Walk It Through: The Lemon
Certified mail and 30 days to repair, one repair for a brake or steering failure, and 3 years to sue.
A new car's steering fails in its first months.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One car and one steering failure. Arbitration, leases, and the damage deduction in detail are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Lemon lawThe rule that a defect reported by certified mail within the earlier of 18,000 miles or 24 months is repaired free, and if not fixed after a reasonable number of attempts, the vehicle is replaced or refunded at the consumer's option.
- Rent escrowThe tenant's action to pay rent into court over a defect that is a fire hazard or a serious and substantial threat to life, health or safety, once the landlord fails to repair within a reasonable time.