2020 New Jersey Revised Statutes
Title 56 - Trade Names, Trade-Marks and Unfair Trade Practices
Section 56:8-226 - Limit on service fee.
56:8-226 Limit on service fee.
2. a. It shall be an unlawful practice and a violation of P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.) for any third-party food takeout and delivery service application or Internet website, during and until the first day of the third month following any state of emergency declared by the Governor in response to COVID-19 that restricts restaurant dine-in service to less than 25 percent of the maximum capacity allowed by law, to charge a service fee to a restaurant for food take-out or delivery orders that is:
(1) greater than 20 percent of the cost of the individual order; or
(2) greater than 10 percent of the cost of the individual order, when the order is delivered by an employee of the restaurant or an independent contractor with whom the restaurant has contracted directly.
The provisions of this section shall not be construed to limit the ability of any restaurant to choose to pay up to 25 percent of the cost of the individual order to access additional advertising or other products and services offered by any third-party food takeout and delivery service application or Internet website. However, any restaurant that chooses to pay a service fee that is greater than the fee set forth in the provisions of this section shall be required to affirmatively elect to pay that fee regardless of any contract that is in effect on the effective date of this act unless the contract was entered into prior to the state of emergency declared by the Governor pursuant to Executive Order No. 103 of 2020.
b. The provisions of this section shall supersede and preempt any county or municipal law, ordinance, resolution, or regulation concerning the relationship between third-party food takeout and delivery service applications or Internet websites and any restaurant utilizing its services.
c. As used in this section, "third-party food takeout and delivery service application or Internet website" means any online food ordering and delivery service that allows a consumer to place an order for takeout or delivery from a restaurant.
L.2020, c.42, s.2.
