Rule 60-2-1-.02 - DefinitionsAll definitions contained in O.C.G.A. § 10-1-782 are hereby incorporated by reference into this Chapter. Additionally, as used in this Chapter and the Georgia Lemon Law, the term:
(1) "Act" or "the Act" means the Georgia Lemon Law of 2008, as set forth in Article 28 of Chapter 1 of Title 10 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.(2) "Attorney General" means the Attorney General or his or her designee.(3) "Arbitrator" means a person serving on the panel who decides the case.(4) "Certified mechanism" or "certified informal dispute settlement mechanism" means a mechanism which has been certified by the Attorney General pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 10-1-785(d).(5) "Decision maker" means the person who decides a dispute submitted to a certified mechanism.(6) "Gross vehicle weight rating" means the gross vehicle weight rating of a vehicle specified by the manufacturer, or, if unspecified, the maximum allowable total weight of the vehicle when loaded to capacity, including the weight of the vehicle itself, all occupants, fuel, cargo, and any other miscellaneous items.(7) "Independent technical expert" means an expert in motor vehicle mechanics who is certified by the National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence. The expert may be a volunteer or be paid by a certified mechanism, the panel, or the Attorney General, but in all respects shall be in both fact and appearance independent from a manufacturer, new motor vehicle dealer or the consumer.(8) "Legal holiday" means all days which have been designated as public and legal holidays by the federal government and all other days designated and proclaimed by the Governor of this state as public and legal holidays.(9) "Location that is reasonably convenient to the Georgia consumer" as it relates to the site of a hearing conducted by the panel or a certified mechanism means a neutral location within one hundred twenty (120) miles of the consumer's residence, if the consumer resides in Georgia.(10) "Mechanism" means an informal dispute settlement mechanism established or designated by a manufacturer to hear and decide disputes.(11) "Motor home" means the self-propelled vehicle and chassis, including but not limited to the vehicle exterior, driver and passenger compartments, and parts and components identical or similar in function to those found on any other new motor vehicle as defined at O.C.G.A. § 10-1-782(15), but shall not include those portions of the vehicle designated, used, or maintained primarily as living quarters, office, or commercial space.(12) "Out of service day" means any day, including weekends and legal holidays, when a new motor vehicle is left at a manufacturer's authorized agent or designated repair facility for an examination or repair of one or more nonconformities. The number of out of service days for each visit commences the day the vehicle is brought into the repair facility for that repair work and ends the day the work is completed. However, a vehicle shall not be deemed out of service for any day it is dropped off at the repair facility after the close of business. Out of service days shall not include any day on which the vehicle is left at the repair facility exclusively for (a) the performance of routine maintenance; (b) repair of problems that are not found to be nonconformities; or (c) repair of nonconformities after the expiration of the lemon law rights period.(13) "Repair attempt" means the replacement of a component or some adjustment made to correct a nonconformity. (a) An examination of a reported nonconformity, without a subsequent adjustment or component replacement, may constitute a repair attempt if it is later shown that repair work was justified.(b) An examination or repair performed by any person not authorized by the manufacturer or its authorized agent shall not be considered a repair attempt.(c) In the case of a motor home, if: 1. While traveling, the consumer goes to a repair facility for repair of a nonconformity; and2. That facility does not have the part(s) necessary to perform the repair; and3. The consumer elects to continue traveling and seek repair of the nonconformity at another repair facility rather than wait for the initial repair facility to obtain the necessary part, the visit to the first repair facility shall not constitute a repair attempt.(14) "Repair facility that is reasonably accessible to the consumer" means: (a) In the case of a new motor vehicle other than a motor home, a repair facility located within sixty (60) miles of the consumer's residence or the location of the new motor vehicle if not at the consumer's residence. If no repair facility is located within sixty (60) miles, "repair facility that is reasonably accessible to the consumer" means the repair facility closest to the consumer's residence or the location of the new motor vehicle if not at the consumer's residence; or(b) In the case of a motor home, the repair facility closest to the consumer's residence or the location of the motor home if not at the consumer's residence.(15) "Statutory overnight delivery" shall have the meaning set forth at O.C.G.A. § 9-10-12.(16) "Transfer" as used in connection with a reacquired vehicle means a change of ownership, by gift or any other means.(17) "Ultimate consumer" means the first person who purchases or leases a reacquired vehicle for purposes other than resale or sublease.(18) "VIN" means vehicle identification number.Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 60-2-1-.02
O.C.G.A. §§ 1-4-1, 10-1-782, 10-1-795.
Original Rule entitled "Definitions" adopted. F. May 16, 2016; eff. June 5, 2016.