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What vehicles are covered?
What defects are covered?
How many repair attempts?
Do I have to go to arbitration?
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What vehicles are covered?
New and used automobiles, trucks, boats, motorcycles, jet skis, trailers,demonstrators, and motorhomes with a manufacturer warranty are covered by the lemon law. in 2005, the California courts decided that used cars which are out of manufacturer's warranty but still covered by a dealer service contract are not covered by the lemon law. You need a manufacturer's warranty to be covered. Buyers who purchased a used car “as is” may still have a remedy if there was any auto dealer fraud, but such claims generally do not fall under the lemon law.
The lemon law covers both sales and leases. It covers vehicles used for personal use. In addition, up to five vehicles used in a business are covered if you bought or leased from 1999 forward. Business vehicles leased or bought prior to 1999 may be covered by the federal lemon law.
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What defects are covered?
Any defect which substantially impairs the use, value, or safety of the vehicle to the buyer. Examples would include steering problems, faulty brakes, transmission issues such as "hard-shift" or "no-shift", engine stalls, electrical difficulties, and repeated no-starts. This is by no means an exhaustive list, since various different problems may amount to a substantial impairment of use, value, or safety.
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How many repair attempts or days out of service are required?
You must have brought the vehicle in for a repair during the warranty period. A common misconception is that you must have brought the car in four times within the first year. In fact, you must merely offer the dealer a “reasonable number” of repair attempts. A good guidepost for a "reasonable number" is either four repair attempts or 30 days out of service (not necessarily 30 days in the shop), but every situation is different. In the case of a defect substantially impairing safety, fewer repair attempts should suffice.
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Do I have to participate in a manufacturer-sponsored arbitration program?
No. You are free to hire counsel and file a lemon law suit without going to arbitration. If you have already gone to arbitration and don't like the result, you can still obtain an attorney and pursue your lemon law rights in court.
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