BSM Files Allocation Lawsuit Against Hyundai Motor America

BSM has been retained by a Florida Hyundai dealer to bring legal claims against HMA for failing to fairly allocate vehicles to our client. Like many other dealers we have heard from, our Florida Hyundai dealer repeatedly saw where his Hyundai competitors were receiving many more new vehicles through the allocation process. Even taking into account difference in market size, it is obvious that some dealers are being favored with more new product than others. Indeed, under the current limited vehicle production environment, the OEMs cannot hide behind the old excuse that the complaining dealer is just not turning its new vehicle inventory fast enough as virtually every vehicle on a dealer’s lot is sold before the vehicle physically arrives at the dealership!

The legal claims against HMA involve both a breach of Hyundai’s obligations under its dealer agreement and the requirements of Florida law. Similar to most states, Florida law requires that dealers be allocated a fair and reasonable supply of new vehicles. This allocation requirement does not make an exception for vehicles which are distributed by the OEMs through a “discretionary pool.” Instead, the state franchise laws contemplate that all vehicles distributed in a state will be done so in a proportionally fair manner.