Citation Florida Statutes §§ 681.10 through 681.118; § 520.31; § 521.003; and § 319.14.
Florida Admin. Code § 2-30.001, and §§ 5J-11.002 through 5J-11.011.
Motor vehicle covered:
- Cars and trucks that are sold in Florida to transport persons or property, including demonstrators, recreational vehicles, and leased vehicles if the lessee is responsible for repairs.
Motor vehicle excluded:
- Vehicles run only on tracks, off-road vehicles, trucks over 10,000 pounds G.V.W., motorcycles, mopeds, or the living facilities of recreational vehicles
Living facilities of recreational vehicles
Consumer covered:
- The purchaser, other than for purposes of resale, or the lessee, of a vehicle primarily used for personal, family or household purposes
- Any person to whom such vehicle is transferred for the same purposes during the duration of the Lemon Law Rights Period
- Any other person entitled by the terms of the warranty to enforce the obligations of the warranty
- Subsequent owners if the vehicle is transferred from one consumer to another during the Lemon Law Rights Period, the 24 months after the date of the motor vehicle's original delivery to a consumer
Nonconformity: Nonconformity is defined as a defect or condition that substantially impairs the use, value or safety of a vehicle.
In addition, the lemon law requires repurchase/replacement only if the nonconformity causes the vehicle to not conform to the warranty.
Nonconformity does not include a defect or condition that results from an accident, abuse, neglect, modification, or alteration of the motor vehicle by persons other than the manufacturer or its authorized service agent.
Warranty: "Warranty" means any written warranty issued by the manufacturer, or any affirmation of fact or promise made by the manufacturer, excluding statements made by the dealer, in connection with the sale of a motor vehicle to a consumer, relating to the nature of the material or workmanship and affirming or promising that such material or workmanship is free of defects or will meet a specified level of performance.
Lemon law rights period is defined as the period ending 24 months after the date of the motor vehicle's original delivery to a consumer.
Manufacturer's obligation to repair:
- If a vehicle does not conform to the warranty and the consumer first reports the problem to the manufacturer or its authorized service agent during the Lemon Law Rights Period, the manufacturer or its authorized service agent shall repair the motor vehicle, even if the repairs are made after the Lemon Law Rights Period
- After three attempts have been made to repair the same nonconformity, the consumer must give written notice to the manufacturer, by registered or express mail, of the need to repair the nonconformity. After the motor vehicle is out of service by reason of repair of nonconformity by the manufacturer or its authorized service agent for a cumulative total of 15 or more days, exclusive of down time for routine maintenance prescribed by the owner's manual, the consumer must give written notice to the manufacturer by registered or express mail.
Manufacturer's obligation to repurchase or replace: If the manufacturer or its authorized service agent cannot conform a vehicle to its warranty by repairing or correcting any nonconformity after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer must either repurchase or replace the vehicle. The consumer has a right to choose repurchase rather than replacement.
Criteria for reasonable number of repair attempts:
Presumed if, during the Lemon Law Rights Period, the same nonconformity has been
- Subject to repair at least three times by the manufacturer or its authorized service agent
- Plus a final attempt by the manufacturer after receiving the registered or express mail notice from the consumer, and the nonconformity continues to exist
- The vehicle has been out of service by reason of repair of nonconformity by the manufacturer or its authorized service agent for a cumulative total of 30 or more days and 60 days for recreational vehicles, exclusive of down time for routine maintenance prescribed by the owner's manual
- The manufacturer must have had the opportunity for a final repair attempt as described below
Nonconformity and final opportunity to repair:
After three attempts have been made to repair the same nonconformity, the consumer must give written notice to the manufacturer, by registered or express mail, of the need to repair the nonconformity. After the manufacturer receives the consumer's notice by registered or express mail, the manufacturer must respond within 10 days and give the consumer the opportunity to have the vehicle repaired at a reasonably accessible repair facility within a reasonable time after the consumer's receipt of the response. Regulations further provide that the manufacturer's response must be received by the consumer within 10 days from the date that the manufacturer receives the consumer's written notification. After the vehicle is delivered to that facility, the manufacturer must correct the nonconformity within 10 days and 45 days for recreational vehicles.
Refund Purchased Vehicle
Refund consists of:
- Purchase price, the cash price for the vehicle, inclusive of any allowance for a trade-in vehicle but excluding debt from a previous transaction
- Reasonably incurred collateral charges, the additional charges to a consumer wholly incurred as a result of the acquisition of the vehicle
- Reasonably incurred incidental charges, the reasonable costs to the consumer that are directly caused by the nonconformity of the vehicle
Leased Vehicle
To the lessee:
- Lessee Cost: Total deposit and rental payments previously paid to the lessor for the leased vehicle, excluding debt from a previous transaction
- Reasonably incurred collateral charges: Additional charges to a consumer wholly incurred as a result of the acquisition of the vehicle. They include, but are not limited to, sales taxes and title charges, manufacturer-installed or agent-installed items or service charges, and earned finance charges
- Reasonably incurred incidental charges: Reasonable costs to the consumer that are directly caused by the nonconformity of the vehicle
- Less a reasonable offset for use
Replacement: Replacement is a motor vehicle, acceptable to the consumer that is identical or reasonably equivalent to the motor vehicle to be replaced as it existed at the time of acquisition.
Attorney's fees: A court may award a prevailing consumer the amount of any pecuniary loss, litigation costs, reasonable attorney's fees, and appropriate equitable relief. If the court finds the consumer filed a claim in bad faith or solely for the purpose of harassment, or in complete absence of a justifiable issue of either law or fact, the consumer is liable for all costs and reasonable attorney's fees incurred by the manufacturer or its agent as a direct result of the bad faith claim.
This information is not intended as legal advice. Please direct your specific questions to Florida lemon law attorneys of Krohn & Moss Ltd. If you want to pursue your lemon law claim, call 1-800 US LEMON® (800-875-3666) toll free, to reach Krohn & Moss for your FREE initial consultation! Or submit your information online for your free free case evaluation.
