, Beall, Berryhill, Block, Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De León, DeSaulnier, Evans, Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Hancock, Hernandez, Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson, Knight, Lara, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nielsen, Padilla, Pavley, Roth, Steinberg, Torres, Vidak, Walters, Wolk, Wyland NO VOTE RECORDED: Calderon, Wright, Yee ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 8/7/14 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Hearing aids: warranty: work order or receipt SOURCE : Hearing Healthcare Providers California DIGEST : This bill clarifies hearing aid warranty provisions by requiring a retailer to provide written warranty beginning and expiration dates from the time the hearing aids are CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 2 initially delivered to the buyer; clarifies the hearing aid warranty tolling period after repair or service; and requires the seller to provide a work order or receipt with the date the warranty period resumes and the revised expiration date of the warranty adjusted to reflect the suspension of the warranty period during repair or service. Assembly Amendments make technical changes. ANALYSIS : Existing law: 1. Provides, under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (Song-Beverly), implied warranties and remedies relating to new and used assistive devices. 2. Requires all new and used assistive devices sold in California to contain the retail seller's written warranty, in at least 10-point bold type, as follows: The assistive device is warranted to be specifically fit for the particular needs of the buyer; The device may be returned to the seller within 30 days, or a longer period if specified by the seller, of the date of actual receipt by the buyer or completion of fitting by the seller, whichever occurs later, if the device is not specifically fit for the buyer's particular needs; and The seller must either adjust or replace the device or promptly refund the total amount paid by the buyer if the buyer returns the device to the seller. 1. Provides that if the buyer returns the assistive device within the written warranty period, the seller shall, without charge and within a reasonable time, adjust the device or replace it with a device that is specifically fit for the particular needs of the buyer. 2. Provides that if the seller does not adjust or replace the device so that it is specifically fit for the particular needs of the buyer, the seller must promptly refund to the CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 3 buyer the total amount paid for the assistive device and any other consideration exchanged as part of the transaction, and the sale is rescinded. 3. Provides that if a sale of assistive devices is rescinded, the seller may not charge, penalize, or impose any other fee on the buyer in connection with the purchase, fitting, financing, or return of the device. 4. Provides that a warranty period is tolled for the period from the date upon which the buyer either delivers nonconforming goods to the seller for warranty repairs or service, or notifies the seller of the nonconformity of the goods, until the date upon which the repaired or serviced goods are delivered to the buyer, the buyer is notified the goods are repaired or serviced and are available, or the buyer is notified that repairs or service is completed, if repairs or service is made at the buyer's residence. 5. Provides that the warranty period shall not be deemed expired if either or both of the following situations occur: The warranty repairs or service has not been performed due to delays caused by circumstances beyond the control of the buyer; or The warranty repairs or service performed upon the nonconforming goods did not remedy the nonconformity for which such repairs or service was performed and the buyer notified the manufacturer or seller of this failure within 60 days after the repairs or service was completed. 1. Requires the seller to provide to the buyer a receipt showing the date of purchase. 2. Provides that, if the seller performed warranty repairs or service, the seller must provide to the buyer a work order or receipt with the date of return and either the date the buyer was notified that the goods were repaired or serviced or, where applicable, the date the goods were shipped or delivered to the buyer. This bill: 1. Revises existing warranty provisions for hearing aids to CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 4 require the retail seller to provide to the buyer with a written warranty that the hearing aid is specifically fit for the particular needs of the buyer, and if the hearing aid is not initially fit for the buyer's particular needs, the hearing aid may be returned to the seller within 45 days of the initial date of delivery to the buyer. 2. Provides that if the buyer returns the hearing aid to the retail seller, the seller will either adjust or replace the hearing aid or promptly refund the total amount paid. 3. Authorizes the retail seller to specify a warranty period longer than 45 days. 4. Requires the retail seller, on the initial date of delivery, to revise the written warranty to include the initial date of delivery to the buyer of the hearing aid and the expiration date of the warranty. 5. Specifies that the warranty period for hearing aids resumes on the date upon which (a) the repaired or serviced hearing aids are delivered to the buyer, or (b) five days after the buyer is notified the hearing aids are repaired or serviced and are available for the buyer's possession, whichever is earlier. 6. Requires hearing aid sellers, after receiving the hearing aids for warranty repairs or service, to provide to the buyer at the time of delivery to the buyer a work order or receipt specifying (a) the date the warranty period resumes, and (b) the revised expiration date of the warranty, as adjusted to reflect the suspension of the warranty period. Background In 1979, Song-Beverly established warranty provisions for assistive devices, including hearing aids. At that time, hearing aids were analog and amplified all sounds equally, and a completed fitting of the hearing aid primarily involved turning the hearing aid sound up or down. Since 1979, analog hearing aids have been slowly phased out in favor of digital hearing aids, which utilize computer chips to convert incoming sounds into a digital code. The computer chips CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 5 are adjusted based on each individual's hearing loss and listening needs. As such, a successful fitting of digital hearing aids may take a year or more, and each fitting may require a consumer to return the digital hearing aids to the provider for additional adjustments. Under Song-Beverly, hearing aid purchasers have 30 days from actual receipt by the purchaser or completion of fitting by the seller, whichever occurs later, to return the hearing aid for a replacement or for a full refund. (Civil Code Section 1793.02(a).) With the advent of digital hearing aids and extended timeframes for fittings, and because Song-Beverly provides that the warranty begins at the time of completion of fitting or actual possession of the hearing aid by the buyer, whichever is later, hearing aid consumers and providers have become uncertain as to when the warranty begins. Further, consumers may or may not recall or have documentation to support the purchase or return dates over the course of the fitting process. This bill revises the warranty and tolling provisions for hearing aids under Song-Beverly to clarify the warranty period. Comments The author writes: The technology of hearing aids has advanced significantly since Song-Beverly was introduced in 1979. At that time, hearing aids were analog; "fitting" them meant turning the volume up or down. Modern digital hearing aids convert sound into a code that can be adjusted to amplify specific parts of the sound to meet an individual's needs. Due to this additional complexity, the fitting of a hearing aid takes longer, with each fitting requiring the hearing aid be returned to the provider for adjustment. The problem lies with the several interpretations of what completion of fitting means in Song-Beverly. Currently, the 30 days may toll, only to be restarted with each successive trip to the provider. The result is a warranty period that can last upwards of a year or more. CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 6 The purpose of this bill is to provide a defined and reliable warranty period for new and used hearing aid devices. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 8/7/14) Hearing Healthcare Providers California (source) AA Hearing Aids Center Advanced Ear Care American Hearing Aid Center of the South Bay, Inc. Bartlett's Hearing Aids California Academy of Audiology Carlson's Hearing Aid Center Creekside Hearing Aid Service Gillett Hearing Aid Center Hearing Aid Systems, Inc. Miracle-Ear Center Sears Hearing Aid Centers Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology & Hearing Aid Dispensers Board Twin Cities Hearing Aid Center ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The bill's sponsor, the Hearing Healthcare Providers California, and supporters write, "Song-Beverly does not clearly define when certain warranty and right of return provisions apply to hearing aids. The vagueness of these provisions leads to confusion by the hearing aid dispenser and the consumer and makes it very difficult for the Board to mediate consumer complaints when parties involved have different interpretations of their rights and responsibilities." ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 8/7/14 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Bigelow, Bloom, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray, Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, John A. Pérez, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, CONTINUED SB 1326 Page 7 Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, Atkins NO VOTE RECORDED: Fox, Vacancy MW:k 8/8/14 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED