What You Get When You Win A Lemon Law Case - Podcast

"SteveLehto" (stevelehto) 01/21/2016 at 09:00 • Filed to: None

10

47

People complain about their defective cars all the time, and sometimes they file suit against the manufacturer that built their lemon. But what do they get when they win?

Good thing you asked me that. I’ve been doing this for 24 years and think I can summarize the answer for you pretty quickly. If you have a vehicle that meets your state’s lemon law (and all 50 states have got them), you are entitled to a buyback, a replacement vehicle or other cash compensation.

You won’t come out ahead - the laws are designed to make you whole. But there are nuances to this and it might help you to know what you could get should this ever happen to you.

You’ll also get your attorney fees and court costs paid by the manufacturer if you win. At least, that’s what it says in the podcast, the audio of which is here:

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

And the video is here:

Follow me on Twitter: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Hear my podcast on iTunes: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Steve Lehto has been practicing law for 24 years, almost exclusively in consumer protection and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! He wrote !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

This website may supply general information about the law but it is for informational purposes only. This does not create an attorney-client relationship and is not meant to constitute legal advice, so the good news is we’re not billing you by the hour for reading this. The bad news is that you shouldn’t act upon any of the information without consulting a qualified professional attorney who will, probably, bill you by the hour.

The Ghost of Oppo > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:06

1

Have you seen this?

VW loses Fla. Lemon Law case over emissions scandal

SteveLehto > The Ghost of Oppo 01/21/2016 at 09:08

1

No, I had not seen that.

Thanks!

It is an odd result but this will vary from state to state.

The Ghost of Oppo > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:14

0

VW sure is in for one hell of a legal mess if they are gonna have to deal with the Feds and then each state individually. I wonder if their general counsel is drooling over the money or wanting to commit seppuku

Nibby > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:26

8

Steve - You deserve a cookie.

JayQC > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:29

3

After all you go through to get the justice you deserve regarding your lemon, that’s gotta leave a sour taste in your mouth.

SteveLehto > JayQC 01/21/2016 at 09:29

0

[RIMSHOT!]

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:29

0

Interesting as always, oh I saw the Tucker Book is available for pre-order any idea on the ship date?

SteveLehto > My X-type is too a real Jaguar 01/21/2016 at 09:30

0

That will be July. The winged car book will be shipped any day now.

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:33

0

Cool thanks, I’ve ordered the wing car, but I am really looking forward to the Tucker book, that car has facinated me since the movie came out when I was 14. My father actually went to the auction with my grandfather.

ChrisinKY > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:39

1

I had to lemon law my 2013 Altima about 2.5 years ago. Nissan was a b*tch to deal with, my wife was dealing with stage 3c breast cancer at the time. Nissan finally agreed to the buy back (at one point they had given me a 100k mile powertrain warranty, and were going to give me a brand new 2014 altima just swapping Vin’s on the loan, BUT they refused to transfer the powertrain warranty, and since mine and tons of others CVT’s were failing, I wasn’t pressing my luck so I walked). Anyways - in Kentucky there is no set “reasonable use fee” and I had driven the car almost 30k miles since the first problem (wife’s treatments, and me driving the kids everywhere while she was home). So their initial offer was horrendous. I think it would have COST me 12k to walk away from the car. In the end I sent them a local news video of my wife in a head scarf talking about her cancer and said look - I know you need to make money, but I can’t afford this loss right now, on top of that I’m super stressed with my wife, I’ve owned a ton of Nissan’s in my life, make this right. Finally they agree and halved the reasonable use fee. As the Steve Miller Band says, I “Took the money and run”. Got back all registration fees, sales tax, etc etc. I paid about $3500 to use that car for 16 months and rack up almost 40k miles which I thought was fair.

Sad thing was my “lemon” was on another dealer’s lot a month later, certified used and carfax had a minor note saying “manufacturer buyback” not lemon - so buyer beware!

Steve you advice and writing is awesome - keep up the good work!

SteveLehto > My X-type is too a real Jaguar 01/21/2016 at 09:40

0

Which auction? Of the factory? I have pics of the auction flyer.

I turned in the final (FINAL!) draft on MONDAY. It is now going to layout and then I will have to read it over to see if everything is ok. And then we doublecheck the photo section and then it goes to the printer.

Stay tuned.

Razerx > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:42

0

We had a Daewoo (POS obviously) And after a year of having problems with our car, Daewoo sent a rep from Compton (yep, Compton) to come check it out here in Duluth Mn. After going over repair records and taking our testimony he went back home, A few weeks later we dropped off car at the garage, and they payed us back completely, plus a little something on top. Great people, little hassle, all was resolved. The bonus, we got to drive cars much nicer than ours for nearly a year from the dealer.

SteveLehto > ChrisinKY 01/21/2016 at 09:44

2

Thanks, especially for the note about Carfax. A major pet peeve of mine is how they note buybacks. Sometimes they just say the car was “Sold at auction,” with a note saying that auctions aren’t a bad thing.

SteveLehto > Razerx 01/21/2016 at 09:45

0

Daewoo? What year was that?

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:46

0

The one in Chicago, my grandfather was in Chicago buying inventory for his 5&10 store and heard about the Auction I think it was in the Early 50s, my father was not yet 10 he doesn’t remember much but the anme and my grandfather bidding on lathes

SteveLehto > My X-type is too a real Jaguar 01/21/2016 at 09:50

0

Yes, It was the early ‘50s. Very cool. I wish I could find pics of the auction itself but people weren’t carrying around iPhones yet.

SteveLehto > The Ghost of Oppo 01/21/2016 at 09:51

2

I just wrote a piece about this for Jalopnik which should be on the FP later today. Thanks again for the heads up!

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:53

1

My father tells me my grandfather would never pass up a good auction. He was of the depression era mindset of if you can’t afford it build it.

CommonSenseIsn'tCommon > JayQC 01/21/2016 at 09:55

0

It’s really just a bunch of hot air.

Shifty McShifterson > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 09:57

1

Lemonade?

SteveLehto > Shifty McShifterson 01/21/2016 at 09:58

0

I know guys who have tried to trademark variations of that to describe their practice (I think the pun is too obscure to work well) and also, a few who have worked it into their 800#.

SteveLehto > The Ghost of Oppo 01/21/2016 at 10:02

0

That’s a tough call. The lawfirm(s) can make a ton of money (if they use outside counsel for the bulk of these) but if the cases end badly, they can get canned. I have seen firms lose clients when they didn’t win something as unwinnable as this.

I think the key is whether the firm can put up a good fight and then spin it to the client, “Hey, we did better than anyone expected!” Which can be kind of a low bar if you think about it.

JayQC > CommonSenseIsn'tCommon 01/21/2016 at 10:13

0

Definitely seems like it, but when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

harleykesselman > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 10:16

0

Hi there ! I won a lemon law case last year on my 2013 Dodge Dart in Florida. I hired a law firm and they promised that “there would be no cost to me” yet when Chrysler settled they claimed that Chrysler agreed to buy back my car but not pay the legal fees, which amounted to $2500 which I paid out of pocket. Ever hear of this? Was I “scammed?” Can I do something about this even though Thai was in 2014? Love your columns !!

SteveLehto > harleykesselman 01/21/2016 at 10:24

0

Depends on what the retainer agreement says/said. If you have a copy of it, check it out. This is kind of weird, though. I know FLA is odd in how the cases are handled but in most states - the court will award fees to a prevailing lemon law claimant with an attorney.

harleykesselman > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 10:44

1

Thanks for replying! It looks as if I accepted an offer from Chrysler that they forwarded it to me, and based upon the language in the retainer below, that’s alright, but then it says “you are not personally responsible for fees”. Hmm!

“The Firm’s fees will be based on its hourly rate structure. The Firm will seek all attorney fees from the Defendants in your matter if your case is pursued through the courts, in which case you will NOT be responsible to pay the Firm’s attorney fees unless you terminate this agreement prior to the Firm being paid in full. The firm will be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses incurred. When a resolution to the case is achieved, the defendant must not only pay to settle your underlying claims, but must also include in any offer, payment of the attorney fee bill with the firm. If the case proceeds to a binding Judgment in your favor, the Court will determine how much the manufacturer must pay the firm in attorney fees and costs, in addition to the Judgment.”

Voluntary settlement offers may be made by the manufacturer and/or dealership also. The defendants could offer to repurchase your vehicle or offer cash settlement. All offers will be presented to you and you will get to decide if you wish to accept the settlement offer made to you. The Firm will fully disclose the exact sum that you will be entitled to under any settlement offer, net any amount owed for the Firm’s bill which is based upon the number of hours spent on the file multiplied by the hourly rate plus costs. A representative of the Firm shall counsel you on whether we feel the settlement offer should be accepted. However, under no circumstances will you be forced to accept any settlement offer you are not happy with

This relationship is premised upon you upholding the obligations set forth below in the Statement of Client’s Rights and Responsibilities. With that in mind, win or lose, you personally owe us nothing in fees, as long as you reasonably participate in the prosecution of your case. If you fail to uphold your obligations as outlined below in the Statement of Client’s Rights and Responsibilities, you will be responsible to pay all attorney’s fees and costs billed to your file.

Razerx > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 11:54

1

It was a 1998/99 or so Lanos, bought brand new in Duluth. We actually liked it as a cheap 5 sp, build quality interior not bad (ok it was bad, but could have been worse) it had many, many engine problems. They lasted up here a few years, but soon after they went under here in US, they became a hideous rare sighting.

SteveLehto > Razerx 01/21/2016 at 12:02

2

Reminds me of Renault. At one point, Chrysler picked them up and had some of the liability. I could call the atty at Chrysler and tell him, “I have another Renault” and he wouldn’t even ask what was wrong with it before he agreed to settle.

D > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 12:43

2

My car goes in for service so they can do a partial rebuild of the transmission. AGAIN. At 35000 miles. I’m contemplating taking Ford to task. They keep extending the transmission warranty and its no secret the trannies for my model year are crap. I’ve even tried to leverage it to get a new one for a great deal (since the new models seemingly went to a diff tranny and no longer having issues).

I’ll be really interested to listen to and digest this tonight after work.

NOSLucasWiringSmoke > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 13:24

1

The odd result came from Florida...coincidence? I think not!

k4mi > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 13:47

0

We are currently in the process of filing lemon law paperwork on a 2015 Ford Expedition that has been into the dealer 4 times for leaking during rain (which is a very common occurrence here in Houston). We bought it the end of June and it’s been in the shop for nearly 45 days of ownership by now. You hit a lot of the questions I had about the process. One I didn’t hear though was reimbursement for time spent? I have had to take 4 to 5 days off work to handle issues related to repairing the car. Have you seen anyone recover anything for the time spent or lost wages? That’s a week of vacation I won’t get back. It would be ~$3,000 that I would just like to ask for in credit to help offset the extra cost of having to buy a model year newer. Luckily the options we added were all dealer options so at least we can recover that.

We aren’t unrealistic, and we actually really like the vehicle, we just want one that doesn’t leak and are fine with a replacement.

SteveLehto > k4mi 01/21/2016 at 13:56

0

In many states, you do not get reimbursed for lost time and such. That does suck but that’s how most of the laws are written (and/or interpreted).

Mr Clutch > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 14:10

2

Lemonade

ChrisinKY > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 15:04

1

Any chance you can get me out of the grey? Long time lurker/casual poster never posted anything crazy! Thanks!

r1teway > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 18:44

1

Ferrari lemon law loss in Florida, 1992: http://www.tulsaworld.com/archives/ferra…

Gloff > D 01/21/2016 at 18:45

0

Focus or Fiesta? Ford changed some of the materials in both over the years, but the only Focus to get a completely different transmission is the 1.0L Ecoboost with the Automatic, available from 2016 on. The Fiesta still uses an upgraded DPS6.

foop > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 21:27

1

“You’ll also get your attorney fees and court costs paid by the manufacturer if you win.”

I wish that were the case in my state, Alabama. If you want that here, you’ll have to file under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act .

SteveLehto > foop 01/21/2016 at 22:12

0

Always file them both.

D > Gloff 01/21/2016 at 22:50

0

Fiesta. The thing crunches like Cookie Monster in and out of 2nd gear.

foop > SteveLehto 01/21/2016 at 23:37

0

As long as the client has the financial resources to do so, absolutely. I’m sure you know how often, through misfortune or mismanagement, a client has difficulty coming up with the scratch for anything beyond the bare minimum.

slamcityrick > SteveLehto 01/22/2016 at 22:11

0

One of the most satisfying things that has ever happened to me was winning a lemon law case at the age of 23 simply because the mediator told them that “If you take him to court, I guarantee he’s going to win over the jury.” during the settlement meeting.

SteveLehto > slamcityrick 01/22/2016 at 22:20

0

What state was that in?

slamcityrick > SteveLehto 01/22/2016 at 23:52

1

CA. I apologize if my terminology is a little incorrect. That was 3 years ago and I tried my best to keep up with it all.

lucasszy > SteveLehto 01/26/2016 at 17:55

0

@stevelehto

I’ve been going back and forth with BMW NA for the last 5 months(when I bought the car) about my F30 328i thats been in the shop every single month since I bought. Im at 4+ plus weeks and about 30 pages of services that were performed to keep it running.

Seatbelts, computers, rattles, rubber, keys... you name it. its been replaced or addressed.

On top of 3 pages of codes the car throws every few weeks. EVERYTHING.

Im in CA, do you have a lawyer recommendation? Im talking to a few to get a feel...

Thanks

SteveLehto > lucasszy 01/26/2016 at 17:59

0

Email me directly at Lehto@kennon.com and I can get you the # of a friend of mine in CA.

r1teway > SteveLehto 01/30/2016 at 22:30

0

Hi Steve, I think you’ll like this article about a case involving GM’s ignition switches: The Biggs Group http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

SteveLehto > r1teway 01/31/2016 at 10:04

0

I had not seen that full story. Thanks for sending it. Did you look at the altered check? It is an obvious OBVIOUS forged check. Amazing.