California lemon law: when your car is a lemon and how to claim
In California, a new car counts as a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem, 2 for a serious safety defect or more than 30 calendar days in the shop within the first 18 months or 18,000 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 California
Keep every repair order
Get a written repair order at every visit, with the date, mileage and days in the shop. In California, a car is presumed a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem, 2 for a serious safety defect or more than 30 calendar days in the shop.
Send the manufacturer a written notice
If the warranty or owner's manual clearly says so, you must notify the manufacturer directly (at the address it lists) at least once about the defect. 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 California
Within 18 months or 18,000 miles (whichever comes first), your car is presumed a lemon if: (1) a defect likely to cause death or serious injury was repaired 2 or more times; (2) the same defect was repaired 4 or more times; or (3) the car was in the shop for defects a total of more than 30 calendar days. For (1) and (2), you must have notified the manufacturer directly at least once, but only if the manufacturer clearly disclosed that requirement in the warranty or owner's manual. The defect must substantially impair the car's use, value, or safety. If the manufacturer has a state-certified arbitration program and told you about it in writing, you must use that program before you can rely on the presumption.
Period: The lemon presumption applies to problems within 18 months from delivery or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first. Beyond that, the law still protects you for the whole length of the manufacturer's original warranty if the car cannot be fixed after a reasonable number of attempts.
Is your car a lemon in California? A quick check
Notice to the manufacturer
If the warranty or owner's manual clearly says so, you must notify the manufacturer directly (at the address it lists) at least once about the defect. To keep the right to civil penalties, send a written notice demanding repurchase or replacement after the lemon presumption arises; if your manufacturer opted into the 2025 procedures, send it at least 30 days before suing (by email to the address on the manufacturer's website, or certified or registered mail with return receipt), with your name, VIN, a short repair history, and your demand, and keep the car while you wait.
Arbitration
Maybe — check your warranty booklet for an arbitration program (e.g. BBB AUTO LINE). Arbitration is optional and free. Manufacturers run programs (BBB AUTO LINE, CDSP Auto Line, CAP-Motors) that the state certifies; decisions usually come within 40 days, you can accept or reject the decision, and the manufacturer must carry out an accepted decision within 30 days. You must use a certified program first only if you want to rely on the lemon presumption and the manufacturer told you about the program in writing.
Deadline to sue or file in California
If your manufacturer opted into the 2025 lemon law procedures, you must sue within 1 year after the applicable express warranty expires and no later than 6 years after original delivery, with pauses for arbitration, repair time, and up to 60 days after a pre-suit notice (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 871.21). Otherwise the lemon law itself states no specific deadline.
What you can get
You choose a refund (restitution) or a substantially identical new replacement; the manufacturer cannot force a replacement on you. A refund covers the actual price paid or payable, including transportation charges and manufacturer-installed options (but not non-manufacturer items added by the dealer or you), plus sales or use tax, license, registration, and other official fees, plus incidental costs like reasonable repair, towing, and rental car costs. The manufacturer may subtract a use offset: price × (miles before you first brought the car in for the defect ÷ 120,000). If the manufacturer willfully failed to comply, a court may add a civil penalty of up to twice your damages.
Attorney fees: If you win, the court must award your costs and attorney fees based on the time actually spent.
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
- California Department of Consumer Affairs, Arbitration Certification Program
- Phone
- 916-574-7350
What the law covers
- New vehicles
- Yes
- Used vehicles
- Not specified
- Leased vehicles
- Yes
- Which vehicles
- New motor vehicles bought or used mainly for personal, family, or household purposes. Also new vehicles under 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight bought or used mainly for business by a person or business with no more than 5 vehicles registered in California. For motor homes, the chassis, chassis cab, and driving portion are covered, not the living quarters. Dealer-owned vehicles and demonstrators sold with a manufacturer's new-car warranty are covered. Motorcycles and off-highway-only vehicles are excluded.
- Who can claim
- The buyer or the lessee of a new motor vehicle (the law gives lessees the same rights as buyers), including qualifying small businesses.
Used cars in California
The Department of Consumer Affairs says used vehicles are covered only if the manufacturer's new-car warranty is issued with the sale (for example, dealer-owned cars and demonstrators). Other used cars are not covered by the lemon law's refund-or-replace rules.
Good to know
- Small businesses with up to 5 vehicles registered in California are covered for vehicles under 10,000 pounds.
- A bought-back lemon can be resold only if the defect is disclosed, the defect is fixed, and the manufacturer gives the next owner a 1-year written warranty against that defect.
- Since 2025, manufacturers can opt into new lemon law procedures (pre-suit notice, faster settlement timelines, shorter filing deadline); the Department of Consumer Affairs lists the manufacturers that opted in.
Questions about California's lemon law
How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in California?
Within 18 months or 18,000 miles (whichever comes first), your car is presumed a lemon if: (1) a defect likely to cause death or serious injury was repaired 2 or more times; (2) the same defect was repaired 4 or more times; or (3) the car was in the shop for defects a total of more than 30 calendar days. For (1) and (2), you must have notified the manufacturer directly at least once, but only if the manufacturer clearly disclosed that requirement in the warranty or owner's manual. The defect must substantially impair the car's use, value, or safety. If the manufacturer has a state-certified arbitration program and told you about it in writing, you must use that program before you can rely on the presumption.
How long does California's lemon law cover a car?
The lemon presumption applies to problems within 18 months from delivery or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first. Beyond that, the law still protects you for the whole length of the manufacturer's original warranty if the car cannot be fixed after a reasonable number of attempts.
Do I have to notify the manufacturer in California?
If the warranty or owner's manual clearly says so, you must notify the manufacturer directly (at the address it lists) at least once about the defect. To keep the right to civil penalties, send a written notice demanding repurchase or replacement after the lemon presumption arises; if your manufacturer opted into the 2025 procedures, send it at least 30 days before suing (by email to the address on the manufacturer's website, or certified or registered mail with return receipt), with your name, VIN, a short repair history, and your demand, and keep the car while you wait.
Do I have to go to arbitration in California?
Arbitration is optional and free. Manufacturers run programs (BBB AUTO LINE, CDSP Auto Line, CAP-Motors) that the state certifies; decisions usually come within 40 days, you can accept or reject the decision, and the manufacturer must carry out an accepted decision within 30 days. You must use a certified program first only if you want to rely on the lemon presumption and the manufacturer told you about the program in writing.
What can I get under California's lemon law?
You choose a refund (restitution) or a substantially identical new replacement; the manufacturer cannot force a replacement on you. A refund covers the actual price paid or payable, including transportation charges and manufacturer-installed options (but not non-manufacturer items added by the dealer or you), plus sales or use tax, license, registration, and other official fees, plus incidental costs like reasonable repair, towing, and rental car costs. The manufacturer may subtract a use offset: price × (miles before you first brought the car in for the defect ÷ 120,000). If the manufacturer willfully failed to comply, a court may add a civil penalty of up to twice your damages.
Is there a deadline to file a lemon law claim in California?
If your manufacturer opted into the 2025 lemon law procedures, you must sue within 1 year after the applicable express warranty expires and no later than 6 years after original delivery, with pauses for arbitration, repair time, and up to 60 days after a pre-suit notice (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 871.21). Otherwise the lemon law itself states no specific deadline.
Does California's lemon law cover used cars?
The Department of Consumer Affairs says used vehicles are covered only if the manufacturer's new-car warranty is issued with the sale (for example, dealer-owned cars and demonstrators). Other used cars are not covered by the lemon law's refund-or-replace rules.
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
- California Legislative Information – official bulk law data (Civ. Code §§ 1793.2, 1793.22, 1794, 1795.4; Code Civ. Proc. §§ 871.20–871.30)
- California DCA Arbitration Certification Program – Lemon Law FAQs
- California DCA Arbitration Certification Program – Arbitration process and certified programs
- California DCA Arbitration Certification Program – New Lemon Law (AB 1755 / SB 26)
- California DCA Arbitration Certification Program – Manufacturers that opted in
- California DCA Arbitration Certification Program – Contact
Last checked: Oct 22, 2026.
Law: Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (Tanner Consumer Protection Act), Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1790–1795.8, esp. §§ 1793.2(d), 1793.22, 1794, 1795.4; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 871.20–871.30