What Is the Lemon Law in Georgia?
The Georgia Motor Vehicle Warranty Rights Act, Georgia’s Lemon Law, entitles consumers to a refund or replacement after purchasing or leasing a defective vehicle, a “lemon.” If your vehicle is proven to be a lemon, the law also requires the vehicle’s manufacturer to pay your attorney’s fees and any other incidental costs you incur.
To qualify as a lemon, the vehicle must have a defect that substantially impairs its use, value, or safety. A vehicle can also qualify simply by failing to meet the quality standards defined by its express warranty. In either case, the defect must persist after a reasonable number of repair attempts for the vehicle can be classified as a lemon.
Georgia’s Lemon Law applies to self-propelled vehicles that were purchased or leased new within the State of Georgia. The vehicle must be designed to transport people or property and be intended for use on public roads. Any vehicles that meet these requirements are protected under the law, except for the following:
- Trucks weighing more than 12,000 lbs
- Motorcycles
- Golf Carts
- Parts of motorhomes other than the vehicle and chassis
Although the Georgia requires consumers to jump through some hoops before they can file a Lemon Law claim with the courts, our attorneys will handle all procedural issues for you. And, if a lawsuit does become necessary, more than 99% of our cases settle before going to trial.
If you think you have a lemon, the sooner you take action, the more likely you are to succeed in making your case. So contact us today for a Free Case Review. Even after the review, we only charge for our services if we secure compensation for you, and the Lemon Law’s fee-shifting provisions allow us to bill the manufacturer when we win. Thus, the only thing you have to lose is your lemon.
How the Georgia Lemon Law Works
Filing a claim under the Georgia Lemon Law can be complicated if you’ve never done so. However, experienced attorneys, like those at Krohn & Moss, Ltd. Consumer Law Center®, make the process as simple as possible. And in approximately 99 percent of the time, we obtain a settlement for our clients without having to go to trial. But let’s walk through the whole process anyway.
After a reasonable number of attempts fail, you must submit a written request to the manufacturer for your choice of a replacement vehicle or a refund. We can do this on your behalf and often succeed in obtaining our clients’ desired outcomes by doing so. If the manufacturer doesn’t honor your request within 20 days, we take further action.
The next step is submitting a dispute with the manufacturer’s informal dispute settlement mechanism. If they fail to make a decision within 40 days or you’re dissatisfied with the decision, we move on to arbitration. And if the manufacturer has not established such a program and received certification for it from the Attorney General, we can skip directly to arbitration.
Read All FAQs for Georgia here.
To bring your case to arbitration, we must file a written application with the Attorney General. If they deny the arbitration request, we have two opportunities to appeal the decision. Otherwise, they should schedule a hearing within 40 days of agreeing to arbitration. When that date comes, we’ll make your claim to the arbitrators, who rule in our favor for most cases and often award attorney fees and incidental damages in addition to a refund or replacement vehicle.
However, if the arbitrators side with the manufacturer, the final step would be to appeal the decision to the superior court. We have 30 days to do so after the arbitration hearing, but only a tiny fraction of our cases ever make it this far. We often settle our clients’ cases long before reaching this point.
As you can see, filing a Lemon Law claim can be a long and frustrating process. That’s why it’s essential to seek help from an experienced lemon law attorney to usher you through it.
How the Krohn & Moss, Ltd. Consumer Law Center® Can Help
Our team has successfully handled over 50,000 Lemon Law cases across the country. We will do everything that we can to obtain the maximum compensation you’re entitled to under the Georgia Lemon Law and/or the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. We provide all of our potential clients with a free consultation to help them understand whether or not they have a case.
If you do have a case, we’ll help you compile the necessary paperwork to start the process and handle all of the necessary correspondence with the manufacturer, Attorney General, and arbitration boards. Plus, we use the fee-shifting provisions in state or federal Lemon Laws to charge the manufacturer for our services instead of you.
So if you think you have a lemon and want help from a team of experienced attorneys to defend your rights, reach out to us at (866) 388-8290 or here on our site.
Why Choose Krohn & Moss as Your Georgia Lemon Law Firm?
- 25+ Years of Experience Turning “Lemons” into “Lemon-Aid”
- Over 50,000 Success Stories Nationwide
- Accomplished, Trustworthy Attorneys
- Responds to All Inquiries within 24 Hours
- No Fees Unless We Win Your Case
- We Always Seek Maximum Compensation for Clients
