District of Columbia lemon law: when your car is a lemon and how to claim
In District of Columbia, a new car counts as a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem, 1 for a serious safety defect or 30 days in the shop within the first 24 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 District of Columbia
Keep every repair order
Get a written repair order at every visit, with the date, mileage and days in the shop. In District of Columbia, a car is presumed a lemon after 4 repairs for the same problem, 1 for a serious safety defect or 30 days in the shop.
Send the manufacturer a written notice
Report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer within the 18,000-mile/2-year 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
Before suing, District of Columbia requires you to go through the Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration for the District of Columbia. See the Arbitration section below for who goes first and the deadlines. 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 District of Columbia
Within 18,000 miles or 2 years (whichever comes first), your car is presumed a lemon if, after you reported the problem: (1) the same non-safety defect was repaired 4 or more times and still exists; (2) a safety-related defect (one that reduces your ability to control the car or creates a risk of fire, explosion, or other life-threatening malfunction) was repaired 1 or more times and still exists; or (3) the car was out of service for repairs of significant defects a total of 30 or more days. The defect must 'significantly impair' the car, meaning it makes it unreliable or unsafe or lowers its resale value below average.
Period: The first 18,000 miles or 2 years from delivery to the original buyer, whichever comes first. You must report the defect within this period.
Is your car a lemon in District of Columbia? A quick check
Notice to the manufacturer
Report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer within the 18,000-mile/2-year period. If you report it to the dealer, the dealer must forward written notice to the manufacturer by certified mail within 7 days. The law does not require you to send a separate notice yourself.
Arbitration
Required. Before you can sue for a refund or replacement, you must first file a claim with the D.C. Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration. The Board decides within 5 business days whether to accept the claim and must issue a decision within 60 days of accepting it; it can award lemon law relief and attorney fees. If the Board rejects your case or you reject its decision, you can go to court (a party may ask the court for a new trial within 20 days of the decision).
Deadline to sue or file in District of Columbia
Any lawsuit under the D.C. lemon law must be filed within 4 years of the original delivery of the vehicle to the consumer (D.C. Code § 50-507(b)).
What you can get
Your choice of a comparable replacement vehicle or a refund of the full purchase price, including sales tax, license and registration fees, and similar government charges. The manufacturer may deduct no more than 10 cents per mile for miles you drove beyond the first 12,000, plus an allowance for damage not due to normal wear or to the defect.
Attorney fees: Yes in arbitration: the Board may award reasonable attorney fees. The lemon law does not separately address attorney fees in court.
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
- Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, Consumer Protection (Consumer and Tenant Response)
- Phone
- 202-442-9828
What the law covers
- New vehicles
- Yes
- Used vehicles
- Yes
- Leased vehicles
- Yes
- Which vehicles
- Vehicles made for sale, offered for sale, sold, or registered in D.C. and designed mainly to carry a driver and passengers on streets and highways. Motorcycles, motor homes, motorized recreational vehicles, and buses sold for public transportation are excluded. The law treats a vehicle as 'new' during its first 18,000 miles or first 2 years after delivery to the original buyer, so a car bought used is still covered if it is within that window.
- Who can claim
- The buyer (not someone buying to resell), anyone the vehicle is leased or transferred to while a warranty applies, and anyone else entitled to enforce the warranty. The rights carry over to later owners, and any agreement waiving them is void.
Used cars in District of Columbia
Used cars still within 18,000 miles or 2 years of original delivery count as 'new' under the lemon law. For other used cars, dealers must disclose in writing any known material mechanical defect and any known fire, water, or collision damage costing over $1,000 to repair, and whether they inspected the car; you can claim damages for violations, starting with the Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration (D.C. Code § 50-505).
Good to know
- One failed repair of a safety-related defect is enough to presume a lemon, one of the lowest thresholds in the country.
- A returned lemon's D.C. title is noted as returned under the lemon law, and dealers must say so in the sales contract before you sign.
- Your use deduction is capped at 10 cents per mile, and only for miles beyond the first 12,000.
Questions about District of Columbia's lemon law
How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in District of Columbia?
Within 18,000 miles or 2 years (whichever comes first), your car is presumed a lemon if, after you reported the problem: (1) the same non-safety defect was repaired 4 or more times and still exists; (2) a safety-related defect (one that reduces your ability to control the car or creates a risk of fire, explosion, or other life-threatening malfunction) was repaired 1 or more times and still exists; or (3) the car was out of service for repairs of significant defects a total of 30 or more days. The defect must 'significantly impair' the car, meaning it makes it unreliable or unsafe or lowers its resale value below average.
How long does District of Columbia's lemon law cover a car?
The first 18,000 miles or 2 years from delivery to the original buyer, whichever comes first. You must report the defect within this period.
Do I have to notify the manufacturer in District of Columbia?
Report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent, or its dealer within the 18,000-mile/2-year period. If you report it to the dealer, the dealer must forward written notice to the manufacturer by certified mail within 7 days. The law does not require you to send a separate notice yourself.
Do I have to go to arbitration in District of Columbia?
Before you can sue for a refund or replacement, you must first file a claim with the D.C. Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration. The Board decides within 5 business days whether to accept the claim and must issue a decision within 60 days of accepting it; it can award lemon law relief and attorney fees. If the Board rejects your case or you reject its decision, you can go to court (a party may ask the court for a new trial within 20 days of the decision).
What can I get under District of Columbia's lemon law?
Your choice of a comparable replacement vehicle or a refund of the full purchase price, including sales tax, license and registration fees, and similar government charges. The manufacturer may deduct no more than 10 cents per mile for miles you drove beyond the first 12,000, plus an allowance for damage not due to normal wear or to the defect.
Is there a deadline to file a lemon law claim in District of Columbia?
Any lawsuit under the D.C. lemon law must be filed within 4 years of the original delivery of the vehicle to the consumer (D.C. Code § 50-507(b)).
Does District of Columbia's lemon law cover used cars?
Used cars still within 18,000 miles or 2 years of original delivery count as 'new' under the lemon law. For other used cars, dealers must disclose in writing any known material mechanical defect and any known fire, water, or collision damage costing over $1,000 to repair, and whether they inspected the car; you can claim damages for violations, starting with the Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration (D.C. Code § 50-505).
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
- D.C. Code § 50-501 Definitions (D.C. Council Law Library)
- D.C. Code § 50-502 Consumer's remedy for defective vehicles
- D.C. Code § 50-503 Arbitration
- D.C. Code § 50-505 Disclosure of defects in used motor vehicles
- D.C. Code § 50-507 Limitations on actions
- Office of the Attorney General for D.C. – Consumer Protection
Last checked: Oct 22, 2026.
Law: District of Columbia Automobile Consumer Protection Act (D.C. Lemon Law), D.C. Code §§ 50-501 to 50-510