Mississippi Lemon Law Firms and the Mississippi lemon law code.

Mississippi Code Annotated, 63-17-151 to 63-17-165

63-17-151 Short title.

Sections 63-17-151 et seq. shall be known and may be cited as the "Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act".

63-17-153 Legislative findings and declaration of purpose.

The Legislature recognizes that a motor vehicle is a major consumer purchase and that a defective motor vehicle creates a hardship for the consumer. The Legislature further recognizes that a duly franchised motor vehicle dealer is an agent of the manufacturer. It is the intent of the Legislature that a good faith motor vehicle warranty complaint by a consumer should be resolved by the manufacturer, or its agent, within a specified period of time. It is further the intent of the Legislature to provide the statutory procedures whereby a consumer may receive a replacement motor vehicle, or a full refund, for a motor vehicle which cannot be brought into conformity with the express warranty issued by the manufacturer. However, nothing in Sections 63-17-153 et seq. shall in any way limit the rights or remedies which are otherwise available to a consumer under any other law.

63-17-155 Definitions.

As used in Sections 63-17-151 et seq. the following terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) "Collateral charges" means those additional charges to a consumer which are not directly attributable to the manufacturer's suggested retail price label for the motor vehicle. For the purposes of Sections 63-17-151 et seq. collateral charges shall include, but not be limited to, dealer preparation charges, undercoating charges, transportation charges, towing charges, replacement car rental costs and title charges.

(b) "Comparable motor vehicle" means an identical or reasonably equivalent motor vehicle.

(c) "Consumer" means the purchaser, other than for purposes of resale, of a motor vehicle, primarily used for personal, family, or household purposes, and any person to whom such motor vehicle is transferred for the same purposes during the duration of an express warranty applicable to such motor vehicle, and any other person entitled by the terms of such warranty to enforce the obligations of the warranty.

(d) "Express warranty" means any written affirmation of fact or promise made in connection with the sale of a motor vehicle by a supplier to a consumer which relates to the nature of the material or workmanship and affirms or promises that such material or workmanship is defect-free or will meet a specified level of performance over a specified period of time. For the purposes of Sections 63-17-151 et seq. express warranties do not include implied warranties.

(e) "Manufacturer" means a manufacturer or distributor as defined in Section 63-17-55.

(f) "Motor vehicle" means a vehicle propelled by power other than muscular power which is sold in this state, is operated over the public streets and highways of this state and is used as a means of transporting persons or property, but shall not include vehicles run only upon tracks, off-road vehicles, motorcycles, mopeds, or parts and components of a motor home which were added on and/or assembled by the manufacturer of the motor home. "Motor vehicle" shall include demonstrators or lease-purchase vehicles as long as a manufacturer's warranty was issued as a condition of sale.

(g) "Purchase price" means the price which the consumer paid to the manufacturer to purchase the motor vehicle in a cash sale or, if the motor vehicle is purchased in a retail installment transaction, the cash sale price as defined in Section 63-19-3.

63-17-157 Repair of nonconforming vehicle.

For the purposes of Sections 63-17-151 et seq., if a new motor vehicle does not conform to all applicable express warranties, and the consumer reports the nonconformity to the manufacturer or its agent during the term of such express warranties or during the period of one (1) year following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to the consumer, whichever period expires earlier, the manufacturer or its agent shall make such repairs as are necessary to conform the vehicle to such express warranties, notwithstanding the fact that such repairs are made after the expiration of such term or such one-year period.

63-17-159. Replacement of vehicle or refund of purchase price.

Where nonconformity cannot be corrected; affirmative defenses; presumption of reasonable attempts to conform vehicle to warranties; extension of warranties; notice requirements relating to repair of nonconformity; civil actions.

(1) If the manufacturer or its agent cannot conform the motor vehicle to any applicable express warranty by repairing or correcting any default or condition which impairs the use, market value, or safety of the motor vehicle to the consumer after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer shall give the consumer the option of having the manufacturer either replace the motor vehicle with a comparable motor vehicle acceptable to the consumer, or take title of the vehicle from the consumer and refund to the consumer the full purchase price, including all reasonably incurred collateral charges, less a reasonable allowance for the consumer's use of the vehicle. The subtraction of a reasonable allowance for use shall apply when either a replacement or refund of the motor vehicle occurs. A reasonable allowance for use shall be that sum of money arrived at by multiplying the number of miles the motor vehicle has been driven by the consumer by Twenty Cents (20 per mile. Refunds shall be made to the consumer and lien holder of record, if any, as their interests may appear.

(2) It shall be an affirmative defense to any claim under Sections 63-17-151 et seq. that:

(a) An alleged nonconformity does not impair the use, market value or safety of the motor vehicle;

(b) A nonconformity is the result of abuse, neglect or unauthorized modifications or alterations of a motor vehicle by a consumer;

(c) A claim by a consumer was not filed in good faith; or

(d) Any other affirmative defense allowed by law.

(3) It shall be presumed that a reasonable number of attempts have been undertaken to conform a motor vehicle to the applicable express warranties if within the terms, conditions or limitations of the express warranty, or during the period of one (1) year following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer, whichever expires earlier, either:

(a) Substantially the same nonconformity has been subject to repair three (3) or more times by the manufacturer or its agent and such nonconformity continues to exist; or

(b) The vehicle is out of service by reason of repair of the nonconformity by the manufacturer or its agent for a cumulative total of fifteen (15) or more working days, exclusive of downtime for routine maintenance as prescribed by the owner's manual, since the delivery of the vehicle to the consumer. The fifteen-day period may be extended by any period of time during which repair services are not available to the consumer because of conditions beyond the control of the manufacturer or its agent.

(4) The terms, conditions or limitations of the express warranty, or the period of one (1) year following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer, whichever expires earlier, may be extended if the motor vehicle warranty problem has been reported but has not been repaired by the manufacturer or its agent by the expiration of the applicable time period.

(5) The manufacturer shall provide a list of the manufacturer's zone or regional service office addresses in the owner's manual provided with the motor vehicle. It shall be the responsibility of the consumer or his representative, prior to availing himself of the provisions of this section, to give written notification to the manufacturer of the need for the repair of the nonconformity, in order to allow the manufacturer an opportunity to cure the alleged defect. The manufacturer shall immediately notify the consumer of a reasonably accessible repair facility to conform the vehicle to the express warranty. After delivery of the vehicle to the designated repair facility by the consumer, the manufacturer shall have ten (10) working days to conform the motor vehicle to the express warranty. Upon notification from the consumer that the vehicle has not been conformed to the express warranty, the manufacturer shall inform the consumer if an informal dispute settlement procedure has been established by the manufacturer in accordance with Section 63-17-163, and provide the consumer with a copy of the provisions of Sections 63-17-151 et seq. However, if prior notice by the manufacturer of an informal dispute settlement procedure has been given, no further notice is required. If the manufacturer fails to notify the consumer of the availability of this informal dispute settlement procedure, the requirements of Section 63-17-163 shall not apply.

(6) Any action brought under Sections 63-17-151 et seq. shall be commenced within one (1) year following expiration of the terms, conditions or limitations of the express warranty, or within eighteen (18) months following the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer, whichever is earlier, or, if a consumer resorts to an informal dispute settlement procedure as provided in Sections 63-17-151 et seq., within ninety (90) days following the final action of the panel.

(7) If a consumer finally prevails in any action brought under Sections 63-17-151 et seq., the court may allow him to recover as part of the judgment a sum equal to the aggregate amount of costs and expenses, including attorney's fees based on actual time expended, determined by the court to have been reasonably incurred by the plaintiff for or in connection with the commencement and prosecution of such action.

63-17-161 Liability of consumer for bad faith claims.

Any claim by a consumer which is found by the court to have been filed in bad faith, or solely for the purpose of harassment, or in complete absence of a justifiable issue of either law or fact raised by the consumer, shall result in the consumer being liable for all court costs incurred by the manufacturer or its agent as a direct result of the bad faith claim.

63-17-163 Necessity for resort to informal dispute settlement procedure.

If a manufacturer has established an informal dispute settlement procedure which complies in all respects with the provisions of 16 C.F.R., Part 703, the provisions of Section 63-17-159 concerning refunds or replacements shall not apply to any consumer who has not first resorted to such procedure.

63-17-165 Remedies for violations.

Any violation of Sections 63-17-151 et seq. shall be subject to the rights and remedies as provided for by Chapter 24, Title 75, Mississippi Code of 1972.

Essentially, the Lemon Laws state that if you acquire (and in several states, lease) a new or used car or other vehicle under warranty that struggles to consistently run after repair attempts, and the original maker just can't fix it in spite of recurrent efforts (inside a fixed time that fluctuates from state to state), or if the item is not drivable for a limited period of time (often 30 days) because of its troubles, you are eligible to a broad number of dismantles, inclusive of:

1. Money damage settlements
2. A return of the original price
3. A brand new car
Furthermore, just about all the Lemon Laws (and the Federal Warranty Law) contain a fee changing mechanism that states that if you win your case, the original equipment manufacturer or car dealership which sold you the lemon is expected to pay your legal bills.


Lemon Law Statutes
State Lemon Law Regulations
Each of the 50 states has a unique Lemon Law statute. Even though the attributes of each state's statute are distinct, the conventional state Lemon Law statute extends cure for consumers with a faulty auto covered by a warranty if:

1. The dealership or original equipment manufacturer just can not correctly remedy a particular failing in the product after a reasonable number of repair efforts (usually at least 3);
2. The vehicle cannot be used for at least 30 days due to flaws in the motor vehicle; or
3. The dealer or original equipment manufacturer cannot correct a deficiency that is a vital safety risk.

Typically, a bad vehicle is a vehicle with a condition or trouble that frequently impares its function, economic value, or safety to the consumer and doesn't comply with the written warranty. Frequently, the time period during which the Lemon Laws are applicable are rather short; the defects and consequential repair efforts (or out-of-service time) generally will occur during the first two-years or 24,000 miles that you own the automobile. However, a number of states have even shorter time periods. Additionally, almost all states have notification and activation requirements, such as wanting the consumer to give registered post notice to the original equipment manufacturer of the troubles and establishing the dealership an option to repair the automobile. In addition, most states expect that Lemon Law lawsuits be settled through an arbitration system.

Generally, state Lemon Law statues also are applicable to leased automobiles and used cars purchased while under the manufacturer's factory warranty. A lot of state Lemon Laws also are applicable to automobiles other than passenger cars. depending upon the purchaser's home state, or the state in which the consumer purchased the motor vehicle, Lemon Laws may apply to:

-RV's
-Motorcycles
-Pleasure Boats
-Other consumer commodities (such as electronics)
There are many powerful solutions available under the Lemon Laws. U.S. Statesently, if the manufacturing business can't correct the car, the consumer can either expect the manufacturing business to replace the automobile, or force the manufacturing business to take the vehicle and repay the price paid along with incidental costs, such as all bills, towing fees, repair costs, alternative travel charges and other charges incurred by the consumer as a consequence of the problems in the vehicle. Another important remedy available under most Lemon Laws is attorneys' fees. In virtually all states, if you win in a Lemon Law lawsuit, you do not have to pay any litigation expenses-the automobile original maker that sold you your lemon is required to pay your attorneys' invoices.

The defendant car manufacturer can utilize many defenses to a Lemon Law claim. The standard regulation extends that the original producer is not guilty if it can establish that the shortcomings in question persisted due to harm, neglect, or the tampering or modification of a motor vehicle by persons other than the maker, an agent, or its authorized dealer. In other words, if the consumer dismantles his or her own motor vehicle, or the problems were the fault of changing or adjustments carried out by an unauthorized party, the maker could not be guilty.


Federal Lemon Law Statutes
The Magnuson Moss Act
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is the federal law that regulates consumer goods warranties. Ratified by Congress in 1975, the Magnuson Moss Act requires makers and dealers of consumer items to give customers itemized data about warranty coverage benefits. In addition, it determines both the rights of public consumers and the responsibilities of warrantors under original warranties.

Although the Magnuson Moss Act does not demand an vehicle maker to provide consumers with a warranty, if a warranty is provided, the Magnuson Moss Act extends a number of protections for the consumer. The Magnuson Moss Act makes it more easy for consumers to sue for breach of warranty by making breach of warranty an infraction of federal law, and by permitting consumers to recoup litigation costs and reasonable laywers' charges.

The Magnuson Moss Act is typically effective in a lemon lawsuit where, for some reason, a state Lemon Law claim is not applicable or otherwise unsuited. For example, contrary to the generally short time period provided to public consumers with virtually all Lemon Laws, you may bring a claim for breach of warranty after the warranty period has expired as long as the troubles occurred during the warranty time period. Also, although a few Lemon Laws restrict their coverage benefits to a very specific number of vehicles, the Magnuson Moss Act is relevant to near all consumer products. The Magnuson Moss Act might also apply if you purchased or leased a used motor vehicle without a manufacturer's warranty, or if the motor vehicle is covered by a service contract or other variety of extended warranty.


The Uniform Commercial Code
The Uniform Commercial Code (referred to as "UCC") has been ratified in every U.S. state. It is the foundational source of law governing warranties on consumer goods, including vehicles and other items. The UCC offers an alternative legal course for public consumers with lemon problems.

UCC code stipulates that the purchaser of a good is entitled to return goods which break in any feature to the agreement. Basically, if your recently purchased product doesn't work as warranted by the manufacturing business (your original warranty is part of your agreement), you may file a claim citing the UCC in addition to whatever other claims you may have.

The period of time for bringing back a car with the UCC is not limitless. If you identify a fault in your motor vehicle inside a sensible ownership time period, you may take back the vehicle. Unfortunately, brand new automobiles can be frequently technically complicated and you may not notice if your automobile conforms to the consumer warranty till after you acquire the automobile and troubles begin to develop. Essentially, if Following this ownership time you don't refuse the automobile, you will be stated to have accepted it and may have no claim through the UCC.

The length of the review period is not specified in the regulation. The Courts determine how long the sensible inspection period is based on the purchaser's familiarity and personal experience, the purchaser's trouble in exposing the gremlin, and the purchaser's chance to observe the deficiency.

In spite of this restriction, the UCC stipulates that in certain examples where a buyer is said to have accepted products (i.e. the sensible inspection period has expired), a buyer may still recant his acceptation of those goods where the non-conformity substantially degrades the economic value of the goods to him. Those instances include instances in which it proves toilsome to come upon the nonconformity or the buyer was promised that the non-conformity would be fixed. Re-stated, the local court will excuse the buyer from not rejecting the goods where the buyer could not have reasonably done so, or where the manufacturer promised the buyer that the problems would be repaired.
When a car excessively fails and you have to keep bringing it back to the dealer for repair under the warranty, the automobile lemon law may be your next recourse. The defect ought to be significant in which it interferes with your driving the item or your safety. A item stalling often would be a significant defect. This is precisely the type of problem that may diminiah your driving and your safety. Under the car lemon law you are not obligated to establish why the motor vehicle is stalling, you simply have to show that it is stalling. Essentially you need to check into the lemon law in these three cases: the motor vehicle keeps failing within the warranty period, the motor vehicle is a safety risk, the dealership is not able to restore the motor vehicle when it is guaranteed.

If you own a product which is a lemon you can directly write to the manufacturer and ask for a replacement product. If this requirement is not satisfactory to the manufacturer, you could start into an arbitration program. A few makers incorporate their own arbitration program. Other makers have external arbitration program like Autoline by the BBB. The proposition of the arbitrators is binding on the manufacturer but not on the owner. If unsatisfied with the opinion, the owner can take the manufacturer to court.

Virtually all laws stipulate that the purchaser must be restored back to the fiscal situation they were in before they purchased the vehicle, less the measure that the purchaser benefited from by using the vehicle. To get the compensation amount various components are considered such as was it a sale or a lease, the purchase price, taxes and license, and mileage etc.
Some nearly new used motor vehicles may qualify under regular lemon laws. For example, a pre-owned motor vehicle might fall under normal lemon laws if it is less than a year old and has got fewer than 12,000 miles on the odometer. States that do have a used car lemon law will be additionally cooperative with the age and amount of mileage. Still, the car must be sold by a dealer that extends a warranty. Personal sales are not involved, nor are automobiles sold under a declared original cost. There might be other restrictions to a used car lemon law such as the purposes in which the vehicle is pre-owned or the categorization of vehicle. Older automobiles, are usually excluded from used car lemon laws. Used car lemon laws normally cover a much shorter time period than brand new car laws. They usually range from 30 to 90 days, depending on your pre-owned vehicle's mileage.
When selecting an attorney for your lemon case, make sure that your lawyer is knowledgeable about the regulations that apply to your state. Also enquire about the fee structure. Many lemon law attorneys need a generally minor retainer to manage a lemon law claim, and subsequently, the attorney's bills are sent to the manufacturing business. Thus, lemon law claims are usually very affordable to purchasers. The reimbursement of attorney bills differs from state to state. About one-half of the states permit you to recuperate your Lawyer expenses if you win. The attorney's fee is based upon actual time expended rather than being tied to any other percent of the recuperation. In a select few States, you must pay the manufacturer's attorney's invoices if you lose.

Consumers ought to place their charges in writing and keep a copy. In any written communication, always make clear how problematic it is to return the auto to the dealer for repairs and that the dependability that the customer believed He was receiving has been non-existent. Any written communication with a dealership or manufacturing business ought to be sent using certified postal service. In most suits the makers claim that they haven't had the required number of endeavors to repair the condition. They bet on the fact that the customer doesn't have repair tickets for each time they have brought the vehicle into the authorized repair facility. They also count on the fact that the repair tickets have seperate things fixed each occurance demonstrating that they haven't repaired the same defect. Consumers should respond by demanding that dealerships always grant them a warranty repair sheet. Consumers ought to also debate that these undocumented trips are attempts.

Make sure to be mindful of your lemon law rights. Upon purchase, immediately review your owner's booklet and warranty information entirely, as well as the data with respect to lemon law rights that you should get when you buy your motor vehicle. Don't bet on your dealer to describe what problems are covered by warranty. If your dealer states that a defect isn't covered and you believe that he is purposely misleading you, be polite but assertive. Don't be frighted to point out the section of the warranty that is relevant, or to call the manufacturing business for verification applying the contact info included within your owner's booklet. You should not be obliged pay for work linked to lemon law complaints. It's also necessary to advise the manufacturing business of a complaint immediately. If you believe that your car has a problem which just can not be remedied, look into your lemon law rights to see when you are able to file a lemon law complaint.

Lemon Law Tips:

1. Take your car in early - as soon as something appears wrong.
2. Hold onto repair orders - Always obtain a work order when you take the vehicle for repairs, and always obtain a completed repair order when work is completed. Be sure the work order reflects your own thoughts and comments regarding your complaints. If the technician summarizes or changes your complaint too much, have that technician add your corrected comments. Sign and receive a copy of the repair Order before leaving.
3. Be consistent in your complaints. Lemon Laws generally require that a manufacturer's authorized repair facility be provided with a reasonable number of opportunities to repair the same problem(s). Therefore, be as consistent as possible on each repeated repair attempt in describing the problem(s) you are having. This will establish that the problem is the same recurring problem, and will make any potential lemon law claim easier to establish and prove.

4. Look for TSBs: Technical Service Bulletins are issued by manufacturers regarding common defects or repairs in certain automobile models. Your dealer will not seek to tell you about TSBs unless you ask. Ask the dealer to make note of your TSB request on the repair order, even if your dealer tells you that none exist for your problem.
5. Watch for bad advice - Dealers and manufacturers personnel, without intending to, frequently practice law by giving you their version of lemon laws. Typically it is wrong and may be detrimental to your case. It doesn't matter whether the reason for this misinformation is unintentional or not. The effect is similar. So check any advice given by the dealer or manufacturer before making any decision that may harm your case.

6. Beware of arbitration - Manufacturers frequently recommend arbitration or even imply that it is a mandatory prerequisite to resolving your problem. Arbitration is neither desirable nor mandatory! And it is absolutely not a prerequisite for making a lemon law demand!
Leading Misconceptions regarding the Lemon Laws

If my case does not qualify for the lemon law there is nothing I can do.
Attorneys regularly take cases that do not meet the lemon law criteria. All purchasers of defective products have a legal right to compensation. They frequently take cases which do meet the mileage or repair criteria of the lemon law, bring them in court, and secure compensation or other relief for the buyer.

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