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The Tanner Consumer Protection Act applies to many different types of vehicles. Motorcycles, boats, and recreational vehicles are all covered by this law. New and used vehicles can both qualify as lemons (so long as the repairs occurred within the qualifying period of eighteen months from delivery and within 18,000 miles on the odometer).

Comprehensive Coverage Under California’s Lemon Law
California’s lemon law, a part of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, provides robust protection for buyers. It encompasses a variety of vehicles, including:

-Dealer-owned vehicles
-The chassis cab of a motor home
-SUVs, trucks, and electric vehicles
-Any motor vehicle with a manufacturer’s new car warranty

To qualify under this law, vehicles must meet specific criteria:

-For personal or family use, or
-For business use, weighing less than 10,000 pounds

Additionally, the vehicle must be:

-Bought or leased at retail in California, or
-Purchased or leased by a full-time active-duty Armed Forces member residing or stationed in California at the time of the claim

This ensures that both residents and military personnel stationed in California receive necessary protections, making the lemon law a vital tool for consumer rights.

The Tanner Consumer Protection Act is one of the strongest Lemon Laws in the United States. A manufacturer of a lemon can be required to replace your new vehicle with one that is not defective. It may also require the manufacturer to repurchase the vehicle from you, with deductions for the mileage that you put on the car.

Calculating the Value of Your Lemon Vehicle
To determine the repurchase or replacement value of your lemon, follow this straightforward formula:

Odometer Reading: Start by noting the odometer reading at the time you began bringing the vehicle in for repairs.
Divide by 120,000: Take that odometer reading and divide it by 120,000.

Multiply by Purchase Price: Multiply the result by the original purchase price of your vehicle to find the replacement/repurchase value.

Example: If your vehicle was purchased for $45,000 and you first brought it in for repairs at 15,000 miles, the value would be calculated as follows:

15,000 miles ÷ 120,000 = 0.125
0.125 × $45,000 = $5,625 depreciation
This means the replacement/repurchase value of your lemon would be $39,375.

Additional Compensations and Protections
The manufacturer can also be required to pay for consequential damages, such as the cost of a rental car while your lemon was being repaired, as well as your attorney’s fees. Be sure to document all costs you incur because of your vehicle’s defect.

These costs could include lost wages if you had to take time off work to deal with your lemon, or Uber and Lyft fees while your car was in the shop, or even a hotel fee if you were stuck out of town because your car broke down on you. If it can be proven that these expenses were related to the manufacturer’s neglect, you can be reimbursed for these losses in your Lemon Law claim.

California’s Lemon Law also allows additional penalties against manufacturers that “willfully” violate the Tanner Consumer Protection Act. These punitive damages are meant to punish manufacturers that try to get away with selling lemons and discourage other auto manufacturers from trying to take similar shortcuts that hurt consumers. The law allows awards of up to two times the cost of the actual damages you proved.

By understanding both the calculation and the broader protections available, you can navigate the Lemon Law process with greater confidence and ensure you receive the compensation you deserve.

The Tanner Consumer Protection Act provides for attorneys’ fees. This means that your attorney can be paid through your claim without accepting any money initially. Each case is different. The important thing is to be sure you at least consult with a lemon law attorney in Orange County so that you understand your legal rights.

The experienced Lemon Law attorneys at The Lemon Pros offer free consultations. We can discuss your case with no obligation, and we require no upfront fees to discuss your case at a consultation. Do not be afraid to at least consult with a lawyer about your potential lemon law claim.

The Tanner Consumer Protection Act provides for attorneys’ fees. This means that your attorney can be paid through your claim without accepting any money initially. When lemon law claims are won in California, it is the vehicle dealer, not the owner, who is responsible for paying the claim.

This ensures that pursuing a lemon law claim is financially accessible, as the burden of the cost does not fall on the vehicle owner. The legal framework is designed to protect consumers, allowing them to seek justice without the fear of incurring additional financial strain.

By having the dealer cover the costs, you can focus on resolving your issues and moving forward without the stress of legal fees weighing you down.

In general, people with civil claims (like a lemon law case) recover more money when they have an attorney in Orange County than when they handle their claims on their own. There are many reasons for this.First of all, an attorney knows how to prove your claim effectively. It can be challenging to know what evidence to present or how to overcome the other lawyer’s objections if you have never handled this particular type of claim before.

The experienced California Lemon Law attorneys at The Lemon Pros know how to present a persuasive case to a judge or jury. Second, an attorney knows all the different types of compensation to which you are legally entitled. You may not know that you are entitled to punitive damages. As we have seen, those can be significant, and you could miss out on thousands of dollars in compensation if you do not know how to prove that you qualify for these punitive damages.

A lawyer will also help you consider all the many expenses that could be related to your lemon. You might not think of all your lost wages, rental car fees, Uber receipts, and other losses. A lawyer will help you gather evidence of all the financial losses you have suffered so that you do not miss out on any compensation you are owed.

Perhaps most importantly, a lemon lawyer will fight on your side. Auto manufacturers hire armies of lawyers to defend legitimate claims against them. If you do not have your own lawyer, you will have to deal with the power of a large company’s entire legal department on your own. It can be nearly impossible to defend your own legal rights in this situation.

The manufacturer’s lawyers are not on your side. They might say that you have a weak case, or that you aren’t entitled to very much compensation, or that you don’t have a case at all. These people are not on your side. In fact, they are actively working against you to pay as little as possible.

You should never take this type of legal advice from someone who is on the other side. Only your own lawyer can give you the best advice about your legal rights. Your lawyer will also be able to stand up to the power of a large corporation with an extensive legal department. Doing this is the best way to ensure that your legal rights are protected.

Over the past few decades, it has become common for auto manufacturers to include mandatory arbitration clauses in their purchase agreements and written warranties. Doing this means that the customer is contractually obligated to go through arbitration before he or she may file a claim in court. Some manufacturers try to use this process to discourage consumers from filing their valid legal claims.

The Tanner Consumer Protection Act is separate from your written purchase agreement or warranty. As a result, you have the right to file a lemon law claim under this act, regardless of what your written purchase agreement or warranty requires.

Arbitration can sometimes be a useful tool for resolving legal claims without the time and expense of litigation. It is up to you and your lawyer, however, to decide whether this is the right way to handle your particular lemon law claim. The auto manufacturer cannot force you to arbitrate a lemon law claim that is separate from your contractual rights in your purchase agreement or warranty.

Most standard vehicle warranties are longer than the eighteen-month, eighteen thousand mile requirements of the California Lemon Law. This means that you may be past the time to file a lemon law claim if your vehicle is also out of warranty. However: the Tanner Consumer Protect Act focuses on when the repairs were performed.

If your vehicle was still under the eighteen-month delivery window and under 18,000 miles at the time the repairs were performed, you could still be entitled to relief under the Lemon Law, even if these repairs did not fail until after your vehicle came out of the warranty window. Extended warranties and service plans are generally not covered by the lemon law because they cover repairs made after the lemon law window has closed.

As you can see, the timing of repairs is critical, and this can become complicated when your vehicle also has a warranty or extended warranty. Always consult with a lemon lawyer to be sure you understand how these timelines apply to your particular case. You should never assume your vehicle will not be covered without discussing your case with a lawyer. If you do, you could walk away from thousands of dollars in damages to which you are legally entitled.

• Preserve Your Rights: Legal rules often stipulate specific time frames within which you must act. Filing your claim as soon as possible helps protect your right to seek compensation or replacement for your defective vehicle.
• Document Your Efforts: The sooner you start, the more comprehensive your documentation will be. You’ll have detailed records of repair attempts and any communication with the manufacturer or dealership, strengthening your case.
• Mitigate Further Loss: Owning a defective car is not just frustrating—it can also be costly. Delaying a claim might lead to additional repair expenses and time spent without a reliable vehicle. Taking action promptly helps minimize these losses.
• Avoid Complications: Waiting too long can complicate the process. Memories fade, receipts get lost, and your patience dwindles. A clear and timely approach can make your case smoother and less stressful.

1. Transfer of Coverage: When you buy a used vehicle, any remaining warranty from the original purchase can be transferred to you. This warranty is initially offered by the manufacturer and continues to cover the car even after it changes hands.
2. Limitations on Transfer: It’s important to note that some manufacturers impose restrictions on what aspects of the warranty are transferable. For instance, the powertrain warranty might only be fully applicable to the original owner. This means that, if the powertrain warranty has already expired, you may not be eligible for lemon law benefits under that specific warranty.
3. Impact on Lemon Law Claims: Lemon laws typically protect consumers from significant defects in their vehicles. However, for a lemon law claim to be valid under a transferred warranty, the problem must fall under the coverage that has been successfully transferred to you. If the transferable warranty does not cover certain issues, or if there are exceptions, your ability to make a claim could be limited.

• Buyback Process: The manufacturer must repurchase the faulty vehicle from the owner. This includes refunding the purchase price along with any taxes and fees, effectively reversing the sale.
• Reselling Conditions: Once the car is bought back, the manufacturer often seeks to resell it. However, they are bound by law to provide a warranty on the resale. This warranty generally lasts for at least 12 months or 12,000 miles, whichever occurs first.

• Consumer Protection: The warranty serves as a safety net for the new buyer, ensuring that any persistent issues will be addressed by the manufacturer at no additional cost.
• Peace of Mind: Knowing there’s legal protection makes buying a previously defective vehicle less of a risk, offering reassurance that future problems will be covered.