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#003 |
Date: 06/06/22 |
Action Required: Rule Update—Selling Non-Posted, New Conversions
In this bulletin…
- QAP Rule 5.T. has been updated (this requires online acknowledgement by July 1)
- A formal enforcement policy for 5.T. violations has been adopted (this also requires online acknowledgement by July 1)
- Declaration of Non-Posted Conversions – If you have non-posted, new personal-use conversions in stock or on customer-sold order, you have until July 1, 2022 to declare those VINS/VONS to NMEDA (if applicable, this requires a form upload)
The most recent listing of compliant, posted conversions is always available here on the NMEDA website. A condensed, printer-friendly version is also available here.
If you don’t have any non-posted conversions to declare, you are welcome to complete the required online acknowledgement now and check this off your to-do list!
Otherwise, read on…
QAP Rule 5.T. has been updated
The NMEDA Board of Directors recently moved to clarify QAP Rule 5.T., which establishes compliance requirements for the sale of new, personal-use conversions by QAP accredited locations:
5.T. Regulatory Compliance:
New Conversions* –The participant shall be in possession of, and be able to produce evidence that NMEDA determines, in its sole discretion, establishes compliance with identified regulatory requirements for all personal-use, new conversions the participant advertises, offers for retail sale, or sells at retail.
Conversions that have been reviewed and accepted by NMEDA’s Compliance Review Program (CRP), and posted to the NMEDA website, meet the requirement above.
For those conversions not posted to the NMEDA website, acceptable forms of evidence include:
- a NMEDA-specific test report summary from a NMEDA-authorized third-party test lab or NMEDA-authorized engineering firm stating compliance to all applicable regulatory standards; or
- an acceptance statement from NMEDA CRP, based on CRP’s established, objective criteria.
Absent the ability to meet, or to objectively prove satisfying, the compliance evidence threshold, offering for retail sale or selling at retail a personal-use, new conversion a is a rule violation that may result in the suspension of the participant’s QAP status.
* = for purposes of this subsection, “new conversion” is defined as: a converted vehicle which has not been the subject of a retail sale since the conversion; or a customer-owned vehicle which the participant offers to convert, or causes to be converted.
A formal enforcement policy for 5.T. violations has been adopted
The Board also moved to adopt the following enforcement policy:
Violations of QAP Rule 5.T.
Except as provided for below (“Declaration of Non-Posted Conversions”), a QAP accredited location that violates QAP Rule 5.T. by offering for retail sale or delivering a non-posted, personal-use new conversion will have its QAP accreditation suspended for six months.
A QAP accredited location that fails to comply with a corrective action order issued for a violation of QAP 5.T. within 10 business days will have its QAP accreditation suspended for six months.
To be reinstated, a location must refrain from any 5.T. rule violations during the suspension period and submit to an out-of-sequence audit (at its own expense) to verify compliance prior to reinstatement.
If reinstated, a subsequent violation of QAP Rule 5.T. by the same location within the two-year period following reinstatement will result in a two-year suspension of that location.
All locations are required to complete the online acknowledgement of the 5.T. rule update and enforcement policy by July 1, 2022.
Declaration of Non-Posted Conversions
The NMEDA Board recognizes that there may have been some confusion among members about Rule 5.T. With that in mind, the following policy is being adopted.
- By July 1, 2022, each dealer may complete and submit a Declaration Form listing the following:
- The VIN of any potential non-compliant conversion currently in stock at each dealership; and
- The VON of any potential non-compliant conversion on order, which shall be a confirmed customer order only, and therefore include the customer’s last name.
- The conversions declared on forms uploaded on or before July 8, 2022 (and only those conversions) will be exempt from Rule 5.T. enforcement.
- Undeclared conversions and conversions declared on any forms uploaded after July 8, 2022, will NOT be exempt from enforcement.
The Declaration Form can be uploaded during the completion of the online acknowledgement.
As stated above, the most recent listing of compliant conversions is always available here on the NMEDA website. A condensed, printer-friendly version is also available here.
Thank you for your continued support of the Quality Assurance Program.
Find all Bulletins here: QAP Bulletin Archive