A: Basically, so long as your vehicle has a manufacturing defect which affects safety, value, or use, and it cannot be repaired after a reasonable number of attempts by the manufacturer's or dealer's service personnel, and the original repair occurred within the new car warranty period, then the vehicle is likely entitled to these legal protections.

A: Any used vehicle only qualifies for protection under the California lemon laws if it was purchased with an unused portion of the manufacturer's original, new car warranty remaining at the time of purchase. For example, if the vehicle was originally covered by the manufacturer's 36 months/36,000 miles warranty, then it must have been purchased as a used vehicle within 36 months of the time that the vehicle first went into service, and with fewer than 36,000 miles on the odometer at the time of purchase. Manufacturers' new car warranties differ and you should check the original owner's manual to determine the limits of that new car warranty. Also, you should note that an extended service contract is not the same as the manufacturer's new car warranty and does not change the requirement stated above.

A: The California "lemon law" presumption is merely a legal device which is only meaningful if negotiations with the manufacturer fail, and you must resort to litigation. It then allows the consumer/plaintiff to establish at trial that she or he has met the plaintiff's normal burden of proof that the vehicle is a lemon and shifts the legal burden to the manufacturer to prove otherwise. That's all it does. And note too, it is not necessary to satisfy the presumption before filing a lemon law claim.

The "lemon law" presumption states that if you have 1. purchased or leased a new car, truck, motorcycle, or motorhome, for 2. personal or small business use, and 3. if during the first 18 months or 18,000 miles you brought the vehicle to a dealer for repair of the same or similar problem four or more times, or only two or more times if the manufacturing defect results in a condition that is likely to cause death or serious bodily injury, or if it was out of service for a total of more than 30 days within that time, and 4. if the problem is still not fixed, then 5. the legal presumption is established.

Q5: Do I have to qualify for the "legal presumption" in order to obtain the benefits of the California "lemon laws?"

A: No. The presumption is neither a requirement nor a prerequisite. There are many situations which do not exactly meet the "lemon law" presumption, but which may still entitle you to "lemon law" protection. So long as the defect substantially affects safety, value, or use, and occurred within the new car warranty period, and cannot be repaired after a reasonable number of repair attempts, the vehicle is entitled to these legal protections. One of our attorneys will be glad to review your situation to see whether it is covered.

A: If you qualify we will be able to recover your down payment, (including registration fees, licensing fees, taxes, transportation costs, etc.), plus your total monthly lease or loan payments, plus a portion of your attorneys' fees, less only a "usage fee" based on mileage, as allowed under the California lemon laws.

Q7: Do I need to first go through arbitration?

A: NO, you do not need to first go through arbitration to make a "lemon law" claim. In fact, arbitration can be dangerous because if the decision is against you, that decision may later be used as evidence against you in any subsequent court action which you may file against the manufacturer.

A: The manufacturer has 30 days to comply with our formal legal demand. Once you have accepted a satisfactory offer it takes approximately another 15 to 30 days to return the vehicle and receive your payment from the manufacturer.

A: With our "no recovery - no fees" policy, if you never recover a satisfactory settlement, you pay nothing. And we do not require a retainer. Your portion of the attorneys' fees only comes out of the monies we recover for you from the manufacturer.

A: Call 888-EX LEMON for a free consultation. You then mail or fax your documents to us for our legal and financial analysis. Once we have reviewed and accepted your case, discussed it with you, and you have retained our firm, we do it all. Your main requirement after that will be to return the vehicle to the manufacturer and receive your payment.

A: As far as you, the consumer, is concerned that's all you need to do. We, however, continue to work diligently and aggressively with the manufacturer on your behalf during this entire period.

A: We are a full service law firm specializing exclusively in "lemon law" and related vehicular and consumer protection cases.

We handle "lemon law" cases for clients throughout the entire State of California. You don't even need to initially meet with us on these cases because once you fax or mail us your documents, we do it all . . . without any inconvenience to you.