"When to use an Attorney"...

The California Lemon Law has a provision for attorney’s fees. If you hire an attorney, the time they spend with the manufacturer is reimbursable to them under our California state lemon law statute.

In California, there are many reasons for using a lemon law attorney to represent you. They include, but are not limited to:

1. Getting your full legal refund entitlement. If you pursue a manufacturer yourself, they have no “rule book” on what their “buyback offer” is calculated upon. In short – they can offer you whatever they think you might accept, without having to follow the lemon law statute. An experienced lemon law attorney forces the manufacture to abide by the statute, thus providing you will what you are legally entitled to.
    

2. Making sure the “mileage offset” (usage charge) is correct. This is a huge area where consumers can be unknowingly ripped-off by auto manufacturers “offers”. Again, on the mileage offset, they can simply choose the mileage juncture that is most favorable for them, and with the most negative financial impact on you. An experienced lemon law attorney enforces the correct mileage offset, thus giving you the maximum refund return.
    

3. Making sure the title is properly “branded” as a “lemon”. If a manufacturer agrees to make a “offer” to you to repurchase or replace your car, it will typically be a “Goodwill” offer. What is “goodwill?”. It means that it’s NOT a “lemon law buyback”, and they may not be branding the cars title as “lemon law buyback”. The question is, would you want your lemon vehicle ending up in the hands of an unknowing next buyer without disclosure of it's problems? You sure wouldn’t want to be in that person’s shoes! An experienced lemon law attorney, when making a repurchase or refund settlement, includes legal language to ensure that the offending vehicle’s title is permanently marked “lemon law buyback”.
    

4. Taking deductions from your refund for things that should not be deducted. Often a consumer will have factory or dealer-installed OEM accessories, factory service contracts, GAP or other products on their car at delivery. An auto manufacturer can “pick and choose” what they want to – or not wan to agree to refund you. Anything not agreed to is a deduction from your lemon law buyback refund amount. An experienced lemon law attorney can properly negotiate these items for the best possible outcome.
    

5. The consumer is like a gun without bullets. This is not to say you can’t do a lemon law claim yourself – but why would you? When you stop and think about it logically, you as the consumer have no legal force behind you other than requesting that the automobile manufacturer comply with the lemon law. Much like a gun without bullets, you are “all threat with no fire-power”. An experienced lemon law attorney has an ‘arsenal’ of legal experience, and something more powerful than anything else – the threat of a lawsuit for non-compliance. The consumer simply cannot do this themselves, unless they are an attorney.
    

6. The idea of the manufacturer dragging your “case” out for months. The manufacturer can, if they wish to, simply “wait you out” with verbal promises that may not materialize into anything in writing. Sometimes for months – sometimes forever. In the meantime, you are putting more miles on your vehicle, and getting closer (if not already) to being out of factory warranty. An experienced lemon law attorney “reins in” the manufacturer to settle the case as quickly as possible. No stalling tactics or unfulfilled verbal “promises” by the manufacturer as what can happen when a consumer tries to do it themselves. If an offer is made, it’s promptly put into writing to the attorney.
    

7. Replacement rip-off’s. Our California lemon law has very specific instructions on how “replacements” (sometimes called ‘substitution of collateral’ for financed or leased vehicles) are handled. Many “offers” for replacement by the manufacturer to the consumer are accompanied by outrageous mileage offset charges for the returned ‘lemon’ vehicle. Remember, when you deal directly with an automobile manufacturer, they have no “rule book” they have to follow. They work for themselves and their interests just like any business. An experienced California lemon law attorney ensures that the proper mileage offset is used in a replacement scenario.
     

8. Wear an tear on the Consumer. Consumers need to take into consideration the value of their time. “Time is money” as the old expression goes. How much time do you want to invest when the lemon law in your state has a provision for attorney’s fees to be paid (shifted) to the manufacturer for time spent on the case? An experienced California lemon law attorney can spend his/her time on your case, freeing you up to have the lemon law experience one that does not ‘consume’ you and all your time and unavoidable attendant frustration and stress.

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The California Lemon Law Auto Expert
5 Ambassador Circle. Rancho Mirage, CA. 92270
Ph: 1-858-342-0073
Ph: 1-858-342-0073

None of the information contained in this website should be construed as legal advice. Legal advice should be sought by contacting a qualified attorney that is an expert in the California Lemon Law. This website does not provide a specific endorsement to the quality or viability of the services of any listed lemon law attorney, nor the potential outcome of any case they may choose represent a client in.  Copyright 2008 The California Lemon Law Auto Expert No portion of this website, copy or conceptually, may be reproduced In whole, or part, with out the specific permission of The California Lemon Law Auto Expert.