What to Do If You Have Been Sold a Lemon in California?

Buying a new car should be exciting. Unfortunately, dealerships sometimes sell new and certified pre-owned vehicles that turn out to be lemons, meaning they have substantial problems that cannot be resolved after a reasonable number of repair attempts. It’s crucial to know what to do if you have been sold a lemon in California. It is also wise to consult a California lemon lawyer from Lemon Law Pro regarding your case.

What Is a Lemon?

A lemon is a new or leased vehicle that has persistent, substantial defects that can’t be fixed by the manufacturer after a reasonable number of repair attempts. Generally, defects only qualify a vehicle as a lemon if they impact its use, value, or safety.

The Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act mandates that the defect must occur within the first 18 months or 18,000 miles of owning the car, whichever comes first. Before you can open a lemon law case against the auto manufacturer, you must give them a reasonable number of attempts to repair the vehicle. They have:

• Four attempts to repair a problem that does not directly impact the vehicle’s safety
• Two attempts to repair a problem that could leave you in danger of death or bodily injury if it is not fixed
• A total of 30 days to attempt to resolve the problem

If you’ve already reached this threshold, it’s time to hire a lemon law attorney who can help you file a claim.

Your Next Steps

After attempting to have your vehicle repaired, your next step is easy. You should contact our office to schedule a consultation with an attorney. We travel throughout the Golden State to meet with our clients. Our firm can handle all aspects of their cases, from vehicle inspections to consulting expert witnesses to representing them in court appearances. From start to finish, we can take care of your claim so you don’t have to deal with any additional stress.

How to Tell Whether You Have a Claim

If you purchased a new vehicle with a manufacturer’s warranty and it developed a covered defect within the stipulated timeframe, you probably have a lemon law claim. Until 2023, used vehicles that were still covered under their original manufacturers’ warranties were also covered by the state’s lemon laws. Unfortunately, that year, the California Supreme Court found in Rodriguez v. FCA US that used vehicles still under their original warranties were not necessarily covered by lemon laws.

Now, only certain certified pre-owned vehicles that are still under the original manufacturer’s warranty are covered. If you’re not sure whether your vehicle is covered under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, you should contact our office to discuss the specifics of your case.

Hire a Lemon Law Attorney Today

If you’ve already given your dealership the requisite number of attempts to repair your vehicle and they are not issuing you a refund or replacement, we can help. The team here at Lemon Law Pro focuses exclusively on cases involving defective vehicles. In 2023, there were over 22,000 of these cases across California.

If your case is one of the many being brought against auto manufacturers this year, you can trust us to handle it for you at no cost. If we’re successful, our fees get paid by the manufacturer. Even if we’re not, there is still no cost to you. Contact us to schedule a consultation.