What's happening
This bill prohibits early termination fees on service contracts and motor vehicle leases if the customer or lessee dies before the contract ends.
Why it matters
Protects grieving families from financial burden. By prohibiting early termination fees when a customer or lessee dies, the bill ensures that families or estates are not saddled with unexpected costs during a difficult time.
Applies to a wide range of contracts. The new rules cover not only motor vehicle leases but also common service contracts like phone, internet, energy, and water, broadening consumer protections across multiple industries.
Mandates clear disclosure. Motor vehicle lease agreements must now explicitly state, in bold type, that no early termination fee will be charged if the lessee dies, enhancing transparency and awareness for consumers signing new leases.
Applies prospectively. The law affects all new, renewed, modified, or amended contracts after its effective date, meaning consumers entering agreements going forward will benefit from these protections.
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Who cares
Headline styles
No Lease Fees After Death
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Signed chap.246
- Delivered to governor
- Returned to senate
- Passed assembly
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.330
- Substituted for A2078A
- Referred to consumer affairs and protection
- Returned to assembly
- Repassed senate
- Amended on third reading 4019a
- Vote reconsidered - restored to third reading
- Returned to senate
Show 8 earlier actions
- Recalled from assembly
- Referred to consumer affairs and protection
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 61–0
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.689
- Referred to consumer protection
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
No Lease Fees After Death
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Aileen Gunther
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4019--A Cal. No. 689
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 25, 2019
Introduced by Sen. THOMAS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection -reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, passed by Senate and delivered to the Assembly, recalled, vote reconsidered, restored to third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading
AN ACT to amend the general business law and the personal property law, in relation to early termination of motor vehicle lease contracts
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 399-zzzz of the general business law, as added by chapter 331 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows:
1. Subject to federal law and regulation[,]:
a. no provider of telephone, cellular telephone, television, internet, energy, or water services shall impose a fee for termination or early cancellation of a service contract in the event the customer has deceased before the end of such contract; and
b. a retail lessee, as defined in section three hundred thirty-one of the personal property law, shall not be liable for charges for the early termination of a retail lease agreement of a motor vehicle if he or she has deceased before the end of such lease.
§ 2. Paragraphs (i), (j) and (k) of subdivision 5 of section 337 of the personal property law are relettered paragraphs (j), (k) and (l) and a new paragraph (i) is added to read as follows:
(i) A statement in at least eight-point bold type stating that the lessee shall not be liable for an early termination fee if he or she has deceased before the end of the lease;
§ 3. Section 341 of the personal property law is amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01695-03-9
S. 4019--A 2
4. There shall be no early termination liability to the lessee if he or she has deceased before the end of such lease.
§ 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to all leases entered into, renewed, modified or amended on or after such effective date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the general business law and the personal property law, in relation to early termination of motor vehicle lease contracts
Purpose
This bill would prohibit companies from charging early termination fees on motor vehicle lease contracts if a customer has deceased before the end of such contract
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends subdivision 1 of section 399-zzzz of the general busi- ness law to prohibit motor vehicle lessors from imposing an early termi- nation fee if a customer has deceased before the end of such contract.
Section 2 amends subdivision 5 of section 337 of the personal property law to add a prohibition on early termination fees to all retail lease agreements of motor vehicles.
Section 3 adds a new subdivision 4 to section 341 of the personal prop- erty law to add a prohibition on early termination fees to the restrictions on early termination liability.
Section 4 states the effective date.
Justification
Many companies use early termination fees to ensure a customer continues use of a service through the contract length. However, there have been instances where these companies have charged early termination fees to accounts cancelled prior to the expiration of the contract due to the customer's death. Chapter 331 of the laws of 2016 prohibited telephone, cellular telephone, television, internet, energy, and water service providers from charging early termination fees if the contract was broken due to the death of the customer. However, motor vehicle leases were not included. This bill simply expands protections from early termination fees to motor vehicle leases.
Legislative history
2017-18: A9727 referred to Consumer Affairs
Fiscal implications
None to state.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to all leases entered into, renewed, modi- fied or amended on or after such effective date.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.