Category: Lemon Law

Auto fraud, Consumer, Lemon Law

The car I bought doesn’t work – now what?

Maybe this sounds familiar: After looking cars over at the dealership, you set your eyes on what seemed like a great vehicle. So, you signed paperwork the dealer put in front of you and bought it. Everything felt right and you drove off the lot.

Later, the car turns out to be not so good. You contact the dealer and ask them to fix a problem you didn’t know about at the time of sale. Maybe the dealer won’t return your calls, or maybe you take the vehicle back for work but the dealer won’t get it done. Or, maybe the dealer tells you it’s a used car, so none of the problems are their responsibility.

Many buyers are unfamiliar with important legal rules about what happens when the vehicle isn’t what it seemed. If you have a vehicle that doesn’t live up to its sales pitch, and you’re struggling to get the dealer to fix the problem, contact us to see what we might be able to do. We have assisted many clients with disputes about defective vehicles (including warranty disputes, lemon law claims, and more). Often we are able to recover damages for our clients and our attorney’s fee from the dealer if we take a case, meaning the client doesn’t have to pay us for our time up front.

Each case is fact specific and we can only advise you about your options once we review all the relevant documents about your sale. Laws about auto sales can be complicated, and our firm’s consumer protection attorneys can carefully review your paperwork to check whether your dealer may owe you damages.

Consumer, Lemon Law

Don’t Be Taken for a Ride: Getting the Relief You Need in a Lemon Law Case

Maybe this scenario sounds familiar: someone you know spends thousands of dollars, perhaps financed with a loan at a high interest rate, to buy an exciting new car. Sadly, though, the excitement is short-lived, since the vehicle promptly begins to experience a seemingly endless series of mechanical problems. The warranty service provider does not know what to say about the vehicle; it’s just one of those unfortunate “lemons.” What options are available for this frustrated car owner?

The good news is that Washington has a “Lemon Law” that protects car buyers in certain situations. By law, the manufacturer has to honor a consumer’s demand to repurchase or replace their vehicle if it meets the legal standard of a lemon. To have a winning claim, the car owner must generally begin to experience problems with the vehicle early—within the first two years or 24,000 miles after the original sale. The law defines four specific lemon law claims that trigger repurchase or replacement by the vehicle’s manufacturer. Read more about the specific types of lemon law claims on pages 3-4 in this brochure provided by the Washington Attorney General’s Office.

If you or someone you know is dealing with a suspected lemon law case, a consumer protection attorney should be able to help you understand your options, value your claim, and protect your interests. If you plan to seek a repurchase or replacement of your vehicle, an attorney can help present your case to the manufacturer or arbitrator.

Our firm has experience serving consumers with lemon law claims. Contact us for a free initial consultation if you would like to discuss your rights concerning a potential lemon. Certain special remedies may be available for owners of specific vehicles covered by class-action settlements; for example, you may have up to six years to pursue a claim for repurchase or replacement of the following Ford vehicles equipped with a PowerShift Transmission if they were originally sold in the United States and its territories:

  • 2011-2016 Ford Fiesta;
  • 2012-2016 Ford Focus.

If you are having problems with a suspected lemon, especially if it is a Ford vehicle listed above, contact us today to discuss your rights.