Pursuing a Lemon Law Claim in Louisiana: A 7-Step Overview

Introduction to Lemon Law in Louisiana

In the state of Louisiana, a lemon vehicle is defined as a "new motor vehicle warranted by a manufacturer, licenced dealer, or distributor that is not in conformity with the warranty, and that a nonconformity has not been repaired after a reasonable number of attempts. If the vehicle remains nonconforming after four repair attempts, or if it is out of service for an aggregate of thirty business days during the warranty term, the presumption that the vehicle is a lemon will be triggered. In Louisiana, you have the right to a refund or a replacement vehicle if the car display issues after a reasonable number of repair attempts during the warranty. Alternatively, you may be entitled to a full refund of the purchase price . Furthermore, if after three repair attempts your vehicle is out of service for thirty business days in a single visit or a total of fifteen days in multiple visits, then you are presumed to qualify for a refund or replacement. To prove a claim under the Lemon Law, you must give the manufacturer or authorized dealer the opportunity to conform the vehicle to the warranty. When given the opportunity to repair, the vehicle must pass inspection by the manufacturer or authorized dealer. If, after inspection, the vehicle remains on nonconforming, you must try to resolve the matter with the manufacturer before filing suit. If you were successful in resolving the matter with the manufacturer through informal means, then you may be entitled also to attorney fees and non-pecuniary damages (like for your time and inconvenience).

Defining a Lemon Vehicle in the State of Louisiana

Under Louisiana law, the defect must be one that "substantially impairs" the use, value, or safety of the vehicle. The defect must also be covered under the warranty and not just occur out of the warranty period. In general, the vehicle must have a defect that affects the vehicle’s use, value, or safety. Additionally, under Louisiana’s Lemon Law, the vehicle must have been in the repair shop for at least 30 total days and the dealership must have attempted to repair the defect(s) 4 times or more. Importantly, if the defect affects the highway safety of the vehicle then the dealership must have only made 2 or more repair attempts. Under Louisiana law, a manufacturer is presumed by the court to be in violation of the warranty for a defective vehicle if any of the following occurs: A dealer must be able to repair the defect in order for the manufacturer to be in violation of the warranty. If the dealer cannot fix the vehicle after multiple repair attempts, then the manufacturer may be subject to penalties and fines.

Gathering Your Important Documents

When preparing a lemon law claim, a critical step in the process is gathering the necessary documentation to support your dispute. Without this documentation, it is extremely difficult to demonstrate the problems that arose with your vehicle. Therefore, a thorough compilation of all documents related to your case is essential. These documents may include sales contracts, repair invoices, and correspondence with the manufacturer or manufacturer’s factory service representative. Keeping all relevant documents for your purchase of a vehicle or service will provide a comprehensive record for your lemon law case.
Sales contracts are likely to be the first document collected. The sales contract is the agreement you enter into with an automobile dealer or another seller for the purchase of your vehicle. This document gives details on the purchase of your automobile that will be reviewed by your attorney. These details include the sale price of your vehicle, whether a trade-in vehicle was used as part of the sale, as well as information on any automobile financing arrangements that were arranged through the bank or the seller. It will provide the address of the vehicle’s owner, the vehicle’s vehicle identification number (VIN), which provides manufactured date information, color, manufacturer model and brand of the vehicle which will assist with parts and warranty determination. In addition, the warranty will identify the manufacturer’s obligation to repair the vehicle and the time period of this obligation.
Repair invoices are also collected and must be carefully reviewed. Your dealership may open various repair orders for your vehicle for completion of repairs for problems that arise with your vehicle during your limited warranty period. It is very important to review these orders for the exact terms of your warranty coverage. Review the dates listed for diagnosis and completion of the repair. Check for receipt of payment for any required deductible. Verify which repair technician performed the work and confirm whether new parts were installed or if any used parts were replaced. Compare these parts to the parts listed on your vehicle’s window sticker to verify whether the manufacturer placed an alternate or less expensive part on your vehicle.
Correspondence with the manufacturer, including the manufacturer’s factory service rep, is an area that should not be overlooked in presentation of your claim. Manufacturers’ correspondence can offer the most detailed description of the nature of the problem your car experienced. It will detail the manufacturer’s repeated attempts to repair the defect and may contain the manufacturer’s explanation of the defect. In addition, the factory service rep’s testimony is crucial to a manufacturer’s defense of your lemon law claim. This explanation will include the manufacturer’s repeated attempts to repair the defect in the vehicle. These terms of each repair must be clarified in the statement in order to fully argue the claim.
The above identified document categories are critical to presenting a lemon law claim. These categories include the vehicle sales contract, repair invoices and manufacturer correspondence. Without the above information, your attorney will be unable to show the problems that arose with your vehicle. So it is essential to compile all information and carefully store it for easy access in preparation of your claim. A careful compilation of all of the above information will be necessary to make a convincing argument.

Submitting a Claim to the Manufacturer

Once you’ve notified the dealership and received (or not received) appropriate action from them, or if you purchased a used motor vehicle subject to a warranty, you will then need to notify the manufacturer. For warranty vehicles, this is usually people who represent themselves as either a division of the same company that made the car/truck/vehicle or as some other corporate entity that sells and services that type of vehicle. For example, American Honda Finance Corporation is the finance division for Honda that sells the cars and trucks made by Honda. In this way, they are the same people that made the vehicle as they control the sales of the vehicle.
You may notify all the entities at the same time by sending a single letter or email. In this notification, you must provide the following: The notification should be sent directly to the manufacturer’s district administrator for the region, as identified above, by email, fax, registered return receipt mail, or overnight delivery. It is recommended to send these notifications by overnight delivery or registered return receipt mail so that you have some proof of the notice being sent and received.

Participating in the Arbitration Process

In Louisiana, under the Lemon Law of 1995, if the manufacturer has not been given a final opportunity to repair the items within 30 days, and the vehicle is out of service for repairs of warranty items for a total of 30 days within the warranty period of the automobile, the consumer has the right to demand an arbitration. If the consumer does demand an arbitration, they may either go before a neutral arbitrator chosen by the Office of the Attorney General or an experienced arbitrator acceptable to both parties. The consumer must fill out a request for arbitration with the arbitration board. If the manufacturer has already repaired the vehicle, it may go before the arbitrator at no cost to the consumer. If the consumer requests arbitration, the manufacturer has 10 days to comply. If the manufacturer chooses not to comply, the consumer may proceed to sue in state court. If the manufacturer agrees to arbitration, the consumer must go through the process and allow the arbitrator to make a decision about the case. If there is a problem with the arbitration process or an issue that you do not understand , the Office of the Attorney General can answer questions and assist through the process. The arbitration hearing resembles a trial. The consumer goes before the appointed arbitrator and explains the case, presenting all of the required documents and information that support their demand for the automobile to be replaced or refunded. The manufacturer has the opportunity to respond with its own evidence. In some cases, the arbitrator will request the consumer and the manufacturer to come to a settlement agreement before issuing a final award concerning the matter before the arbitration. The arbitration process is beneficial. It allows for expediency in the resolution of the case as well as issues concerning the alleged defects in the vehicle. It also allows for the consumer and the manufacturer to "hash it out." Only if arbitration fails to provide a result agreeable to both parties, can the consumer take the manufacturer before the court to commence a civil action.

Taking Legal Action When Necessary

If your arbitration hearing does not yield a satisfactory result, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you are out of options. You may still have a case for breach of warranty as a matter of law. If this is the case, you should consider hiring a lawyer who specializes in lemon law to take your case to court.
Depending on the circumstances, you can retain an attorney and file subsequently file a lawsuit anytime before the end of the warranty period. It’s important to note that the burden of proof shifts to the manufacturer in this case. That means that, unlike in arbitration, you will not be required to prove that the car is defective. Rather, the manufacturer will have to prove that the car is not defective. This can be a significant advantage when it comes to presenting your case fairly. Another advantage of legal representation in this case is that you can receive "Lemon Law attorney fees" as part of a favorable verdict. This means that the manufacturer will be responsible for paying all of your legal fees, allowing you to focus on your recovery and adjust to life without your vehicle. It is recommended that you should retain an attorney for all lemon law cases after the chosen arbitration discipline proposes an award of a cash settlement. Until that point, the choice is yours. However, given how complicated the lemon law process can become, working with a qualified attorney is a good idea. Of course, should you choose to go through the arbitration process alone, some lemon law attorneys do offer some type of limited support on a contingency basis. Keep in mind that the statute of limitations for Louisiana lemon law claims is only 18 months. If you don’t file your claim within 18 months and pursue if vigorously both through arbitration and in court, it can be difficult to get a favorable result.

Tips for a Winning Lemon Law Claim

To increase your chances of a successful lemon law claim, it is important you take proactive measures to ensure that the manufacturer and dealer have ample time to remedy all the defects. Keeping organized and thorough records is key. When you bring your vehicle in for repairs, document the date you brought the car in for repairs, the problems you encountered, the repairs made, and the date you picked up the vehicle. It is also advised that you keep a copy of that repair invoice. In every case, dealers will claim the vehicle was properly repaired when in reality it is not. As a way to prevent this from happening, you should have a record showing how long the vehicle was in the shop for repairs, and when the repairs were completed. For example, you may have brought your car in on Monday and received it back on Friday, but there may have been other issues that the dealer did not repair or had not corrected as promised. This is why it is important to have this documentation. And we cannot stress enough the importance of reading the warranty. The warranty is often cited as a defense by the manufacturer and/or dealer , and it’s imperative that you familiarize yourself and understand the parameters of your warranty and the specific requirements to take advantage of its protections. Further, if a court appearance is necessary, you will want to create notes to capture the salient points of your evaluation of the evidence and to ascertain your desired outcome. You are readying yourself for all the elements the dealer/manufacturer may assert and have prepared responses to each of those cases. In addition to our attorneys’ help, you will be equipped with everything needed to build your case. You are able to preemptively recreate factual situations so that you are comfortable with what occurs in the courtroom. Most of all, we advise you to seek the legal assistance necessary to understand your rights. An experienced attorney will know how best to approach your case and represent you. Because a successful lemon law claim takes considerable effort, you will want to make sure you have all your bases covered.