PUBLIC LAW 96-454—OCT. 15, 1980
94 STAT. 2017
a program to settle disputes between such carriers and shippers of household goods concerning the transportation of household goods may submit an application for establishing such program to the Commission. Such application shall be in such form and contain such information as the Commission may, by regulation, require. The Commission shall review and approve, in accordance with the provisions of this section, each application submitted under this subsection. "(2) The Commission shall approve, at least within 45 days of its Application filing, any application to establish a program for settling disputes approval. concerning the transportation of household goods which meets the requirements of subsection (b) of this section. (3) The Commission may investigate at any time the functioning Investigations. of any program approved under this section and, after notice and an opportunity for a hearing, may suspend or revoke its approval for failure to meet the requirements of this section and such regulations as the Commission may issue to carry out the provisions of this section. "(b) No program for settling disputes concerning the transportation Program of household goods may be approved under this section unless the requireprogram is a fair and expeditious method for settling such disputes ments. and complies with each of the following requirements and such regulations as the Commission may issue: "(1) The program is designed to prevent a carrier from having any special advantage in any case in which the claimant resides or does business at a place distant from the carrier's principal or other place of business. "(2) The program provides for adequate notice of the availability of such program, including a concise easy-to-read, accurate summary of the program and disclosure of the legal effects of election to utilize the program. Such notice must be given to persons for whom household goods are to be transported by the carrier before such goods are tendered to the carrier for transportation. "(3) Upon request of a shipper, the carrier must promptly provide such forms and other information as are necessary for initiating an action under the program to resolve a dispute. "(4) Each person, authorized pursuant to the program to arbitrate or otherwise settle disputes, must be independent of the parties to the dispute and must be capable, as determined under such regulations as the Commission may issue, to resolve such disputes fairly and expeditiously. The program must ensure that each person chosen to settle the disputes is authorized and able to obtain from the shipper or carrier any material and relevant information to the extent necessary to carry out a fair and expeditious decisionmaking process.
- (5) No fee for instituting a proceeding under the program may
be charged the shipper; except that, if the program is binding solely on the carrier, the shipper may be charged a fee of not more than $25 for instituting a proceeding under the program. In any case in which a shipper is charged a fee under this paragraph for instituting a proceeding under the program and such dispute is settled in favor of the shipper, the person settling the dispute must refund such fee to the shipper unless the person settling the dispute determines that such refund is inappropriate. ' (6) The program must not require the shipper to agree to utilize the dispute settlement program prior to the time that a dispute arises.
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