The California lemon law is made to protect consumers who have purchased or leased a vehicle that turns out to be a lemon vehicle. Customers who have experienced a lemon issue sometimes only deal with the manufacturer or dealer and get fooled or conned by them. The best thing you can do is to hire a qualified lemon law attorney in California to understand what your options are and what you can do.
If your manufacturer has got a reasonable amount of repairs under the warranty and makes the vehicle unsafe to ride then you are qualified to get a refund, replacement or a settlement under the California lemon law. Your lemon law rights remain intact even if you are the owner of a used car.
These are some of the most asked questions that a lemon law attorney is asked:
Do I Have to Pay Any Upfront Fees?
No, the consumer filing the lemon law claim is not required to pay any upfront fees to the lawyer. The California lemon law requires the manufacturer to pay the attorney fees of the consumer along with other costs incurred in the lemon law case. This was put in place to take away the financial risk on the consumer when hiring a lemon law attorney and don’t have the means to pay for them.
How Many Attempts Can be Done to Repair the Vehicle Before Filing a Lemon Law Claim?
The law doesn’t specify an exact number of the repair attempts that can be done. It says that a reasonable amount of repairs can be done for small repairs and less for major issues in the vehicle. A reasonable number can vary in every case of a lemon law.
Does the Lemon Law Apply to All Vehicles?
The lemon law applies to cars, trucks, motorbikes, vans, boats, watercrafts and several consumer goods that a manufacturer’s warranty covers.
What If I Have a Used Car?
If you have bought a used car while you are covered under the manufacturer’s warranty then you are eligible to a lemon law claim. Your lemon law attorney will help you know if your vehicle is eligible for a lemon law claim or not.
Is Arbitration Required Before Your File?
No, the lemon law court urges you to go for arbitration before you file to settle matters beforehand. However, you are not required to go for an arbitration before you file. If your manufacturer or dealership tells you this then they are lying.
Does the Lemon Law Apply to Higher Number of Miles or If the Vehicle is More than a Year Old?
If the vehicle’s issue was found during the warranty period and had been through a reasonable number of repairs then the age of the vehicle won’t matter and you will be able to make a lemon law claim.
What About Out of Warranty Vehicles?
If your vehicle was under the manufacturer’s warranty when the issue was found and if the reasonable amount of repairs is done under an extended warranty then you are eligible to file a lemon law claim even if your vehicle is out of warranty.
Can the Dealership or the Manufacturer Keep My Vehicle for More than 30 Days?
The manufacturer or the repair facility is required to fix the issue within 30 days unless there are certain issues that cannot be fixed in 30 days. If they fail to repair the vehicle in under 30 days, they will have violated the California lemon law.
What About Out of State Vehicles?
The lemon law will apply to the state in which the vehicle was purchased.
The vehicle should also be registered in the state that it was purchased under the manufacturer’s original warranty. There is however, an exception to this rule which applies to active military duty. If the consumer had purchased the vehicle in the United States from a dealership or a manufacturer that also sells vehicles in your state. If you are a resident of the state and were stationed in the state when you purchased the vehicle or when you filed for the lemon law claim.
You can contact a lemon law California attorney if your case is eligible to file in your respective state or not.
Conclusion
A lemon law attorney is your best choice if you want to have a strong case against the manufacturer and the dealership. The chances of winning your case will drastically increase if you hire a lemon law attorney for your case. If you get a lemon and are going back and forth with the dealership for repairs then the best choice is to go to a lemon law attorney and consider your options.