Lemon Law for California

Automobile lemon laws typically require the consumer to notify the dealer and manufacturer of a claim. The laws also require you to use non-court procedures such as arbitration to resolve disputes before going to court. Remedies available to consumers under these laws vary from state to state, but may include:

• Returning the car for a refund of the purchase price (less some amount for the use of the car before it is returned)

• A replacement car, or

• Payment for excessive repairs

Automobile lemon laws typically require the consumer to notify the dealer and manufacturer of a claim under the lemon law. The laws also specify that non-court procedures such as arbitration be used to resolve disputes before going to court. The remedies that are available to consumers under these laws vary from state to state, but may include:

• Returning the car for a refund of the purchase price (less some amount for the use of the car before it is returned)
• A replacement car, or
• Payment for excessive repairs

In an increasing number of states, automobile lemon laws have been extended to apply to used vehicles. For example, a state law may provide that if a used car fails inspection within a certain period of time after it is purchased, the consumer may return the car or require the seller to repair it.

Basically, the Lemon Law requires manufacturers to meet the terms of  the warranties that they give you.
The lemon law is what keeps the dealers and manufacturers in line. If we didn’t have automobile lemon laws there wouldn’t be any way to keep these car companies from turning out a bunch of junk and then ignoring you when you complain.  The manufacturer is required to repair or correct any defect or condition which impairs the use and value of your vehicle, while it is under the warranty period or during the period of one year after you get it.

If the manufacturer or authorized dealer can’t repair the condition after a reasonable number of tries, then, under the law, the buyer is entitled to receive a replacement vehicle of equal value or a refund that equals the full purchase/lease price and collateral costs. Of course, this is minus an allowance for the customers use.

The law for lemons is assuming that a reasonable number of attempts have been made this usually means:
• At least four unsuccessful attempts to repair the same defect have been made; or
• A car has been out of service because of warranty repairs for at least 30 cumulative days during the warranty period or during the year after the car was delivered to the consumer; or
• There have been 10 or more tries while the car was under warranty or during the first year of ownership, to fix various defects which will significantly impair the use and value of the car.
However, it is worth noting that the manufacturer does not have to make a refund or replace the car if:

• The defect does not significantly impair the use and value of the car; or

• The condition of the car is the direct result of consumer abuse, neglect, or unauthorized alterations of the vehicle by the consumer.
Ok, so what about the buyer’s responsibility?

Well, just because there have been a reasonable number of attempts to fix a defect in a car does not automatically make you eligible for a refund or replacement vehicle. Actually, you must notify the manufacturer or authorized dealer of the problem during the warranty period or within a year after you get the car as I mentioned above.

Also, if the manufacturer of the car has an informal dispute settlement program in place, and most of them do, you have to try to resolve your complaint through this program before you can take any other actions. If you are still unsatisfied after going thru the dispute resolution process, you should contact an attorney or file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office immediately.

Ok, you’ve done everything you were supposed to do and you’ve given the car manufacturer the chance to do what they’re supposed to do. What now? Well, don’t go off half-cocked. You still need to have a better understanding of the lemon law in your state and how it applies to you.
Now I know it’s kinda hard to make any sense of all that legal mumbo-jumbo in the law. That’s why I’m going to give you a basic understanding of what lemon laws are and how they effect you next.

The first thing you need to know in dealing with your new lemon car is whether or not it actually qualifies as a lemon. After all, it does no good to try to exercise your rights under your states automobile lemon law if your car isn’t a “true lemon”.
So, the question is, do you have a lemon car?

 
Well, that’s what we’re going to answer here.
But first, what DOESN’T qualify as a lemon. Now, if the paint is just peeling, or if the light switch came out when you pulled on it, or if the car is starting to make strange noises, but it’s safe to drive it doesn’t qualify as a lemon.
If you found a bunch of stuff you don’t like about your new car but none of them actually makes the car undrivable or dangerous, you don’t have a lemon.
 
But, if the brakes don’t work, or it won’t go into reverse, or it won’t start on cold mornings or hot afternoons, or the car barely runs at 30 mph when it should easily be going 50 mph, then you may have a lemon. This of course, only applies if you have given the manufacturer an chance to fix it.
 
In most states, 10 different defects during the warranty period do not automatically make the car a lemon. In some states, a single defect that might cause serious injury makes your car a lemon if the manufacturer cannot fix the problem within 1 attempt.
As a general rule if your car has a serious defect that is unrepairable or is still defective after giving the manufacturer a reasonable chance to fix it AND all this happened during the warranty period, you may well have a lemon on your hands. Of course this is just a generality, every state has it’s own automobile lemon laws and you’ll have to go by your state’s lemon law guidelines to determine if your car qualifies as a lemon.

You may have a lemon, but if you do nothing to protect your rights, like keeping track of all repairs and giving the manufacturer a chance to fix the problem, you could lose all rights under the various state lemon laws.
Ok, so you’ve checked your state’s lemon laws and you are pretty sure you’ve got a lemon. Now what? Well, it would probably be a good idea to be sure of exactly what your responsibilities are as a lemon car owner as well as the responsibilities of the manufacturer. 

The automobile lemon laws were designed to protect car buyers from irreparable manufacturers’ defects in automobiles that should be ordinarily be covered under warranty.

So How Did The Lemon Laws Come About?

Consumer demand for lemon law protection started to swell from around 1972, when more than one million people were found to have paid for vehicles that had problems that dealers could not, or would not, repair. Connecticut and California were the first states to adopt an automobile lemon law, and other states were quick to follow. They’ve had a dramatic effect on vehicle quality and today, with the increased accountability demanded by lemon laws, claims have dropped to about 100,000 new cases a year.

So What Is Covered Under Lemon Law?

Every state now has an automobile lemon law and the specifics of each vary widely. However, as a general guideline, you are considered a candidate for protection under the lemon law if you have a serious problem (or, in certain cases, a string of minor problems) that falls under your car warranty. A problem is usually considered serious when it threatens the use, value, or safety of the vehicle.

Some examples of serious problems that would probably be covered include brake failure, transmission problems, and repeated non-starts. The lemon law in most states will not cover thing like funny noises, loose cup holders, and peeling paint - most times that’s just fair wear and tear.

The type or ownership of vehicles is also important when it comes to protection under the lemon law. In some states, leased vehicles are covered as well as wholly owned vehicles. Others exclude automobiles purchased for business purposes or special kinds of vehicles such as RVs and motorcycles. Even used vehicles may be covered if they come with a car warranty.

Inevitably, some shady car dealers try and write a clause in sales contracts that states that no lemon law claims can be made against the vehicle. These provisions are totally invalid and can be ignored - as long as your vehicle has a car warranty and qualifies under the other automobile lemon law provisions, you will be covered no matter what you originally signed.

Before any lemon law comes into effect you must give the manufacturer ample opportunity to repair the problem in question. This is usually defined as a specific number of repair attempts (for example, four attempts to repair the same problem) or a certain amount of time when the vehicle is out of action (for example, four weeks). A life-threatening vehicle defect may require only one attempt at repair before falling under the lemon law.

So What Happens if I Qualify for the Automobile Lemon Law?

If you believe that you qualify for protection you must file a claim with the manufacturer within a certain period of time. Usually, the case will then be brought for arbitration with the manufacturer. If you win your case, you will most often receive a replacement vehicle or a refund of your purchase price minus a fee for vehicle use.
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