How to return a car using lemon law

Lemon law is generally accepted as the law that protects consumers from defective goods. Lemon laws came into effect with the enactment of the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act in the 1970’s which protected consumers who bought goods worth more than $25 and that came with a warranty.

 

However, in practice, lemon laws have been synonymous with car sales, and in particular, in cases where there are defects that interfere with the operation of the car, or those that can potentially cause serious injuries to the buyer. There has been little discussion, if any, on the modalities of returning a car with such defects to the manufacturer.

 

First, returning the car after it has been purchased is only possible if the manufacturer has been provided the opportunity to repair the defects. Furthermore, the choice of whether to accept the vehicle back or to repair it usually is the one that the manufacturer make, and is not made by the consumer. Returning the vehicle can take place under the two scenarios.

 

The manufacturer may repurchase the vehicle, or he may replace it. Repurchasing a vehicle is essentially another word used to describe a refund, and this will be based on the cash price of the vehicle at the time of repurchase. Such an arrangement would include the collateral charges, incidental costs and legal fees as well. This would obviously apply to a new vehicle. If the vehicle in question is a used one, then the repurchase arrangement would be based on the purchase price.

 

In cases of replacement, the manufacturer would usually want the consumer to enter into a new refinancing arrangement which would have the effect you having to pay much more than you would have if the initial vehicle has been free of defects. One should always be wary of such arrangements, and if it comes to that, one should instead press for the refund of the purchase price.

The second scenario where the vehicle can be returned is where the manufacturer has agreed to refund the purchase price to the consumer. The purchase price could be full or partial, depending on the condition of the vehicle at the point of returning it. The manufacturer typically would want to calculate the final price by taking into the factor some depreciation that took place when the consumer had the vehicle, and was presumably using it.

 

This can be done using price per mile, whereby each mile driven, there would be some amount deducted from the purchase price. The higher this rate, the higher will be the final amount deducted and this would mean less purchase price that will be refunded. The consumer should ensure that the rate per mile is low enough to allow him/her to recoup as much of the purchase price fro the manufacturer as possible.

The vehicle cannot be returned when it is in an appalling condition, and many state-wide laws provide that the car should be returned to the manufacturer free from any damage. In many cases, this shouldn’t be a problem as the consumer is getting back the money back or a new unit.