What if you wake up one morning and find your car to be a lemon? Would you make a lemonade of it and start your day by drinking it? Sounds weird, right? Well, if unfortunately your car turns to be a lemon, your state’s lemon law could come to your rescue. Check out how.
Few years back my husband bought a 1995 Audi Cabriolet from a local shop. He should’ve pulled off his hands from it when he saw cobwebs and dead leaves in the dashboard. But, as he was quite young at that time, and broke, in spite of the low mileage, price and friendly connections obliged him drive the beau home.
For last few years it ran with fewer troubles. But few weeks ago I noticed while coming back from Dallas that the speedometer was stuck on 20 mph while I was driving at a greater speed. Then again, some days later, the brakes started leaking, then the timing belt broke - whatever could go wrong, took place, in due time.
Could we call it lemon? And what on earth could we do with it? Let us try to find the answer of the questions below.
What makes a car lemon?
In order to legally consider a car lemon, it needs to have serious, irrevocable flaws that affect its overall value, welfare, or usefulness. For instance, if the door lock or the ac stops working but the car drives well, then it’ll not technically be considered as lemon.
However, if a car doesn’t drive like how it should during warranty, it might be a lemon.
What are the state lemon laws?
Though lemon laws are in place in all the 50 states, they do vary. In some states like Arizona, qualified car buyers (both used and new) can get remedy if the car turns out to be a clunker. However, in states like Colorado and Delaware, lemon law protection is available only for buyers of brand-new vehicles.
What if you have bought from a dealer?
If there is any defect, you should inform the dealer about it within a certain period of time. It’s also your moral duty to inform the individual whom you buy the vehicle form and give him/her a chance to fix it. However, if the dealer fails or denies, then you could take your next recourse.
What if you bought from a private party?
Many states don’t extend lemon law protection to private party deals. Check with your state’s department of insurance or your agent to see if you are lucky enough or not. For instance, California’s lemon law only applies to dealer-bought cars.
In some other states like Massachusetts, lemon law do cover private transactions. However, you need to submit a proof that the seller did not inform you about the defect.
What is the 3-day return policy?
You perhaps have heard that that you can return a car within 3 days of purchase if you are not happy with it, Unfortunately, that’s a myth since the 3-day federal cooling off rule doesn’t apply to car purchases. Hence, the moment you take delivery of the car and drive away, no refunds are imperative.
What if your vehicle turns to be a lemon?
Since there is no easy & definite answer, you should check with your state’s lemon law.
