§ 23-112-406 — Acting as broker

(a) Notwithstanding any other statute, a person may not act as, offer to act as, or hold himself or herself out to be a broker of new motor vehicles. (b) (1) To effectuate this chapter, "arranges or offers to arrange a transaction" means soliciting or referring buyers for new motor vehicles for a fee, commission, or other valuable consideration. (2) "Arranges or offers to arrange a transaction" does not include advertising so long as the person's business primarily includes the business of broadcasting, printing, publishing, or advertising for others in their own names. (c) Brokering New Motor Vehicles. (1) A buyer referral service, program, plan, club, or any other entity that accepts fees for arranging a transaction involving the sale of a new motor vehicle is a broker. The payment of a fee to such an entity is aiding and abetting brokering. However, any service, plan, program, club, or other entity that forwards referrals to dealerships may lawfully operate if the following conditions are met: (A) There are no exclusive market areas offered to dealers by the program and all dealers are allowed to participate on equal terms; (B) (i) Participation by dealers in the program is not restricted by conditions such as limiting the number of franchise lines or discrimination by size of dealership or location. (ii) Total number of participants in the program may be restricted if the program is offered to all dealers at the same time with no regard to the franchise; (C) All participants pay the same fee for participation in the program and that shall be a weekly, monthly, or annual fee, regardless of the size, location, or line make of the dealership; (D) A person is not to be charged a fee on a per-referral basis or any other basis that could be considered a transaction-related fee; (E) The program does not set or suggest to the dealer or customer any price of vehicles or trade-ins; and (F) The program does not advertise or promote its plan in the manner that implies that the buyer, as a customer of that program, receives a special discounted price that cannot be obtained unless the customer is referred through that program. (2) All programs must comply with Regulation 1 of the Rules of the Arkansas Motor Vehicle Commission. (d) The provisions of this section do not apply to any person or entity which is exempt from this chapter.

Legislative History

Acts 1975, No. 388, § 10; 1985, No. 1032, § 6; 1985, No. 1058, § 6; A.S.A. 1947, § 75-2310; Acts 2001, No. 1053, § 17; 2009, No. 756, § 17.