This week, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed A.B. 2825 (Assemblywoman
Wilma Carter, D-62nd), which would have required repairers to give
customers wholesale invoices for crash parts that cost $50 or more and
mandates that estimates and final invoices contain a disclosure that
parts switching is illegal.
The Center for Auto Safety, Consumer Action and Consumers Union
recently urged Schwarzenegger to sign the bill, while the Collision
Repair Association of California (CRA), the California Autobody
Association (CAA) and California Motor Car Dealer Association opposed
it.
Consumer groups for the bill said it was designed to protect motorists
from potential auto body repair fraud and alleged it would save
California consumers hundreds of millions of dollars annually by
eliminating parts switching by “dishonest body shops.”
Current law requires consumers be provided an itemized written estimate
prior to work commencing and a final invoice listing work completed and
parts provided.
Dubbed the "paperwork act of 2008" by the CRA, the bill, which passed
the state assembly Aug. 18, would’ve made California the first state in
the nation to require businesses to turn over wholesale records to
customers. Given that the state Bureau of Automotive Repair updated
invoice requirements through rulemaking last year, the CRA believes the
purpose of A.B. 2825 is unclear. Schwarzenegger also noted when he
vetoed the bill that it was similar to legislation he rejected last
year.
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