When you buy or lease a vehicle only to discover underlying problems in it later, you may have a lemon on your hands. A lot of vehicles every year turn out to be lemon with an unfixable problem. What can you do?
A lemon law attorney San Diego can help. Every state has a lemon law to help consumers with lemon vehicles and is in need of help for their situation. A lemon law attorney can help you take advantage of these laws and get you the recovery that you deserve.
What is a “Lemon”?
To qualify as a lemon under the majority of state laws, your vehicle has to:
Have a substantial defect that the manufacturer hasn’t been able to fix even after a ‘reasonable number of times” determined by the court or any other problems that make it unable to use the vehicle.
- If the issues were found before 18 months or 18,000 miles.
- If the vehicle has been in the garage for over 30 days.
Also, to qualify for the lemon law, you need to follow the federal lemon law requirements as well as the laws of your state, keep these things in mind:
Go to a Registered Mechanic
To qualify for the lemon law, all the work done on your vehicle should be done by a registered mechanic. If you take your vehicle to a mechanic who isn’t registered, the manufacturer won’t be held responsible.
Keep Receipts/Records
Any and all work done on the vehicle should always be recorded. These records will show how many times the vehicle was in the garage for repairs and how many days it took the mechanics to try to fix the vehicle.
Lemon Law for Used Vehicles
Consumers who buy used cars “as is” can run into problems as soon as they buy the vehicle. These cars are sold at marked down prices so the vehicle owner incurs all the repair costs. There can also be serious issues with these vehicles as the dealership isn’t liable for repairs but you are.
However, there are strict requirements for vehicles sold “as is”. The vehicle must have a buyer’s guide which shows that the vehicle is sold “as is” and it should be displayed clearly on the vehicle. It should also provide the details of how the vehicle performs and other important things. If these instructions are not clear in the buyer’s guide, the dealership won’t be able to win against you.
Getting a Refund or a Replacement
If your vehicle is having an issue and meets the required laws of your state, you will get the right to get a refund or a replacement for your vehicle. Each state has a different law so you need to make sure that you let the manufacturer know. If the settlement that you have been offered is not as good as you feel it should be, you can go to arbitration before going to court to settle the case.
Hiring a Lemon Law Attorney Near Me
The manufacturer of the vehicle always has a team of lawyers who will try to deal with your lemon law claim. Hiring the best lemon law attorney in San Diego will greatly benefit your case as they know the law much better. Also, you do not have to pay a penny when you win the case as all the lawyer costs will be covered by the manufacturer resulting in a win-win situation for you.