New Jersey Legislators Want to Ban In-Car Subscriptions for Pre-Installed Hardware

The New Jersey General Assembly introduced a bill late last month that would make it illegal for manufacturers to charge vehicle owners to use pre-installed hardware. The bill, written by Assemblymen Paul Moriarty and Joe Danielsen, is clearly inspired by recent events. Earlier this summer, BMW began charging drivers on a monthly basis for the use of its vehicles’ heated seats and other pre-installed features, like built-in safety cameras, heated steering wheels, and more. (So far, this is only the case in South Korea, Germany, New Zealand, South Africa, and the UK, but some fear the model could make its way to the US.) Perhaps emboldened by BMW’s shift, Tesla announced a week later that it would start charging drivers for navigation services after the first eight years of vehicle ownership.

If made into law, the bill would prohibit dealers and vehicle manufacturers in New Jersey from even offering customers subscription services that utilize “components and hardware already installed on the motor vehicle at the time of purchase or lease.” This means if those cozy heated seats are present during the test drive, you can’t be charged on a monthly or annual basis to actually use them once you’re home. Entities found violating this regulation would be charged up to $10,000 for a first offense and $20,000 for any subsequent offense.

There’s a major stipulation to the legislators’ proposal, however: The ban wouldn’t apply to any hardware that would present an “ongoing expense to the dealer, manufacturer, or any third-party service provider.” The last is understandable; no one’s arguing Sirius XM or OnStar services should be free for years on end (though it’d certainly be nice). But dealers and manufacturers could have a field day with this provision, arguing that software maintenance, over-the-air upgrades, and even hardware recalls subject them to ongoing expenses that make it impossible to provide usage to drivers for free.

It’ll be a while before we find out whether the bill stands a chance of becoming law. The legislators have referred the bill to New Jersey’s Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee, which will decide whether to push it onward for a House vote and then governor review. Hold onto your heated seats, everyone—this one will take a minute.

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