Virginia Law

Every agreement between a refiner and a dealer shall be subject to the following provisions, whether or not expressly set forth therein:

1. The dealer shall not be required to keep his retail outlet open for business for more than sixteen consecutive hours per day, nor more than six days per week. This subdivision shall not be construed to prevent any retail outlet being open when required to be open to conform to any local, state or federal law or regulation, nor shall this subdivision be construed to prevent any retail outlet from being open for business for more than sixteen consecutive hours per day or more than six days per week when the dealer determines that market conditions warrant such operation. This subdivision shall not apply to retail outlets which participate in the travel services signing program of the Virginia Department of Transportation.

2. The right of either party to trial by jury or to the interposition of counterclaims or cross claims shall not be waived.

3. In the absence of any express agreement, the dealer shall not be required to participate financially in the use of any premium, coupon, give-away, or rebate in the operation of a retail outlet. The refiner may require the dealer to distribute to customers premiums, coupons, or give-aways which are furnished to the dealer at the expense of the refiner.

4. No agreement or franchise subject to the provisions of this chapter shall limit, restrict, or impair the number of retail outlets which an individual dealer may operate for the same refiner, nor may any agreement or franchise establish working hours for the dealer. However, an agreement or franchise may require the dealer to be involved in the operation of the business of the dealer's retail outlet or retail outlets for not more than an average of sixty hours per month. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision, a refiner may impose a requirement in a trial franchise only, that a dealer be on the marketing premises of the dealer's retail outlet or retail outlets for a reasonable number of hours per week not to exceed twenty hours per week.

5. No transfer or assignment of a franchise by a dealer to a qualified transferee or assignee shall be unreasonably disapproved by the refiner. A refiner shall have forty-five days, after the date of submission by a proposed transferee or assignee of all personal and financial information required by the refiner's reasonable and uniform standards, within which to notify a dealer in writing that a proposed transferee or assignee meets or fails to meet the refiner's reasonable and uniform qualifications. If the proposed transferee or assignee fails to meet the refiner's reasonable and normal qualifications, the notice to the dealer shall state with specificity the reasons for such failure.

6. The term of the initial agreement between the refiner and the dealer relating to specific marketing premises shall not be less than one year; the term of all subsequent agreements between the refiner and the dealer, relating to the same marketing premises, shall not be for less than three years. The rental provisions in any such agreement or franchise shall be based on commercially fair and reasonable standards, uniformly applied to all similarly situated dealers of the same refiner in the same geographic area.

7. A refiner may require a dealer to pay a fee or charge for the privilege of honoring a credit card issued by the refiner and used by customers of the dealer in purchasing at retail products and services at retail outlets which bear the brand name or trademark of the refiner only if such refiner has deducted the cost of extending retail credit from the tankwagon price charged dealers, has notified the dealer in writing of such deduction and such fee is a part of a program designed (i) to induce retail purchases for cash or (ii) to separate the cost of extending retail credit from the tankwagon price paid by the dealer. The amount of any such fee or charge shall be directly related to the actual cost incurred by the refiner in the extension of retail credit. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A of § 59.1-21.12, any refiner who violates the provisions of this subdivision shall be civilly liable for damages in treble the amount of the damages sustained by the complaining party as a result of the violation.

8. A dealer shall have the right, effective upon his death, permanent and total disability, or retirement, to have his interests under a franchise agreement with a refiner assigned to a designated family member who has been approved by the refiner in accordance with the refiner's reasonable and uniform standards for personal and financial condition unless the refiner shows that the designated family member no longer meets the reasonable and uniform standards at the time of the previous approval. All franchise agreements shall contain a provision identifying the designated family member who is entitled to succeed to the interests of the dealer under the agreement upon his death, permanent and total disability, or retirement. The foregoing shall not prohibit a refiner from requiring that the designated family member accept a trial franchise within twenty-one days of the dealer's death, permanent and total disability, or retirement and that the designated family member attend a training program offered by the refiner.

A dealer and the refiner may mutually agree to change the designated family member entitled to succeed to the dealer's interests under a franchise agreement. The designated family member shall provide, upon the request of the refiner, personal and financial information that is reasonably necessary to determine whether the succession should be honored. The refiner shall not be obligated to accept a designated family member under this subdivision who does not meet the reasonable and uniform standards uniformly imposed by the refiner; however, any refusal to accept the designated family member as a successor dealer shall be given by the refiner in writing to the dealer, not later than ninety days after the date of the designation of the designated family member by the dealer, and shall state with specificity the reasons for such refusal.

9. a. No refiner shall condition approval of an assignment, transfer, sale, or renewal of a franchise agreement on the payment by the dealer, or the proposed successor dealer, of a franchise fee or penalty unless the assignment, transfer, or sale is of a franchise agreement covering a new or newly remodeled facility.

b. A refiner may require a dealer to pay a franchise fee or penalty, as hereinafter provided, upon the assignment, transfer, or sale of a franchise agreement covering a new facility within the first three years of the initial term of the franchise agreement, or upon the assignment, transfer or sale of a franchise agreement covering a newly remodeled facility within the first three years after the completion of the remodeling:

(1) An amount not to exceed sixty percent of the profit realized by the dealer if the assignment, transfer, or sale takes place within the first twelve-month period.

(2) An amount not to exceed twenty-five percent of the profit realized by the dealer if the assignment, transfer, or sale takes place within the second twelve-month period.

(3) An amount not to exceed ten percent of the profit realized by the dealer if the assignment, transfer, or sale takes place within the third twelve-month period.

c. Nothing in this section shall authorize a refiner to impose a franchise fee or penalty upon an assignment, transfer, or sale to a family member pursuant to subdivision 8 of this section.

d. In the case of a new facility, a franchise fee may be charged at the time the first franchise agreement is entered into.

10. Any provision in any agreement or franchise purporting to waive any right or remedy under this chapter or any applicable provisions of the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act (15 U.S.C. § 2802 et seq.) shall be null and void.

1973, c. 423; 1979, c. 306; 1982, c. 350; 1985, c. 498; 1987, c. 535; 1990, c. 907; 1991, c. 199.