Maine Revised Statutes, Title 10, § 1248: Warranty, 1997

1. Parts or labor; satisfaction of warranty. If a personal sports mobile franchisor requires or permits a personal sports mobile franchisee to perform labor or provide parts in satisfaction of a warranty created by the franchisor, the franchisor shall properly and promptly fulfill its warranty obligations and shall: A. Reimburse the franchisee for any parts provided at the published manufacturer's suggested retail price at the time of retail sale; and [PL 1997, c. 717, §4 (AMD).] B. Reimburse the franchisee for any labor performed at the retail rate customarily charged by that franchisee for the same labor when not performed in satisfaction of a warranty. The franchisee's rate for labor not performed in satisfaction of a warranty must be posted in a place conspicuous to its service customers. [PL 1997, c. 473, §3 (NEW).] [PL 1997, c. 717, §4 (AMD).] 2. Claim. Any claim made by a franchisee for compensation for parts provided or for reimbursement for labor performed in satisfaction of a warranty must be paid within 30 days of its approval from the franchisor. All the claims must be either approved or disapproved within 30 days of their receipt. When any such claim is disapproved, the franchisee that submitted it must be notified in writing from the franchisor of its disapproval within that period, together with the specific reasons for its disapproval. [PL 1997, c. 473, §3 (NEW).] 3. Restrictions prohibited. A franchisor may not restrict by agreement, restriction upon reimbursement or otherwise the nature or extent of labor performed or parts provided so that the restriction impairs the franchisee's ability to satisfy a warranty created by the franchisor by performing labor in a professional manner or by providing parts required in accordance with generally accepted standards. [PL 1997, c. 473, §3 (NEW).] 4. Costs; fees. In any claim that is disapproved by the manufacturer and in which the dealer brings legal action to collect the disapproved claim and is successful in the action, the court shall award the dealer the cost of the action together with reasonable attorney's fees. Reasonable attorney's fees must be determined by the value of the time reasonably expended by the attorney and not by the amount of the recovery on behalf of the dealer. [PL 1997, c. 473, §3 (NEW).]