§ 504-b. Maintenance of merchandise. 1. The merchant shall maintain the property subject to the rental-purchase agreement in good working order while the agreement is in effect without charging any fee to the consumer in addition to the regularly scheduled rental payments set forth in the rental-purchase agreement.

2. By the end of the second business day following the day on which the merchant received notice from the consumer that the property is not operating properly, the merchant shall repair or replace the property without any fee to the consumer in addition to the regularly scheduled rental payments set forth in the rental-purchase agreement.

3. If a repair or replacement cannot be immediately effected, the merchant shall temporarily substitute property of comparable quality and condition while repairs are being effected. If repairs cannot be completed to the reasonable satisfaction of the consumer within thirty days after the merchant receives notice from the consumer or within a longer period voluntarily agreed to by the consumer, the merchant shall permanently replace the property.

4. All replacement property shall be the same brand, if available, and comparable in quality, age, condition, and warranty coverage to the replaced property. If the same brand is not available, the brand of the replacement property shall be agreeable to the consumer, provided, however that any request by the consumer shall not be unreasonable.

5. All of the consumer's and merchant's rights and obligations under the rental-purchase agreement and this title that applied to the property originally subject to the rental-purchase agreement shall apply to any replacement property.

6. The consumer shall not be charged, or held liable for, any pro rata portion of a periodic payment for any period of time greater than one full day and each full day thereafter during which the property that is the subject of the rental-purchase agreement or any property substituted for it pursuant to this section is not in good working order.

7. This section shall not apply to repairs or damage for which the consumer is liable under the rental-purchase agreement as permitted by this article.

8. A merchant shall not deliver to a consumer any property which the merchant knows or has reason to know is defective.