Automobile Lemon Law Updates
by Mark Kessler

Consumers who have unknowingly bought a defective, unusable, and/or unsafe car may no longer be under any obligation to keep the automobile under an "as is" contract. An "as is" contract suggests that the consumer must accept the actual condition of an automobile at the time when it was bought - regardless of any problems that were apparent at the time of purchase. At first sight, an "as is" contract may seem satisfactory to the person that purchased the car, however problems occur when unscrupulous car dealers (the rat finks) hide an automobile's defects from the consumer at the time of the sale. So what a consumer may think they're getting at the time of purchase, may in fact be worse.. (Connecticut, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, do not permit "as is" sales for a majority of pre-owned vehicles.)

To protect consumers from unscrupulous car dealers, every state in North America has set forth car lemon laws designed to help car buyers resolve problematic "as is" contracts. Although automobile lemon laws differ from state to state, they are all designed to help resolve customer-dealer dissagreements, and may even outline the procedures that need to take place for taking a car dealer to court. One way automobile lemon laws help consumers, is by requiring the car dealer of a defunct (a lemon) automobile to repair it to a safe and working condition, or give the consumer a replacement vehicle. Another way automobile lemon laws help the consumer is by working closely with federal laws for further protection. Federal car lemon laws demand truth-in-lending practices and minimum safety standards. At the very least, most automobile lemon laws help by granting the consumer access to a refund for the faulty automobile and any attorney fees accured (should legal action be required to enforce the laws).

If a consumer has determined their purchase is a "lemon," and can not get the automobile dealer to fix the vehicle, or to refund their purchase, legal action against the dealer may be required. But as in any legal fight, cases will be challenged and even lost. For example, if a car dealer can prove that they weren't granted ample time to repair a defunct automobile or give the plaintiff a replacement vehicle, the complainant will not get a refund or replacement car. Even worse, if the dealer has evidence that the car owner damaged the car from abuse or from an accident, automobile lemon laws no longer apply. To successfully resolve problems, consumers must use the automobile lemon laws in the state that the vehicle was bought in and registered under. If a car dealer offers an arbitration program, the state's automobile lemon laws may require that the consumer use the dealership's program before seeking any further action from a court room. This is of course, providing that the car dealer offers his or her arbitration program in writing. If the a car dealer does not offer an arbitration program in writing, consumers of "lemon cars" can file a lawsuit.