Arizona lemon law: when your car is a lemon and how to claim
In Arizona, a new car counts as a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem or 30 calendar days in the shop within the first 24 months or 24,000 miles. First, send the manufacturer a written notice: the free letter below does it.
Checked against official sources: Oct 22, 2026
Your next 4 steps in Arizona
Keep every repair order
Get a written repair order at every visit, with the date, mileage and days in the shop. In Arizona, a car is presumed a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem or 30 calendar days in the shop.
Send the manufacturer a written notice
You must report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer during the coverage period. Write your notice letter ↓
Let the manufacturer make its final repair attempt
If the manufacturer asks for one more repair after your notice, take the car in and get a repair order.
Ask for a refund or replacement, use arbitration, or call a lawyer
If your manufacturer has a dispute program that meets the state’s rules (check your warranty booklet), you may have to use it first. See the Arbitration section below. If you win, the court can make the manufacturer pay your lawyer (see What you can get), so many lemon law lawyers charge nothing up front.
When a car is a lemon in Arizona
Within the warranty term or 2 years/24,000 miles (whichever is shortest), your car is presumed a lemon if: (1) the same defect was repaired 4 or more times and is still there; or (2) the car was out of service for repairs a total of 30 or more calendar days. The defect must substantially impair the car's use and value. The presumption only works against the manufacturer if it first got direct written notice of the defect from you (or someone on your behalf) and had a chance to fix it.
Period: The manufacturer's express warranty term or 2 years or 24,000 miles from original delivery, whichever is shortest. You must report the defect within this period.
Is your car a lemon in Arizona? A quick check
Notice to the manufacturer
You must report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer during the coverage period. To use the lemon presumption, the manufacturer must have received direct written notice of the defect from you and had a chance to fix it. The law does not require a specific delivery method such as certified mail.
Arbitration
Maybe — check your warranty booklet for an arbitration program (e.g. BBB AUTO LINE). Arizona has no state-run program. If the manufacturer runs or takes part in an informal dispute program that fully complies with federal rules (16 CFR Part 703), you must use it before you can get a refund or replacement under the lemon law. The Attorney General points consumers to the BBB AUTO LINE program.
Deadline to sue or file in Arizona
File suit within 6 months after the earlier of the end of the express warranty or 2 years/24,000 miles from original delivery (A.R.S. § 44-1265(B)).
What you can get
The manufacturer must replace the car with a new one or take it back and refund the full purchase price, including all collateral charges, minus a reasonable allowance for your use. The use allowance covers only your use before your first written report of the defect and while the car was not in the shop for repairs. On a refund, the manufacturer must also refund the sales (transaction privilege) tax attributed to the sale.
Attorney fees: If you win a lemon law lawsuit, the court must award you reasonable costs and attorney fees.
Free lemon law notice letter
Most states require you to tell the manufacturer in writing and give it a last chance to fix the car. Fill this in, download the letter, sign it and mail it to the manufacturer. Keep a copy.
Send it by certified mail with return receipt so you have proof, and keep the receipt.
Who to contact
- Office
- Arizona Attorney General's Office, Consumer Information and Complaint Unit
- Phone
- 602-542-5025
What the law covers
- New vehicles
- Yes
- Used vehicles
- Yes
- Leased vehicles
- Yes
- Which vehicles
- Self-propelled vehicles designed mainly to carry people or property on public highways. For motor homes, only the vehicle and chassis are covered, not the living, office, or commercial space. Vehicles with a declared gross weight over 10,000 pounds, vehicles sold at public auction, and vehicles bought for resale are excluded. Used cars bought from a used-car dealer get a separate, shorter protection (15 days or 500 miles).
- Who can claim
- The buyer (not someone buying to resell) or the lessee, anyone the vehicle is transferred to while the express warranty is still in effect, and anyone else entitled to enforce the warranty.
Used cars in Arizona
Arizona has a used-car lemon law (A.R.S. § 44-1267). A used-car dealer must give an implied warranty that the car will be fit for ordinary use for 15 days or 500 miles, whichever comes first; you must give the dealer notice and a reasonable chance to repair, you pay half of the first two repairs (up to $25 each), and the dealer's liability is capped at the purchase price.
Good to know
- Leased vehicles are now covered: a 2026 law (HB 2323) added lessees to the definition of 'consumer.'
- A manufacturer that buys back or replaces a lemon must attach a written notice to the vehicle before reselling it, and dealers must give that notice to the next buyer (A.R.S. § 44-1266).
- Arizona has no 'cooling off' period or three-day right to cancel a car purchase, the Attorney General warns.
Questions about Arizona's lemon law
How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in Arizona?
Within the warranty term or 2 years/24,000 miles (whichever is shortest), your car is presumed a lemon if: (1) the same defect was repaired 4 or more times and is still there; or (2) the car was out of service for repairs a total of 30 or more calendar days. The defect must substantially impair the car's use and value. The presumption only works against the manufacturer if it first got direct written notice of the defect from you (or someone on your behalf) and had a chance to fix it.
How long does Arizona's lemon law cover a car?
The manufacturer's express warranty term or 2 years or 24,000 miles from original delivery, whichever is shortest. You must report the defect within this period.
Do I have to notify the manufacturer in Arizona?
You must report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer during the coverage period. To use the lemon presumption, the manufacturer must have received direct written notice of the defect from you and had a chance to fix it. The law does not require a specific delivery method such as certified mail.
Do I have to go to arbitration in Arizona?
Arizona has no state-run program. If the manufacturer runs or takes part in an informal dispute program that fully complies with federal rules (16 CFR Part 703), you must use it before you can get a refund or replacement under the lemon law. The Attorney General points consumers to the BBB AUTO LINE program.
What can I get under Arizona's lemon law?
The manufacturer must replace the car with a new one or take it back and refund the full purchase price, including all collateral charges, minus a reasonable allowance for your use. The use allowance covers only your use before your first written report of the defect and while the car was not in the shop for repairs. On a refund, the manufacturer must also refund the sales (transaction privilege) tax attributed to the sale.
Is there a deadline to file a lemon law claim in Arizona?
File suit within 6 months after the earlier of the end of the express warranty or 2 years/24,000 miles from original delivery (A.R.S. § 44-1265(B)).
Does Arizona's lemon law cover used cars?
Arizona has a used-car lemon law (A.R.S. § 44-1267). A used-car dealer must give an implied warranty that the car will be fit for ordinary use for 15 days or 500 miles, whichever comes first; you must give the dealer notice and a reasonable chance to repair, you pay half of the first two repairs (up to $25 each), and the dealer's liability is capped at the purchase price.
Car not covered, or the period has passed? Federal warranty law may still help, and small claims court can handle smaller repair bills.
Federal warranty lawSources
- A.R.S. § 44-1261 Definitions; exemptions (Arizona Legislature)
- A.R.S. § 44-1264 Presumption (Arizona Legislature)
- A.R.S. § 44-1265 Arbitration, deadline, attorney fees (Arizona Legislature)
- A.R.S. § 44-1267 Used motor vehicles (Arizona Legislature)
- Arizona Attorney General – Auto Purchases (Lemon Law)
- Arizona Senate Fact Sheet for H.B. 2323 (2026), leased vehicles
Last checked: Oct 22, 2026.
Law: Arizona Motor Vehicle Warranties Act (Arizona Lemon Law), Ariz. Rev. Stat. §§ 44-1261 to 44-1267