Mississippi lemon law: when your car is a lemon and how to claim
In Mississippi, a new car counts as a lemon after 3 repairs for the same problem or 15 working days in the shop within the first 12 months. 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 Mississippi
Keep every repair order
Get a written repair order at every visit, with the date, mileage and days in the shop. In Mississippi, a car is presumed a lemon after 3 repairs for the same problem or 15 working days in the shop.
Send the manufacturer a written notice
Before using the lemon law, you must give the manufacturer written notice of the need for repair so it has a final chance to fix the defect. Write your notice letter ↓
Let the manufacturer make its final repair attempt
Before you can use the law, you must notify the manufacturer in writing; it then names a repair shop and gets a final 10 working days after you deliver the vehicle to fix it.
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 Mississippi
Within the warranty term or the first year (whichever ends first), your vehicle is presumed a lemon if substantially the same defect has been repaired 3 or more times and still exists, or if it has been out of service for repair of the defect for a total of 15 or more working days (not counting routine maintenance). Before you can use the law, you must notify the manufacturer in writing; it then names a repair shop and gets a final 10 working days after you deliver the vehicle to fix it.
Period: The manufacturer's express warranty term or 1 year from original delivery to you, whichever ends first. It can be extended if a reported problem has not been fixed by the end of that time.
Is your car a lemon in Mississippi? A quick check
Notice to the manufacturer
Before using the lemon law, you must give the manufacturer written notice of the need for repair so it has a final chance to fix the defect. Manufacturers must list their zone or regional office addresses in the owner's manual. The statute does not require a specific mailing method; certified mail with a return receipt is a sensible way to prove it.
Arbitration
Maybe — check your warranty booklet for an arbitration program (e.g. BBB AUTO LINE). If the manufacturer has an informal dispute program that fully complies with federal rules (16 C.F.R. Part 703) and told you about it, you must use it before you can claim a refund or replacement. Mississippi has no state-run lemon arbitration. If you use the program, you have 90 days after its final decision to sue.
Deadline to sue or file in Mississippi
You must sue within 1 year after the express warranty ends or within 18 months after original delivery, whichever is earlier; if you used the manufacturer's dispute program, within 90 days after its final decision (Miss. Code § 63-17-159(6)).
What you can get
The manufacturer must let you choose either a comparable replacement vehicle acceptable to you, or a refund of the full purchase price plus reasonable collateral charges (such as dealer preparation, undercoating, transportation, towing, rental car and title charges). In either case it deducts a use allowance of 20 cents per mile you drove. Refunds are paid to you and any lienholder.
Attorney fees: If you finally win in court, the court may award your costs and expenses, including attorney fees based on actual time spent (Miss. Code § 63-17-159(7)).
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
- Mississippi Attorney General's Office, Consumer Protection Division
- Phone
- 601-359-3680
What the law covers
- New vehicles
- Yes
- Used vehicles
- No
- Leased vehicles
- Not specified
- Which vehicles
- Motor vehicles sold in Mississippi and used on public roads to carry people or property, including demonstrators and lease-purchase vehicles sold with a manufacturer's warranty. Not covered: off-road vehicles, motorcycles, mopeds, vehicles that run on tracks, personal mobility devices, and the parts of a motor home added or assembled by the motor home maker.
- Who can claim
- The buyer (not for resale) of a vehicle used mainly for personal, family or household purposes; anyone the vehicle is transferred to for the same purposes while the express warranty still applies; and anyone else entitled to enforce the warranty.
Used cars in Mississippi
Mississippi's lemon law is for new vehicles, but it also covers demonstrators sold with a manufacturer's warranty and later owners who receive the vehicle while the warranty is still in effect.
Good to know
- The use deduction is a flat 20 cents per mile, and it applies to replacements as well as refunds (Miss. Code § 63-17-159(1)).
- If a court finds your claim was filed in bad faith or to harass, you must pay the manufacturer's court costs (Miss. Code § 63-17-161).
- Violations can also be pursued under Mississippi's Consumer Protection Act, Miss. Code Title 75, Ch. 24 (§ 63-17-165).
Questions about Mississippi's lemon law
How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in Mississippi?
Within the warranty term or the first year (whichever ends first), your vehicle is presumed a lemon if substantially the same defect has been repaired 3 or more times and still exists, or if it has been out of service for repair of the defect for a total of 15 or more working days (not counting routine maintenance). Before you can use the law, you must notify the manufacturer in writing; it then names a repair shop and gets a final 10 working days after you deliver the vehicle to fix it.
How long does Mississippi's lemon law cover a car?
The manufacturer's express warranty term or 1 year from original delivery to you, whichever ends first. It can be extended if a reported problem has not been fixed by the end of that time.
Do I have to notify the manufacturer in Mississippi?
Before using the lemon law, you must give the manufacturer written notice of the need for repair so it has a final chance to fix the defect. Manufacturers must list their zone or regional office addresses in the owner's manual. The statute does not require a specific mailing method; certified mail with a return receipt is a sensible way to prove it.
Do I have to go to arbitration in Mississippi?
If the manufacturer has an informal dispute program that fully complies with federal rules (16 C.F.R. Part 703) and told you about it, you must use it before you can claim a refund or replacement. Mississippi has no state-run lemon arbitration. If you use the program, you have 90 days after its final decision to sue.
What can I get under Mississippi's lemon law?
The manufacturer must let you choose either a comparable replacement vehicle acceptable to you, or a refund of the full purchase price plus reasonable collateral charges (such as dealer preparation, undercoating, transportation, towing, rental car and title charges). In either case it deducts a use allowance of 20 cents per mile you drove. Refunds are paid to you and any lienholder.
Is there a deadline to file a lemon law claim in Mississippi?
You must sue within 1 year after the express warranty ends or within 18 months after original delivery, whichever is earlier; if you used the manufacturer's dispute program, within 90 days after its final decision (Miss. Code § 63-17-159(6)).
Does Mississippi's lemon law cover used cars?
Mississippi's lemon law is for new vehicles, but it also covers demonstrators sold with a manufacturer's warranty and later owners who receive the vehicle while the warranty is still in effect.
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
- Mississippi Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act, Miss. Code §§ 63-17-151 to -165 (2019 ed., posted by the Mississippi Motor Vehicle Commission)
- Mississippi Motor Vehicle Commission – MMVC Law
- Mississippi Attorney General – Consumer Protection Division
Last checked: Oct 22, 2026.
Law: Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act (Mississippi Lemon Law), Miss. Code Ann. §§ 63-17-151 to 63-17-165