New Car Lemon

Consumers who have problems with new cars they purchase or lease may be protected by the New Car Lemon Laws as enacted by each state. You can read more about them by clicking on State Lemon Laws A consumer can demand a refund or replacement by the manufacturer if the vehicle has a defect which substantially impairs its use, market value or safety and which has not been repaired after a reasonable number of attempts during the “warranty” period.

If you’re driving a Lemon, you may have legal rights which permit you to obtain one of the following:

• A new car
• A full refund including registration fees, sales tax, finance and interest charges
• A partial refund for your defective new car at no cost to you

As a general rule, a lemon is normally a vehicle that continues to have a defect that substantially restricts its use, safety, or value, even after reasonable efforts to repair it. This often means multiple repair attempts on the same problem or a directly related problem within six months to one year depending on the state the vehicle was purchased, Or, it might mean the vehicle is out of commission for more than thirty NON-consecutive days during either: (1) the year after the dealer sold it; or (2) the duration of any express warranty, whichever is shorter.

The Krohn & Moss Consumer Law Center® helped thousand’s of customers to understand their rights and responsibilities under the New Car Lemon Laws (as applicable by each state) with the strategies which would be required to obtain a fair resolution.

New vehicles may contain hidden mechanical flaws or defects in workmanship, caused by design flaws or by an error during the automotive factory build process. These errors can range from parts being installed incorrectly to a tool that was used to build the car not being removed or a batch of materials with structural or chemical flaws. The primary objective of these new car lemon laws is to force manufacturers to buy back defective vehicles or exchange them.

To avoid getting stuck with a problem car, here are a few precautions you can take:

• Inspect your new vehicle before you accept delivery. If you detect any problems, refuse delivery until they've been corrected. Don't accept a dealer's promises that everything will be taken care of at the first service.
• Review and keep copies of the manufacturer's literature about your model, especially advertisements, brochures and warranties. Any statements the carmaker makes about performance could help you get a refund or replacement if a defect keeps the car from living up to the claims.
• Follow the guidelines in your owner's manual for routine maintenance. Keep thorough records of all service and any problems that crop up.
• Whenever you take your car in for repairs, give the service adviser a dated note that describes all of the conditions you're concerned about. Keep a copy of the note in your files.
• Get a detailed repair order every time you take your car in for repairs, even if the shop isn't able to diagnose or fix the problem. Be sure all repair orders indicate how many days the vehicle was in the shop.
• Keep copies of the repair orders and other paperwork some where other than in your car, where they could get lost.

If you have a new car lemon and if you want to find out if you are entitled to cost free legal help, please Contact the Krohn & Moss Consumer Law Center® by calling our toll free telephone number 1-800-US-LEMON (1-800-875-3666), emailing us at queries@consumerlawcenter.com, or completing our FREE case review. We will attempt to quickly resolve your claim with the manufacturer at no cost to you.