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History
- Referred to consumer protection
- Referred to consumer protection
Full text
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Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S471
Title of bill
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to the purchase, sale, or installation of salvaged high-intensity discharge headlamps
Purpose
To prevent the illegal purchase, sale or installation of stolen high density discharge headlamps.
Summary of provisions
A new section 398-e is added to the general business law which makes it a class E felony to knowingly possess, sell, or install a stolen uninstalled high-intensity discharge (HID) headlamp.
Persons engaged in the business of purchasing, selling, or installing salvaged HID headlamps shall maintain a manual or electronic record of the purchase, sale, or installation which will include the identification number of the salvaged headlamp; the vehicle identification number of the vehicle from which it was removed; the name, address, and driver's license number or other identification of the person from whom the salvaged HID headlamp was purchased; and, in the event that the salvaged HID headlamp is installed, the VIN of the vehicle into which the HID headlamp is installed.
The record must be retained for 36 months following the transaction and may be inspected during normal business hours by any NYS law enforcement officer.
Any person who sells or installs a salvaged HID headlamp must disclose to the purchaser or consumer that it is salvaged. The owner or proprietor of any business that fails to maintain complete and accurate records as required by subdivision two of this section will be guilty of a misdemeanor for such failure.
Justification
Headlamp theft is becoming as big an epidemic as air bag theft once was. The high intensity discharge headlamps being used in luxury cars are coveted by teenagers who buy them along with converter kits from unscrupulous auto parts dealers. The headlamps can be removed from most cars in under a minute but not without extensive damage to the vehicle. It can cost as much as $5,000 to repair such a vandalized car.
In 1996 New York enacted the Airbag Safety and Anti-Theft Act to stop air bag theft by providing that an airbag activated in a crash or one that was stolen could only be replaced by a newly manufactured air bag or a salvaged one that was certified by a nationally recognized engineering and research body. Now, cars are no longer vandalized for air bags.
This legislation will curtail HID headlamp theft, saving insurance companies money and the car owner aggravation, wasted time and higher insurance premiums.
Legislative history
This legislation has been previously introduced.
Fiscal implications
None to the state.
Effective date
The first of November after it becomes law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.