Protecting the California Lemon Law
Every year tens of thousands of vehicles sold and leased in California are lemons. A vehicle is a lemon if it has been repeatedly repaired while under the manufacturer’s warranty and the defects substantially impair its safety, use or value. Fortunately, the California Lemon Law, also known as the Song Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, provides consumers with great protection for their defective vehicles.
What is the California Lemon Law?
In 1970, the California Lemon Law was enacted to protect the rights of consumers who have purchased or leased a defective vehicle. The law ensures that the vehicle is suitable for its intended purpose and must perform the way the manufacturer promised. If the vehicle is unable to be repaired after a reasonable number of repair attempts, the law provides that the manufacturer is required to provide the consumer with a refund or replacement.
The California Lemon Law is Under Attack
The auto manufacturers produce millions of vehicles year after year that often have hazardous and substantial safety defects. According to the vehicle history report provider Carfax, there are more than 6.3 million vehicles currently on the roads in California that have unrepaired safety recall defects, such as unintended acceleration, brake failure, catching on fire, exploding airbags, and more.
Consumer protection laws, like the California Lemon Law, hold the auto manufacturers accountable for defective vehicles they place in the market, especially when the defects pose substantial safety concerns and potentially deadly safety defects. The California Lemon Law holds the auto manufacturers responsible for warranty repairs, which repairs can trigger safety recalls, which can be extremely time-consuming and expensive.
Over the years, the California Lemon Law has resulted in incredible consumer protection and is directly responsible for improving automotive safety and emissions, which should be a top priority for the automotive industry. However, rather than comply with the California Lemon Law, the auto industry is attempting to undermine and weaken the protections that California consumer advocates have fought so hard for over the last 50 years.
You Can Help Protect the California Lemon Law
The bottom line is the auto manufacturers should be held accountable for the vehicles they produce and they should NOT be able to weaken consumer protection laws.
If you own or lease a vehicle and you vote in the state of California, you can help save the California Lemon Law by calling or emailing your local state representative or senator and advising them to protect California consumers and to protect the California Lemon Law. You can find out who your local state lawmakers are HERE.
To learn more about the California Lemon Law, join us during our Webinar on March 10th @ 3pm!
