N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 653

Current through 2024 NY Law Chapter 457

Section 653 - Specific disclosures

1. Prior to the execution of a membership camping contract, the purchaser must be provided with a disclosure document which shall begin with the following language printed in upper case boldface type of a minimum size of ten points:

DISCLOSURE DOCUMENT THIS DISCLOSURE STATEMENT CONTAINS IMPORTANT MATTERS CONCERNING THE PURCHASE OF A MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT. STATE LAW REQUIRES THAT THESE DISCLOSURES BE MADE, BUT NO STATE AGENCY OR OFFICIAL HAS REVIEWED THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT. THE STATEMENTS CONTAINED HEREIN ARE ONLY SUMMARY IN NATURE. YOU SHOULD NOT RELY UPON ANY ORAL REPRESENTATIONS WHICH ARE INCONSISTENT WITH THE DISCLOSURES CONTAINED HEREIN AS BEING CORRECT. A MEMBERSHIP CAMPGROUND OPERATOR IS PROHIBITED FROM MAKING ANY REPRESENTATIONS WHICH CONFLICT WITH THOSE CONTAINED IN THE CONTRACT OR THIS DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.

2. The disclosure document shall consist of a written statement containing all of the following information:

a. The name and address of the membership campground operator.

b. A description of the operator's business experience. Such description shall disclose any event within the last ten years in which the operator has filed for or been subject to involuntary bankruptcy, insolvency, or an assignment for the benefit of creditors, or has been convicted of a felony in any criminal case or proceeding or has been the subject of a judgment unless reversed on appeal in any civil or administrative case or proceeding involving fraud, or deceptive practices, or violation of any law applicable to membership campgrounds. The operator shall also make such disclosures as may be required and mutually agreed upon as a result of negotiations between the operator and the attorney general and contained in a consent order or assurance of discontinuance resulting from an investigation, action or proceeding commenced by the attorney general.

c. A brief description of the nature of the purchaser's right or license to use the membership campground operator's property or facilities.

d. The location of each membership campground owned by the membership campground operator which is offered for purchaser's use and a brief description for each campground of the facilities then available for use by purchaser, and those facilities which are represented to purchaser as planned, together with a brief description of any facilities that are or will be available to non-purchasers or non-members. The description required herein shall include, but not be limited to, the number of camping sites in each campground, the number of camping sites in each campground with full or partial hook-ups, and a description of the facilities at each campground.

e. The following statement shall be given in the contract, printed in boldface type of a minimum size of ten points reading:

PURCHASE A MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT ONLY ON THE BASIS OF EXISTING FACILITIES. CONSTRUCTION OF PLANNED FACILITIES MAY SOMETIMES BE DELAYED OR TERMINATED FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS.

f. A description of the membership campground operator's ownership or other right to use the campground together with the duration of any lease, license, or franchise entitling the membership campground operator to use the property, and any material provisions of any agreements which restrict a purchaser's use of the property.

g. A description of the effect on the purchaser's membership rights if a subsequent holder, successor, assign or other person later acquires the campground or campgrounds through foreclosure, bankruptcy, sale, deed, or other conveyance.

h. A copy of the rules, restrictions or covenants regulating the purchaser's use of the membership campground operator's property or properties, including a statement of whether and how the rules, restrictions or covenants may be changed.

i. A brief description of all payments required to be made by a purchaser under a membership camping contract, including initial fees and any further fees, dues, charges or assessments, together with an explanation of how such fees, dues, charges or assessments may be increased.

j. A description of any restraints on the transfer of the membership camping contract, including applicable fees.

k. A description of the policies relating to the availability of the camping sites and whether reservations are required, and what usage rights non-members have, if any.

l. A description of any grounds for forfeiture of any membership camping contract.

m. A statement describing the material terms and conditions of any reciprocal program represented to be available to purchasers, including whether the purchaser's participation in the reciprocal program is dependent upon the continued affiliation of the membership campground operator with the reciprocal program, and whether the reciprocal program operator and/or the membership campground operator have reserved the right to terminate that affiliation.

n. A statement of the maximum number of memberships to be sold as compared to the number of camping sites available to those members, expressed in a ratio form.

o. The following statement, in bold letters of at least ten point type where in capital letters below, which advises the purchaser of the right to cancel the contract under section six hundred fifty-four-a of this article, shall be contained in the disclosure document:

ADDITIONAL RIGHT OF CANCELLATION: AFTER THREE (3) BUSINESS DAYS FROM THE DATE THAT YOU EXECUTE SAID CONTRACT YOU MAY CANCEL FOR ANY OF THE FOLLOWING REASONS:

(1) A material breach in the provision of the essential services and programs set forth in the membership camping contract; or

(2) You have relocated to a permanent residence not less than five hundred miles from a campground or other facility where you can use your membership; or

(3) You, your spouse, or your domestic partner currently resides in or are notified of and accept the opportunity to commence occupancy in an adult care facility or a residential health care facility; or

(4) You, your spouse, or your domestic partner are certified by a physician as physically unable to visit the resort and materially use the services and programs as outlined in the contract; or

(5) You are the victim of domestic violence perpetrated by another signatory of the same contract.

Immediately following the above right of cancellation notice, the instructions below shall be given in the same type as the print for the contract text.

"Notice of cancellation shall be in writing subscribed by the purchaser or his or her legally designated representative and sent by certified mail to the membership campground operator at the address stated herein. Such notice shall be accompanied by the original or copies of the membership camping contract and all supporting documentation. If you are exercising your right to cancel after three business days, such notification shall also include a written statement that certifies that the representations are true and correct, and contain no material omissions of fact to the best of your knowledge and belief."

2-a. The following statement, in bold letters of at least ten point type, which advises the purchaser of the right to cancel the contract under section six hundred fifty-four of this article shall be contained in the contract:

YOU MAY CANCEL THIS MEMBERSHIP CONTRACT WITHOUT ANY PENALTY, FORFEITURE, OR FURTHER OBLIGATION WITHIN THREE (3) BUSINESS DAYS FROM THE DATE THAT YOU EXECUTE SAID CONTRACT. FOR ADDITIONAL RIGHT OF CANCELLATION SEE THE DISCLOSURE DOCUMENT.

Immediately following the above right of cancellation notice, the instructions below shall be given in the same type as the print for the contract text.

"Notice of cancellation shall be in writing subscribed by the purchaser or his or her legally designated representative and hand delivered or mailed by certified mail to the membership campground operator at the address stated herein and postmarked not later than three business days from the date of execution of said contract. Such notice shall be accompanied by the original or copies of the membership camping contract and all supporting documentation."

3. The disclosure statement shall contain a signature line for the purchaser immediately above which shall be printed in boldface type of a minimum size of ten points the following words:

THE UNDERSIGNED HAS READ ALL OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.

N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 653