Code of Ethics

National Limousine Association: The Voice of the Chauffeured Transportation Industry Worldwide

PREAMBLE

Ethical business practices, those standards of conduct and moral judgment that we all must adopt in our business lives, are the foundation of an effective and functional society. Members of the chauffeured transportation industry have an obligation to this industry and to the public that it serves, to act with honesty and integrity in every aspect of its business, with other members, with employees, with vendors and with customers. It is essential to the image and credibility of the chauffeured transportation industry, that we embrace the highest ideals of
fairness, compassion, sincerity, truthfulness and reliability. Members therefore should be zealous to maintain and improve the ethical standards of our industry and to encourage with our fellow members the common responsibility of promoting integrity and honor in our industry. The term Member should connote competency, fairness, and high integrity resulting from adherence to a lofty ideal of moral and ethical conduct in business relations.

Accepting this standard as our own, we, as members of the NATIONAL LIMOUSINE ASSOCIATION, pledge to observe its spirit with high standards of honesty, integrity and responsibility in all our activities and to conduct our business in accordance with the tenets set forth below.

While the Code of Ethics establishes obligations which may be higher than those mandated by law, in any instance where the Code of Ethics and the law conflict, the obligations of the law take precedence.

Articles 1 through 5 are inspirational and establish ideals, which we, as members of the National Limousine Association, should strive to attain.

ARTICLE 1

Members should become and remain informed on matters affecting the livery industry in the community, the state and the nation so that we may be able to contribute responsibly to influence public policy and increase our credibility with the public on industry matters.

ARTICLE 2

Members should always be informed regarding laws, proposed legislation, governmental regulations, public policies and current market conditions.

ARTICLE 3

Members should endeavor to eliminate any practices which would be damaging to our industry. Members should assist all governmental agencies charged with regulating the practices of our industry.

ARTICLE 4

Members should willingly share with other members the lessons of experience and study for the benefit of the public and the chauffeured transportation industry at large.

ARTICLE 5

Members should be loyal to the NATIONAL LIMOUSINE ASSOCIATION and active in its work.

ARTICLE 6

Members shall uphold and abide by all laws and regulations pertaining to the chauffeured transportation industry.

ARTICLE 7

Members shall promote and operate only that equipment which is functionally sound and which is consistent with objective standards of safety.

ARTICLE 8

Members shall seek no unfair advantage over other members and shall conduct business so as to avoid such controversies.

Standard of Practice 8-1

Members shall not misrepresent the kinds and availability of chauffeured transportation in the area. NLA members will provide in writing, when requested, complete details about the cost, restrictions, and other terms and conditions, of any transportation service sold, including, but not limited to, cancellation and service fee policies.

ARTICLE 9

Members pledge to promote and protect the interests of its employees, vendors and clients. This obligation of absolute fidelity to these affected parties’ interests is primary, but does not relieve members of the obligation to treat fairly any other party involved or to uphold all laws. Members will not use deceptive practices.

Standard of Practice 9-1

NLA members will be factual and accurate,

When providing information about employment opportunities and compensation to
potential employees.

When presenting terms and conditions relating to products and services purchased or
secured from vendors and other members.

In all representations about their client services and the client services of any firm
they represent.

ARTICLE 10

Members shall not accept compensation from more than one party, even if permitted by law, without the full knowledge of all parties to the transaction.

ARTICLE 11

Members shall avoid exaggeration, misrepresentation, or concealment of pertinent facts relating to any service rendered.

Standard of Practice 11-1

Members shall not be party to the naming of a false consideration or representation in any document.

Standard of Practice 11-2

Members shall, with respect to the subcontracting of another member, timely communicate any change of compensation or terms for subcontracting services to the other member prior to the rendering of service.

Standard of Practice 11-3

The offering of premiums, prizes, merchandise or service discounts or other inducements is not, in itself, unethical even if receipt of the benefit is contingent upon providing service by the member making the offer. However, members must exercise care and candor in such advertising or other public or private representations so that any party interested in receiving or otherwise benefiting from the member’s offer will have clear, thorough, advance
understanding of all the terms and conditions of the offer. The offer of any inducements to do business is subject to the limitations and restrictions of law and ethical obligations.

ARTICLE 12

Members shall not deny equal professional services to any person for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. Members shall not be parties to any plan or agreement to discriminate against a person or persons on the basis or race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.

ARTICLE 13

Members are expected to provide a level of competent service in keeping with the standards of practice in all areas of the ground transportation industry. A NLA member shall not, in exchange for money or otherwise, engage any other limousine company when there is no reasonable expectation that the company will engage in a bona fide effort to provide transportation services to the general public on behalf of the member.

ARTICLE 14

NLA members will cooperate with any inquiry conducted by NLA to resolve any dispute involving consumers, vendors or another member. Mediation is the preferred method of dispute resolution, not litigation. No member of the NLA Board of Directors who has any interest in a dispute involving consumers, vendors or another member, shall be involved in any mediation and shall be recused from mediating any such dispute.

ARTICLE 15

If charged with unethical practice or asked to present information or to cooperate in any other way with the grievance process, members shall place all pertinent facts before the Ethics Committee and shall take no action to disrupt or obstruct the grievance process.

ARTICLE 16

Members will at all times present true and accurate descriptions in their advertising, marketing and representations to the public.

Standard of Practice 16-1

Members will at all times, protect the integrity of all other members’ intellectual property in the form of trade names, trade marks, copyrights and any other mark that identifies the brand or name of a member company.

Standard of Practice 16-2

Members shall make all advertising and sales promotions factually accurate with respect to equipment description, service performance, and cost of service and shall avoid those practices, which tend to mislead or deceive the client with respect to pricing.

ARTICLE 17

The fact that a client has exclusively used a member in respect to past or current service creates no interest which precludes or inhibits any other member from seeking such client’s future business.

ARTICLE 18

Members shall utilize the services of other members with mutually agreed upon terms, when doing so is in the best interest of the client.

Any and all issues, negotiations or communication concerning subcontracted work shall be directed to the contracting member, not the client, except with the consent of the contracting member.

Standard of Practice 18-1

It is the obligation of the member acting as a subcontractor to disclose immediately all pertinent facts to the contracted member prior to, during and after the service rendered.

Standard of Practice 18-2

Members shall disclose, agree and accept all terms of the subcontract agreement when subcontracting with another member. Members shall strictly abide by all terms of any subcontract agreement or contract, with special attention to payment terms and conditions.

Standard of Practice 18-3

Entitlement to and amount of compensation in a cooperative transaction between or among members must be agreed upon before service is provided.

Standard of Practice 18-4

Members subcontracting work to another member must notify the subcontracted member within 30 days if there are service issues related to the work performed that require an adjustment or elimination of charges due to the subcontracted member. In the absence of notification within the 30 day time period, the subcontracting member will pay any and all invoices submitted for services in full. Deductions from the original invoice will not be allowed.

Standard of Practice 18-5

Members acting as subcontractors shall not use the terms of subcontracting, nor shall members use any information received from the subcontractor about a particular client for the purpose of soliciting that client.

ARTICLE 19

Members shall write all contract and warranties so that they are fair and mutually beneficial to all parties concerned, so that they are free of ambiguities or omissions which tend to obscure contractual obligations, and so that all terms and provisions are free of the capacity to mislead or deceive the client as to the quality, longevity or cost of the service.

ARTICLE 20

Members shall honor all contractual agreements until and unless they are altered or dissolved by the mutual consent of all contractual parties concerned and shall fulfill those obligations in a reasonable manner that is fair to all parties concerned.

ARTICLE 21

Members shall promptly acknowledge and act on all employee, vendor and client complaints. In situations where complaints appear unreasonable and persistent, members shall encourage aggrieved parties to initiate or shall themselves initiate dispute settlement by the Ethics Committee.

ARTICLE 22

Members shall treat all employees fairly in respect to working conditions and compensation.

ARTICLE 23

Members shall not publicly disparage the business practice of a competitor nor volunteer an opinion of a competitor’s service. If an opinion is sought and if a member deems it appropriate to respond, such opinion shall be rendered with strict professional integrity and courtesy.

ARTICLE 24

NLA members will not use improperly obtained client lists or other confidential information obtained from an employee's former employer.

Resolution

This is the Code of Ethics of the National Limousine Association and all members are encouraged by the Board of Directors to adhere to it.

Amendment

As deemed appropriate and necessary, amendment to the Code of Ethics of the National Limousine Association may be made from time to time by the Board of Directors.

December 2007 * Revised July 2010