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New York Lemon Law

Lemon Law Lawyers in New York

At RockPoint Law, lemon law is our core practice. We act for New York drivers whose new car, truck or motorcycle keeps going back to the dealer for the same fault, whether that's a transmission that slips every morning on the Thruway or a dashboard that goes dark on I-81 north of Syracuse.

Free Case Evaluation

Three quick questions. No cost, no obligation.

  1. The year and make of your vehicle
  2. What the dealer has already tried
  3. How to reach you, and we review it
Start My Free Case Review  Call (516) 550-3323

Sending this does not create an attorney-client relationship. A case evaluation is a first step, not legal representation.

New York provides a real remedy. Once a warranty defect survives four repair attempts, or keeps the vehicle in the shop for thirty days, the manufacturer owes you a refund or a comparable replacement, and you pick which. Most claims go to an arbitration program that runs under Attorney General rules, with hearings held across the state.

  • All 62 New York counties
  • 18,000 miles or two years
  • No fee unless we recover

Our New York attorney: Steven P. Nassi, New York Attorney Registration No. 4263489, licensed in New York since 2004.

Key facts

New York lemon law at a glance

The numbers that decide most New York claims, with the part of the statute or the program rules each one comes from.

Key facts of the New York New Car Lemon Law, General Business Law section 198-a
Key figureWhat it meansWhere it comes from
18,000 milesor two yearsThe window. You report the defect, and the repairs that count happen, inside the first 18,000 miles or two years from original delivery, whichever comes first.Section 198-a(b)(1) and (d)
4 repairssame defectThe same defect or condition has been in for repair four or more times inside the window, and it's still there.Section 198-a(d)(1)
30 daysin the shopOut of service by reason of repair for a cumulative thirty or more calendar days, for one or more defects.Section 198-a(d)(2)
20 daysrefusal routeIf a dealer won't start repairs within seven days, the manufacturer has twenty days from receiving your certified letter to begin.Section 198-a(b)(2)
Your choicerefund or replacementWhen a claim succeeds, you decide between a full refund and a comparable replacement, not the manufacturer.Section 198-a(c)(1)
12,000 milesfree in a buybackThe deduction for your use of the car only counts the miles above 12,000.Section 198-a(a)(4)
$250state program feeThe filing fee for the state arbitration program. A written decision is due within forty days of the filing date, and a winning consumer gets the fee back.AG Request for Arbitration form; 13 NYCRR 300.5 and 300.16
4 yearsfrom deliveryThe time to bring an action, counted from original delivery of the vehicle to you.Section 198-a(j)
The Short Answer

What is the lemon law in New York State?

Yes, New York has a lemon law. General Business Law section 198-a covers a new vehicle bought, leased or registered in New York. If a warranty defect that substantially impairs the car's value can't be fixed within the first 18,000 miles or two years from delivery, whichever comes first, the manufacturer has to give you a full refund or a comparable replacement, and the choice is yours. Four repairs of the same problem, or thirty days in the shop, is presumed to be enough chances. You can take the claim to arbitration under Attorney General rules, to the manufacturer's own program, or to court.

The statute is General Business Law section 198-a, the New Car Lemon Law, and the Office of the New York State Attorney General supervises the arbitration program that goes with it. That program is the thing most New York drivers end up using. The Attorney General's Lemon Law Unit reads your request and decides whether you're eligible. Then the New York State Dispute Resolution Association, a contractor that isn't part of the Attorney General's office, runs the case, and a volunteer arbitrator working through one of the Community Dispute Resolution Centers hears it. The Attorney General's own page says those centers operate in all 62 counties. You don't need to be anywhere near Albany or Manhattan to use it.

Start with the window, because every other rule hangs off it. The New York window is the first 18,000 miles or two years from original delivery, whichever comes first. Section 198-a(b)(1) says you have to report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent or an authorized dealer during that window, and the repair attempts that count toward the presumption have to fall inside it too. Two dates are easy to confuse here. The warranty booklet in your glovebox may run for three years or 36,000 miles, or longer on the powertrain. That's the manufacturer's warranty. The lemon law window is shorter and sits inside it, and on a car driven hard it can close in well under a year.

Section 198-a(d) sets two presumptions, and meeting either one is enough. Under (d)(1), the same defect or condition has been subject to repair four or more times inside the window and it's still there. Under (d)(2), the vehicle has been out of service by reason of repair for a cumulative thirty or more calendar days, and the statute says "one or more" defects, so time lost to unrelated faults adds together. A third route, the 20-day refusal route in section 198-a(b)(2), needs no repair count at all. We cover it in the eligibility cards below.

What New York doesn't have is a safety shortcut. Texas qualifies a serious safety hazard after two failed repairs. Georgia qualifies one after a single failed repair. New York counts a brake fault and a rattle the same way: four attempts or thirty days. Some summaries of New York law list a serious-safety route anyway. It isn't in section 198-a. A dangerous defect can still help you, because it goes straight to the question of substantial impairment, but it doesn't lower the count.

These are presumptions, and the manufacturer gets two defenses. Section 198-a(c)(3) makes it an affirmative defense that the defect does not substantially impair the value of the car, or that it's the result of abuse, neglect, or unauthorized modifications or alterations. That first defense is why a squeak you can live with rarely supports a claim, while a car that won't start on a January morning is a different conversation. The Attorney General's guide adds that several smaller defects together can amount to substantial impairment.

Two rules protect you while the dealer works on it. When you report a defect to a dealer, section 198-a(b)(1) requires the dealer to send written notice to the manufacturer within seven days by certified mail, saying whether repairs have started. And the repair has to be done at no charge, even if it happens after the window closes, as long as you reported the defect inside it. A dealer who tells you the problem is "out of lemon law" because you're now past 18,000 miles has the rule backwards if the first report came earlier.

Four years, and what starts the clock

Section 198-a(j) is short: any action under the section "shall be commenced within four years of the date of original delivery of the motor vehicle to the consumer." Three points about it matter in practice:

  • The four years run from original delivery, not from the last repair and not from the day you decided the car was a lemon.
  • Your repair attempts still have to fall inside the 18,000-mile or two-year window. The four years is time to bring the claim, not extra time to rack up repairs.
  • The subdivision speaks of an "action". Neither the statute nor the program rules in 13 NYCRR Part 300 set a separate deadline for a request for arbitration, so we treat four years from delivery as the outer limit for every route and file well before it.

Compare the neighbors. Texas gives you six months after the earliest of three events, which can close a claim before most people notice. Georgia gives a year after its rights period ends. New York's four years is generous by comparison, and that generosity is the trap: drivers wait, the car gets traded in or repossessed, and the claim goes with it. The Attorney General's guide is blunt about the last point. Keep making the payments, because a repossessed car can't be handed back for a refund.

Where the claim goes is the first decision, and New York offers three doors. The state program under 13 NYCRR Part 300 costs a $250 filing fee, an amount set by the Attorney General's request form rather than the rule, and produces a decision that binds both sides. The manufacturer's own program, if it has one, is free, and section 198-a(g) lets a manufacturer with a compliant program insist you try it before you sue. Court is the third door, and section 198-a(l) lets a court award reasonable attorney's fees to a consumer who wins. Each one has costs the others don't. Our guide to how to file a lemon law claim sets out the paperwork order, and the lemon law glossary covers the vocabulary.

Eligibility

What qualifies for the lemon law in New York?

New York gives the manufacturer a reasonable number of attempts to fix your car and then tells you, in section 198-a(d), when that number is presumed to have run out. There are two presumptions and a separate refusal route, and any one of them can carry a claim. All of them run inside the same window, which is the fourth card.

Before any of it matters, the vehicle has to fit the statute: covered by the manufacturer's express warranty when it was first delivered, bought, leased or transferred in New York within that first 18,000 miles or two years, or registered here, and used mostly for personal, family or household purposes. The Attorney General's guide says a car your business owns still qualifies if you drive it for personal use more than half the time.

The Four-Repair Test

The same defect or condition has been in for repair four or more times inside the window, and it still isn't fixed. That's section 198-a(d)(1). The Attorney General's guide adds a detail people miss: if the fourth attempt failed and a fifth one finally worked, you can still qualify. A defect fixed on the fifth try has already had its four.

A New York example A new SUV in for the same shuddering transmission four times before 16,000 miles, still shuddering on the drive home from the fourth visit

The 30-Day Test

The car has been out of service by reason of repair for a cumulative thirty or more calendar days inside the window. Section 198-a(d)(2) says "one or more" defects, so three shop visits for three unrelated faults can add up. Calendar days count, weekends included. New York's text has no loaner carve-out like the one in Texas, so on the face of the statute a courtesy car doesn't take days off the count. And the defect doesn't have to survive: the Attorney General's guide says thirty days qualifies even if the car was eventually fixed.

A New York example A sedan at a Rochester service department for eleven days over an electrical fault, nine for a coolant leak and twelve for a failed sensor, all before its second birthday

The 20-Day Refusal Route

Here's a route with no repair count at all. If a dealer won't start repairs within seven days of your report, section 198-a(b)(2) lets you send the manufacturer written notice of that refusal by certified mail, return receipt requested. The manufacturer then has twenty days from receiving it to begin. If nothing starts in those twenty days, the refund or replacement is owed, at your option. Texas and Georgia have nothing like it. The Attorney General's Request for Arbitration form asks about this route separately, and wants the certified-mail proof attached.

A New York example An Albany dealer that says it can't look at a pickup's failing four-wheel drive for a month. You write to the manufacturer the same week, certified, and the twenty days start when it signs for the letter

Inside the 18,000-Mile, Two-Year Window

The window is the first 18,000 miles or two years from original delivery, whichever comes first. You have to report the defect inside it, and the four repairs or thirty days have to happen inside it. The statute then allows four years from original delivery to bring an action, under section 198-a(j). New York has a shorter window than Texas's 24 months or 24,000 miles and a longer tail than Texas's six months, so the pressure point moves. In New York it's usually the odometer, not the calendar.

A New York example A commuter who drives Binghamton to Syracuse and back on I-81 every weekday can pass 18,000 miles inside ten months. The third repair visit at 17,600 miles counts; a fourth at 18,200 doesn't

Keep the paper trail

Meeting a test initiates the analysis rather than concluding it. The whole claim runs on paper, so keep every work order, repair bill, and purchase or lease contract, along with the dates and the odometer reading on each one.

New York helps here more than most states. The Attorney General's guide points out that Department of Motor Vehicles regulations require a dealer to give you a legible, accurate written work order every time it does repair work, including free warranty work. So a visit with "no charge" on it is still a visit on paper, and the date in and the date out on that work order are how the thirty days get counted. Keep copies of every email and letter too. The Request for Arbitration form asks for the date, mileage and work order number of each attempt, one line per visit.

Not sure whether your work orders clear one of the tests? Send them over for a straight read.

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Where your case is heard

Should I sue or arbitrate in New York?

The question we hear most from New York drivers is whether a lemon law claim means going to court. Usually it doesn't. Most New York claims go to arbitration, and the state program is built so that an ordinary driver can use it: a short request form, a filing fee, a hearing that typically lasts an hour or two, and a written decision inside six weeks of filing. Four features set it apart from the Texas system.

The Attorney General Screens It, and a Contractor Runs It

You send the Request for Arbitration to the Attorney General's Lemon Law Unit, which checks it for completeness and eligibility and accepts it or sends it back with reasons, under 13 NYCRR 300.4. After that, the Attorney General steps back. The New York State Dispute Resolution Association, which the Attorney General's office contracts, runs the case from there. Texas gives the entire process to its motor vehicles agency. New York splits it in two.

A Volunteer Arbitrator Decides, and the Decision Binds Both Sides

The person who hears your case is a trained volunteer arbitrator working through a local Community Dispute Resolution Center, and rule 300.6(b) bars anyone with a current connection to selling or making cars. The hearing isn't a trial: formal rules of evidence don't apply, witnesses take an oath, and the arbitrator can ride in or drive the car. The decision is binding on both parties and final, subject only to court review under CPLR Article 75, which rule 300.16(h) says in so many words.

Three Doors, and the Choice Has Consequences

Section 198-a(k) gives you the state program, and all manufacturers must submit to it once you apply and pay. Section 198-a(g) lets a manufacturer that runs its own informal program make you try that program first before a court orders a refund or replacement, and that program has to follow Federal Trade Commission rules. The state program sidesteps that: the Bill of Rights says you may choose an arbitrator approved by the Attorney General instead. Court is the third door. The state decision binds the manufacturer too. That's the trade.

A $250 Fee, and a Forty-Day Clock That Starts When You Pay

Nothing is paid up front. Once the Attorney General accepts your request, the administrator writes and asks for the $250 filing fee, and rule 300.5 makes the day it arrives the filing date. The administrator sends the manufacturer your papers within five days, and it can answer in writing within fifteen. You can reply by day twenty-five. The hearing has to be held by day thirty-five unless both sides agree to a later date, and rule 300.16(a) requires a written decision within forty days of the filing date. If you win, rule 300.16(c) awards the $250 back to you. Withdraw within seven business days and the fee is refunded under rule 300.15(a).

Where the hearing happens

This is the part of the New York system that makes it a statewide program. Rule 300.7(g) requires regular hearing sites in thirteen named areas, from Buffalo and Rochester in the west to Plattsburgh and Watertown in the north, and it adds a rule that protects drivers in the far corners: where the nearest regular site is more than 100 miles from your home, the administrator has to schedule your hearing, if you ask, somewhere within 100 miles.

Rule 300.7(f) asks for evening and weekend hours where possible. The current request form lists thirty hearing locations to choose from. Most hearings are in person. You can ask for a virtual hearing where one's available, or a hearing on documents alone, which needs the manufacturer's agreement.

The thirty hearing locations on the Attorney General's request form

Question 22 of the New Car Lemon Law Request for Arbitration form (revised March 2025) asks where you want the hearing held, and lists these locations: Albany, Amsterdam, Bath, Binghamton, Bronx, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Carmel, Catskill, Central Islip, Cobleskill, Elmira, Hempstead, Ilion, Ithaca, Kingston, Manhattan, Middletown, Monticello, Montour Falls, Oneonta, Owego, Plattsburgh, Poughkeepsie, Queens, Staten Island, Syracuse, Utica, Watertown and Yonkers.

The regulation's own list of regular hearing areas in rule 300.7(g) is shorter and not identical: Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, Nassau County, New York City, Plattsburgh, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Suffolk County, Syracuse, Utica, Watertown and Westchester. The form doesn't list a Rochester location. If you live in the Finger Lakes or the Genesee Valley, ask the administrator where the nearest session will sit, and remember the 100-mile rule.

After the decision: thirty days, and a fee for every day late

If you win, the decision tells the manufacturer what actions to take and includes the arithmetic. Your part is to tell the manufacturer you accept it. Section 198-a(h) then gives the manufacturer thirty days from your acceptance to comply, and if it runs past that, you can recover $25 for each business day of noncompliance, up to $500.

The fee doesn't apply where you caused the delay, for example by asking for a custom-ordered replacement. If the manufacturer still won't pay, the award can be turned into a court judgment, and section 198-a(l) lets the court make the manufacturer pay the reasonable attorney's fees it took to collect.

Correcting or challenging an award: the day counts, and which court

Section 198-a(k) says the state program is governed by Article 75 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, with one change that matters to consumers: any court proceeding about the arbitration has to be brought only in the county where the consumer lives, or where the arbitration was held or is pending. A manufacturer can't drag the fight to a county of its choosing.

  • To ask the arbitrator to correct an award, write within 20 days after it's delivered to you, under CPLR 7509. That covers miscalculations and matters of form, not a second hearing on the merits.
  • To ask a court to vacate or modify it, the application has to be made within 90 days after delivery, under CPLR 7511(a).
  • The grounds are narrow: corruption, fraud or misconduct, a partial arbitrator, an arbitrator who exceeded their power, or a failure to follow Article 75's procedure. A court doesn't retry the case because it would have weighed the repair orders differently.
  • The Attorney General's guide says that if a manufacturer still refuses to comply, you can go to court within one year of the decision to have it confirmed as a judgment.

That narrow review applies in both directions. A manufacturer that loses usually can't undo the award. A consumer who loses usually can't either, and that finality is the main reason to prepare the hearing properly the first time.

Anyone who tells you a New York claim is simply "four repairs and you're out" has left out the window, the choice of forum and the way the refund is worked out, which is where most claims are actually won or lost. Our note on how to file a lemon law claim covers the order the paperwork goes in, and how the lemon law works covers the basics.

Not sure whether your repairs fell inside the New York window? That's the first thing we check, at no cost.

  • Bring your work orders with the dates in and out and the odometer readings. That's usually enough to see whether you clear the four-repair or thirty-day test.
  • The mileage on the first work order tells us how many of your miles are free under the refund formula. Miles under 12,000 are free.
  • We tell you which of the three doors fits your file before anything is signed or paid.
  • You speak with the people who would work the file, not an intake desk.
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A New York driver on the phone at home while a lemon law request for arbitration is prepared and emailed to the Attorney General for them
You Stay Put

Most of a New York claim happens on paper

People hear "arbitration" and picture a conference room in Manhattan. The paperwork says otherwise. The Attorney General's office asks you to fill in the Request for Arbitration form, save it as a PDF and email it to its Lemon Law Unit, and the administrator then writes to ask for the fee and your documents. The hearing itself is held at a location you pick from the form, and rule 300.10 lets a lawyer represent you at it. If the manufacturer agrees, the case can be decided on documents alone and you never attend.

We assemble the repair history, pull the dates and odometer readings off every work order, check which route your record clears, complete and file the request, answer the manufacturer's written response, ask the arbitrator to order any records the manufacturer is holding back, and present the case at the hearing. Your part is the phone call that starts it.

How It Works

How long does a NY lemon law case take?

A New York claim has a tighter window than most states and a longer tail than almost any. The repairs have to happen inside the first 18,000 miles or two years, and then the statute leaves you up to four years from delivery to act on them. In between sit two choices nobody else makes for you: which forum hears it, and whether you want the money or a replacement car. Five steps, in the order a New York claim actually runs. For the form-by-form walkthrough, our guide to how to file a lemon law claim goes through each document.

  1. Day 0The $250 fee arrives and becomes the filing date
  2. Day 35Latest day for an oral hearing, unless both sides agree to a later date
  3. Day 40Latest day for the written decision
  4. Day 70+The manufacturer has 30 days to comply, counted from the day you tell it you accept. Accepting on Day 40 puts that at Day 70.

Check the Car Is Covered, and Which Law Fits

Start with four questions. Was the vehicle under the manufacturer's express warranty when it was first delivered? Was it bought, leased or transferred in New York inside the first 18,000 miles or two years, or is it registered here? Do you use it mostly for personal, family or household driving? And is it a road vehicle rather than an off-road vehicle, which section 198-a(a)(2) excludes? Snowmobiles and ATVs are out; the Attorney General's guide says motorcycles have been covered since 1 September 2004. A car bought used from a dealer is a different statute, section 198-b, with its own tests. A leased car is covered, and so is one transferred to you inside the window, because section 198-a(i) makes the rights follow the car to a later owner.

Report Every Defect Inside the Window, and Keep the Work Orders

Section 198-a(b)(1) puts the first job on you: report the defect to the manufacturer, its agent or an authorized dealer during the window. Do it the day you notice it. Once the dealer has the report, it has seven days to send written notice to the manufacturer by certified mail. Every visit should produce a work order with the complaint in your words, the date in, the date out and the odometer reading; the Attorney General's guide says DMV regulations require one even for free warranty work. If the service writer won't write down what you told them, write it yourself on the copy and date it. A visit logged as "could not duplicate" is still a visit.

Put the Manufacturer on Notice Where the Statute Asks

For an ordinary car, New York doesn't make a final letter to the manufacturer a precondition the way Texas does. The statute puts the notice duty on the dealer instead: once you report the defect, the dealer has seven days to tell the manufacturer in writing. Two situations change the rule. If the dealer refuses to start repairs within seven days, you write to the manufacturer by certified mail, return receipt requested, and its twenty days run from receipt, under section 198-a(b)(2). And a motor home owner who was given the special-notice rules in writing, and acknowledged them in writing, has to send certified notice after two repair attempts or 21 days out of service, under section 198-a(n)(6). Even when it isn't required, a dated letter to the manufacturer's regional office costs little and settles any later argument about whether it knew.

Choose the Forum, and Choose the Remedy on the Form

Decide between the state program, the manufacturer's program and court before you file anything. For the state program you complete the New Car Lemon Law Request for Arbitration, which asks for the vehicle, the dealer, any lender or leasing company, each repair attempt and your preferred hearing location. Question 24 asks you to pick full refund or comparable replacement, and rule 300.4(c) says the arbitrator follows that choice unless you change it in writing before the decision. The Attorney General reviews the form and accepts or rejects it with reasons. Don't send the $250 fee with it. The administrator asks for the fee once the case is accepted, and if it doesn't arrive within 60 days of the first notice, rule 300.4(h) closes the file.

The Hearing, the Decision, and Thirty Days to Pay

The hearing is held by day thirty-five after the fee arrives. You present first, the manufacturer answers, and each side can question the other's witnesses. The arbitrator can ask the manufacturer for documents before the hearing, including technical service bulletins and diagnoses, and rule 300.9(c) lets the arbitrator draw a negative inference if it won't produce them. A written decision follows within forty days of the filing date, with the refund arithmetic set out and the $250 awarded back if you win. Accept it, and the manufacturer has thirty days to comply under section 198-a(h), with $25 for each business day late, up to $500. Either side has 20 days to ask for a correction and 90 days to go to court.

Each of those five steps is a place a New York claim comes apart: a fourth repair logged at 18,300 miles, a work order that says "no problem found" with nothing about what you reported, a refund box ticked when you wanted the replacement, a manufacturer's program chosen without reading what its decision means. New York gives you more time than its neighbors to bring a claim and less room than most to build one.

You can run this yourself, and the state program was designed so that some people do. The catch is that the arbitrator decides once and the courts rarely revisit it. No one can tell you in advance how a hearing will go, and anyone who does is guessing. What a firm that handles these claims can do is keep the record clean, pick the right door and get the arithmetic right.

Outcomes

What compensation can you receive?

Refund or replacement: the choice is yours

When a New York claim succeeds, section 198-a(c)(1) gives you the choice. The manufacturer, "at the option of the consumer," either replaces the vehicle with a comparable one or takes it back and refunds the full purchase price, or the lease price, plus any trade-in allowance and the fees and charges that came with it.

That choice belongs to you and not to the manufacturer, which is the opposite of Texas, where the order decides. You make it on the request form, and the arbitrator follows it. A comparable replacement, in the Attorney General's words, is the same year and model with about the same mileage as your car. It won't be brand new.

What the refund covers, and what it leaves out

The refund covers the price of the car, cash plus trade-in allowance, including all options, plus title and registration fees and other governmental charges. You can hand the car back at the dealer that sold it or the one that tried to fix it, and section 198-a(c)(1) says you pay no further shipping charges.

What the refund doesn't include is spelled out by the Attorney General: finance charges, insurance premiums and loss of use aren't covered by the statute. Where there's a loan, section 198-a(c)(2) splits the refund between you and the lender as your interests appear on the DMV's ownership records; the lender takes what's still owed and the balance comes to you.

The first 12,000 miles are free

This rule is where New York differs most from its neighbors. The deduction for your use of the car is fixed by statute, in the mileage deduction formula in section 198-a(a)(4):

  1. Take the miles on the car above 12,000. The first 12,000 cost you nothing.
  2. Multiply those extra miles by the purchase price, or the lease price on a lease.
  3. Divide by 100,000. That's the deduction.

The Attorney General's guide works one example: a $20,000 car with 15,000 miles on it. The miles above 12,000 are 3,000, so the deduction is 3,000 times $20,000, divided by 100,000, which is $600. On a car with 11,500 miles, the deduction is zero. Compare Texas, which charges every mile against a 120,000-mile life and splits it into two rates.

The manufacturer may also take a reasonable allowance for damage beyond normal wear, and that's the other place arguments start. A dent in the door is fair game. A worn driver's seat on a two-year-old car usually counts as normal wear.

Sales tax, leases and the title

New York handles sales tax separately. The manufacturer's refund has to come with the Department of Taxation and Finance's application for a sales tax refund, and under Tax Law section 1139(f) the state and local sales tax on the refunded amount comes back from the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance. The Attorney General's guide names the form, AU-11, and gives you three years from the day you receive the manufacturer's refund to apply. It's easy to forget, and on a $50,000 truck it's real money.

A lease has its own arithmetic. Section 198-a(c)(2) gives the lessee the capitalized cost, meaning the deposit and lease payments you made, less the service fees in them, such as interest and any insurance the lessor paid for you. The leasing company gets the rest of the lease price. The lease is treated as terminated on the date of the arbitrator's decision, with no early-termination penalty. The Attorney General's example: a $1,500 down payment and twelve $300 payments, of which $100 a month was interest, gives a refund of $3,900.

The car doesn't vanish when it goes back. Section 198-a(c)(2) requires the manufacturer to tell the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles that it took the car back, and to disclose that history under Vehicle and Traffic Law section 417-a before reselling it. The Attorney General's guide says the next buyer gets a written notice that the car was returned because the defect wasn't fixed, and that the disclosure is printed on the title.

Attorney fees come from the statute itself: section 198-a(l) lets a court award reasonable attorney's fees to a consumer who wins in court, including in a court proceeding that follows the arbitration. The federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act adds its own fee provision under 15 U.S.C. section 2310(d)(2).

Possible Outcomes

Five things a successful New York claim can bring

  • Full refund

    The purchase price with trade-in, options, title and registration fees, less nothing for the first 12,000 miles and the statutory formula after that

  • Comparable replacement

    A vehicle of the same year and model with similar mileage, if that's the remedy you choose on the form

  • Free repairs

    Owed for any defect you reported inside the window, even when the repair happens after it closes, under section 198-a(b)(1)

  • Sales tax back, and a late fee

    Sales tax refunded through form AU-11, and $25 a business day, up to $500, if the manufacturer pays late

  • Attorney fees

    A court may award reasonable fees to a consumer who wins under section 198-a(l), and the federal Magnuson-Moss Act has its own fee rule

Outcomes depend on the specific facts of each case, so no attorney can tell you in advance what yours will be.

Manufacturers We've Taken to Court

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Vehicles We Handle

What is covered under the NYS lemon law?

New York decides coverage on three things rather than on the type of vehicle: whether it came with the manufacturer's express warranty, whether it was bought, leased or transferred in New York inside the window or is registered here, and whether you use it mostly for personal, family or household purposes. Section 198-a(a)(2) then carves out off-road vehicles, and subdivision (n) writes special rules for motor homes. There's no weight line in the section. Where New York law doesn't reach, the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. section 2301 and following, often does. Pick a category to see where it stands.

Cars, SUVs, Vans and Pickups

Covered, and the vehicles the statute was written around. A car you lease is covered on the same terms, with its own refund formula. A car your business owns is covered too, as long as it's used mostly for personal driving; the Attorney General's guide puts the line at more than half the time. See our practice areas.

Diesel Trucks

Covered where the truck is used mainly for personal driving, which is the test that usually decides a heavy pickup claim in New York. A three-quarter-ton truck that tows a camper on weekends and commutes on weekdays is one thing. The same truck run as a contractor's work vehicle is another. Derate and DEF faults are the defect pattern we see most, and they can rack up days in the shop quickly. See our diesel emissions lemon law guide.

Motorcycles

Covered, and have been since 1 September 2004, according to the Attorney General's guide. That puts New York on the same side as Texas and on the opposite side from Georgia and Florida, which both exclude motorcycles. The same four-repair and thirty-day tests apply, and so does the 18,000-mile window, which a touring rider can reach faster than a car owner. Off-road machines are not covered: the Attorney General names snowmobiles and ATVs as outside the law. See our motorcycle lemon law guide.

Motor Homes

Covered, with two differences. Section 198-a(n)(3) leaves out the living facilities: the flooring, plumbing and fixtures, roof, air conditioner, furnace, generator, electrical systems other than automotive circuits, the side entrance door, exterior compartments, and every window except the windshield and the front two. The drivetrain, chassis and automotive systems stay in. And section 198-a(n)(2) treats the assembler as the manufacturer, which can be the dealer. If you were given the special-notice rules in writing, send certified notice after two failed repairs or 21 days out of service. See our RV and motorhome lemon law guide.

Electric Vehicles

Covered on the same terms as any other new vehicle. Battery, charging, drive-unit and software faults are the patterns we see most, and New York's statute is well suited to them because it counts a "condition", not just a broken part. A charging fault that three different software updates don't cure is still one condition in for repair three times. When an EV sits at the dealer waiting for parts, those calendar days count toward the thirty. See our electric vehicle lemon law guide.

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Client Stories

What Our Clients Say

Real results from real clients who trusted
RockPoint Law with their lemon law claims.

I contacted RockPoint Law in July 2025 and by mid Jan 2026, I had received my settlement proceeds. A mid 5-figure loan was paid off and the manufacturer took possession of the vehicle. Not having that car payment and the mandatory full coverage freed up about $900/month. If you're on the fence about calling RockPoint Law, let it go. The relief you will feel when it all works out will be soooo worth it.

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HJ
Henry Jose
Google Review

Was having nothing but issues with the DEF system in my Ram 3500. I didn't have high hopes because 3500 trucks are generally excluded from lemon law. The entire process from the time I contacted RockPoint Law to the time I received my settlement was under 6 months! Their response times were well above expectations.

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JR
Joe Russo
Google Review

My Telluride's transmission would jerk so hard between gears that my coffee would spill. Dealer had it four times. When I called RockPoint Law, they asked the exact technical question I'd been researching for weeks. We got a buyback with reimbursement for my deductible and rental costs. They speak fluent mechanic before they speak lawyer.

Read more
K
Kirill
Google Review

Turbo failure on my EcoBoost F-150. Dealer replaced it once, then denied the second. Steven Nassi compared my case to known manufacturing defects for that engine. Other lawyers just saw 'engine trouble.' Steven built the argument around the known defect pattern. Secured a full refund.

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JR
Joshua Ragsdale
Google Review

Our minivan's sliding door would just stop working. Not a great feature with little kids. Tried to get it fixed under warranty three times. Final straw was when it almost closed on my son's arm. Leo was our attorney and got us a great outcome. They handled everything from start to finish.

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JG
Jorge Garcia
Google Review

My family's cross-country road trip turned into a nightmare when our brand-new SUV broke down in three different states. Each dealership kept giving us the run-around. RockPoint Law tracked every failed repair, hotel receipt, and even our unused theme park tickets. They got us a full buyback plus $8,200 for the vacation that fell apart.

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AG
Adam Gore
Google Review

The active suspension in my Ram 1500 started making a loud 'clunk' on every bump. Dealer replaced one part but the noise just moved to another corner. After the third repair, I was done. Natalie Nassi said, 'A repeated failure of a major chassis component is a clear impairment to value and use.' She didn't see a noise; she saw a failed system.

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PM
Piyawan Maprakhon
Google Review

My car is basically my mobile office. When the electrical system fried two laptops and killed my productivity, I reached out to RockPoint Law. Unlike the dealer who treated me as a nuisance, RockPoint Law saw how it impacted my ability to work. They secured a full refund on the vehicle plus $6,500 for lost income and equipment.

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SK
Sadie Kim
Google Review

The manufacturer told me I was out of luck. RockPoint Law told me otherwise — and proved it! Their lemon law experience turned my nightmare into a fair resolution. What impressed me most was their transparency — no false claims, just hard facts and harder work. Worth every penny and then some!

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KE
Kevin Eimuth
Google Review

From the moment I walked into their office shaking with frustration, the team at RockPoint Law put me at ease. They listened patiently to my whole story, then laid out a clear game plan. Six weeks later, I was holding a check that made all those repair shop trips worth it. True professionals who deliver!

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JB
Jatt James Bond
Google Review

We had two vans with the same transmission failure. RockPoint Law consolidated both claims, lined up build dates, and pushed for an extended coverage fix. Both vans were repaired, and we got downtime reimbursed.

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KS
Kishan Singh
Google Review

The hands-free liftgate on my SUV would randomly open in my garage, denting the door. I felt crazy complaining about a 'convenience feature.' Our attorney reframed it: 'An uncontrolled operation of a motorized component is a safety and property damage risk.' The team used my security camera footage as evidence. We got a solid settlement.

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PS
Peyman Soleimani
Google Review
Used Cars

Is there a lemon law for used cars in New York?

Yes, and it's a separate statute. A used car purchased from a New York dealer is covered by General Business Law section 198-b, the Used Car Lemon Law, which has its own tests. A car bought inside the first 18,000 miles or two years is treated as new under section 198-a, so everything above applies to it instead.

The Attorney General's summary says the used car law covers cars bought or leased from a New York dealer, meaning someone who has sold at least three cars in the past twelve months, for at least $1,500, with up to 100,000 miles when sold, used mostly for personal purposes. Private sales aren't covered.

The warranty the dealer has to give you

The dealer must give you a written lemon-law warranty on covered parts, before or when you sign the sales contract or lease. How long it lasts depends on the mileage when you bought the car, according to the Attorney General's Used Car Lemon Law guide:

Minimum used car lemon-law warranty in New York, whichever limit comes first
Miles on the car when you bought itWarranty must cover
18,001 to 36,00090 days or 4,000 miles
36,001 to 79,99960 days or 3,000 miles
80,000 to 100,00030 days or 1,000 miles

The covered parts are the engine, transmission, drive axle, brakes and steering, plus the radiator, alternator, generator, starter and ignition system. The guide is clear that many parts are not covered, the battery, body and tires among them.

When a refund may be owed

If a covered defect survives three or more repair attempts, or the car is out of service for fifteen or more days, you may be entitled to a full refund. The same arbitration program that hears new car claims also hears used car claims under section 198-b, with its own request form on the Attorney General's site. Used motorcycles are covered; motor homes, off-road vehicles and classic cars registered under section 401 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law are not.

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Why RockPoint

Why New York drivers choose RockPoint Law

Lemon law and consumer warranty work is the core of our practice, and we act for drivers all across New York. Whether you're in Buffalo or up in Plattsburgh, the work on the claim runs the same way, since a New York claim gets built on work orders, a request that's screened by the Attorney General and a hearing at a site near you, and those are the same pieces wherever you are in the state.

Lemon Law Is Our Core Practice

We don't do lemon law on the side while we work on other things. Warranty and lemon law is what we do, day in and day out, for drivers who wound up with defective vehicles.

All 62 Counties, One Program

A New York arbitration is screened by the Attorney General and then heard at a location you choose, so where you live isn't what decides whether the claim is worth bringing. We have our New York office in Manhasset, but we represent drivers statewide, from the Southern Tier on up to the North Country. If your car and your dealer are both on Long Island, our Long Island lemon law page covers that ground in detail.

We Know the New York Numbers

New York has a lot of numbers to keep track of in one of these cases. There's eighteen thousand miles or two years, four repairs or thirty calendar days, seven days for the dealer and twenty for the manufacturer, and after that thirty-five days to a hearing, forty to a decision and thirty to pay, along with twelve thousand free miles and four years from delivery, and we run the whole sequence so you don't have to keep it all in your head.

Clear Communication

We give you straight updates at every stage of your case, so there aren't silent stretches and there aren't surprises.

No Upfront Legal Fees

If your case qualifies we take it on contingency, which means you don't pay a fee unless we recover for you. And a consumer who wins in the state program gets the $250 filing fee back.

Meet the Team →
Our Story

Meet the Firm Behind Your Claim

The same attorneys who handle claims nationwide handle them here. Two minutes on who we are and how we work.

Side-by-Side

Do I need a lemon law attorney in NY?

Here's the same New York claim handled two ways, once by a driver on their own and once with an attorney. If you flip the switch, you'll see the same four moments from both sides.

Vehicle repair invoices spread across a kitchen table with a hand hovering over them
On your own1 / 4

Letting the fourth repair slip past 18,000 miles

Section 198-a(d) counts only the repairs made inside the first 18,000 miles or two years. It's easy to give the dealer "one more try" in month nineteen, and a driver who does can find out later that the attempt that should have been the fourth landed outside the window and doesn't count. If you've got a long commute, you'll hit that line a long time before the two-year mark.

A person on the phone at a home desk with a notepad of call notes
On your own2 / 4

Waiting weeks on a dealer that won't start the repair

What most drivers do is keep calling the service desk and waiting for a callback. Section 198-a(b)(2) offers something better: if the dealer won't begin within seven days, a certified letter to the manufacturer starts a twenty-day clock, and if that clock runs out with no repair under way, the refund or replacement is owed. Don't expect the service desk to bring it up, either, since they've got no reason to mention it.

A wall calendar with deadline dates circled in red beside a set of car keys
On your own3 / 4

Accepting a buyback figure that charges your first 12,000 miles

New York's deduction starts at mile 12,001. So when a settlement offer deducts a per-mile charge starting from the day of delivery, or tacks on a "wear and tear" figure for ordinary use, it's asking you to give back money the statute says is yours, and on a car with 15,000 miles the difference can run to thousands of dollars.

One person alone at the end of a long empty hearing room table
On your own4 / 4

Cashing the refund and forgetting the sales tax

The manufacturer's check doesn't include the state and local sales tax you paid. That comes back separately, from the Department of Taxation and Finance, on form AU-11, and you have three years from receiving the refund to apply. Since nobody hands it to you along with the check, it's the easiest part of the money to leave behind.

Hands working through an organized stack of repair orders with a highlighter and index tabs
With RockPoint Law1 / 4

Your window mapped from the first work order

We pull the delivery date and the odometer readings off your paperwork and work out which one is going to close your window first, the mileage or the calendar. Then we tell you how much room is left before the next visit.

A certified mail envelope and return receipt card being prepared on a desk
With RockPoint Law2 / 4

The refusal letter sent, and the twenty days counted

We draft the refusal notice and send it certified with a return receipt, and we retain the proof requested by the form. Then we count the twenty days from the date the manufacturer signed for it.

An open case planner with color-coded deadline tabs being marked
With RockPoint Law3 / 4

The statutory formula applied, line by line

The purchase price, trade-in, options, title and registration go in. Miles above 12,000 times the price over 100,000 come out. Any damage beyond normal wear gets argued item by item, and we test the manufacturer's figure against section 198-a, not against whatever its spreadsheet says.

A bound exhibit folder open on a conference table
With RockPoint Law4 / 4

The AU-11 filed with the refund in hand

As soon as the manufacturer pays, we put in the sales tax refund application along with the paperwork the Department of Taxation and Finance needs. That way the last piece of the money doesn't just sit there uncollected.

Serving All 62 New York Counties

On the ground across New York

One program for all 62 counties

New York counted 20,201,249 residents at the 2020 census, in 62 counties, and the lemon law program is built so it can reach all of them. The Attorney General's office says the Community Dispute Resolution Centers that supply its arbitrators operate in every one of the 62, so a driver in Chautauqua County files the same form as a driver in Clinton County, pays the same fee and gets the same forty-day clock.

A hearing within 100 miles of home

In a state this size that matters, because the distances are real, and if a claim meant driving a whole day to get to a single hearing room, then a lot of people upstate just wouldn't bring one. Rule 300.7(g) answers that with regular hearing sites in thirteen named areas and also a requirement written right into the rule itself: if the nearest regular site is more than 100 miles from your home, you can ask for a hearing within 100 miles. The request form currently lists thirty locations, ranging from Bath and Montour Falls in the Southern Tier to Plattsburgh and Watertown in the north.

Here are a dozen of the thirty hearing locations on the state's form that are outside New York City and Long Island:

  • Albany
  • Buffalo
  • Syracuse
  • Utica
  • Binghamton
  • Poughkeepsie
  • Yonkers
  • Kingston
  • Ithaca
  • Elmira
  • Watertown
  • Plattsburgh

Upstate miles close the window sooner

The miles that bring cars back to the dealer turn out to be the same miles that close the New York window. If a new car does the Thruway between Albany and Buffalo, or I-81 through Binghamton, Syracuse and Watertown, or the Southern Tier Expressway or the Northway up to the Adirondacks, it can reach 18,000 miles a long time before its second birthday, and so for a lot of upstate drivers the odometer, not the calendar, is what decides when the four repairs have to be done.

New York's paper trail helps you

New York has its own paper trail, and it helps you. Department of Motor Vehicles rules, as the Attorney General's guide describes them, require a dealer to hand you a legible, accurate work order every time it repairs the car, warranty work included. Hang on to those, by the way. If a dealer won't produce them, the guide points you to the DMV. Once your request is accepted, rule 300.9 lets the arbitrator order the manufacturer to produce service bulletins, work orders, diagnoses and correspondence, and draw a negative inference if it doesn't.

Where to get help from the state, and what it can and can't do

The Attorney General's consumer help line is 1-800-771-7755, and the Lemon Law Unit takes requests by email at [email protected] or by mail at 28 Liberty Street, New York. Just don't mistake the Unit for your lawyer, because its role in a case is narrow by design. It decides whether you're eligible and forwards the file. It doesn't represent you and it doesn't decide the claim.

After that the New York State Dispute Resolution Association picks the case up and administers it. It schedules the hearing and reviews the decision for completeness, and if you have questions about the process, its lemon law program manager answers those.

Something people don't always know: the same program also hears used-car claims under section 198-b and, separately, disputes over excess wear and tear charges at the end of a car lease. These have their own forms on the Attorney General's site.

How to reach us

Our New York office is at 1129 Northern Blvd., Suite 404, Manhasset, NY 11030. You don't have to come out to Manhasset to bring a claim, though, because the request is emailed to the Attorney General's office and the hearing is held at a location you pick. The quickest way to start is the online intake form; we review every request and respond as soon as we can. Or if you'd rather just talk to someone, call (516) 550-3323.

If your car and your dealer are both in Nassau or Suffolk, our Long Island lemon law page covers that ground in detail. Some people would rather read the rules for themselves first, which is completely fair: the Attorney General publishes the statute, the arbitration regulations and the request forms on its New Car Lemon Law guide. Our guide to whether a dealership can refuse to fix a recall covers a related problem, and for a comparison, our state guides for New Jersey and Connecticut show how the neighboring states handle the same problem.

New York city and regional pages

Case Results

Recent RockPoint Law recoveries

These figures come from our firm's published lemon law settlement record across brands. They are firmwide results, not New York outcomes, and they show what a well-documented defect claim can be worth when it's handled properly.

$160,264 BMW X6

Recovery on a vehicle plagued by engine, electrical, and suspension defects.

$144,550 Porsche Macan

Refund for a Macan with recurring suspension, drivetrain, electrical, and HVAC problems.

$110,289 Rivian R1T

Recovery after repeated electrical, drive-unit, and suspension failures on an electric pickup.

Figures are drawn from our firm's published settlement record and are not specific to New York matters. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case. See more RockPoint Law settlements 

RockPoint Law, by the numbers

$50M+**
Recovered for clients
3,000+‡
Cases handled
25+
Years of combined experience
97%*
Resolution rate
  • Free Consultation
  • No attorney's fees unless we recover for you.†
Recent Google reviewsAcross all RockPoint offices: 4.8 from 19 Google reviews
  • ★★★★★a month ago
    I had a really good experience with RockPoint Law. The whole process was a lot easier than I expected and everyone I dealt with was helpful and responsive. Whenever I had a question, I was able to get an answer without feeling like I was chasing anyone down. They handled everything and kept me updated along the way. Definitely glad I reached out to them.
    Ronen S. Malekmehr
  • ★★★★★6 months ago
    Saw RockPoint Law and wasn't sure. Called anyway because I was at my wit's end. Natalie Nassi answered and she remembered me from somewhere else. Same calm voice, same no-nonsense approach. She took my case and handled everything. Manufacturer bought the car back. Name on the door changed but Natalie didn't. That's what matters to me.
    Tanja Moldenhauer
  • ★★★★★6 months ago
    Saw RockPoint Law online and wasn't sure because I hadn't heard of them. But I was desperate. My car had been in and out of the shop for months. Called them up and the person I spoke with was so easy to talk to. No legal mumbo jumbo, just straight talk. They took my case and got me a buyback. New name but they know what they're doing. Would recommend.
    Rodolfo Paulino
2 more Google reviews
  • ★★★★★6 months ago
    Honestly wasn't sure about RockPoint Law since I hadn't heard of them before. But I was desperate. My car had been in the shop five times for the same problem and nobody could figure it out. Service advisor started avoiding my calls. I found RockPoint online, called, and the person I talked to was really down to earth. They took my repair orders and handled the whole thing. A few months later, the manufacturer bought the car back. New name but they got it done. Would use them again in a heartbeat.
    Om Shiv
  • ★★★★★6 months ago
    Saw RockPoint Law pop up when I was googling lemon law help. Wasn't sure about the name but figured I'd give it a shot. My Jeep Gladiator had a death wobble at highway speeds—front end would shake violently. Dealer replaced the steering stabilizer twice, still shook. The person I talked to at RockPoint was super calm and explained everything clearly. They handled the claim and Jeep bought the truck back. Glad I didn't let the new name scare me off. They got the job done.
    Víctor Torres

About this page

Written by the RockPoint Law Editorial Team · Reviewed by Steven P. Nassi, New York Attorney Registration No. 4263489 (NY Courts registration record). Prepared September 2026 to reflect General Business Law section 198-a, the New York New Car Lemon Law, with arbitration under 13 NYCRR Part 300 screened by the Office of the New York State Attorney General. See our editorial policy.

Anyone can look up a New York attorney's registration in the New York State Unified Court System attorney directory. We think you should, for any firm you're considering, including this one.

Start here

Tell us what the car is doing in New York

Three details about the vehicle, and how to reach you.

  • The year and make of your vehicle
  • What the dealer has already tried, and whether you paid for it
  • Your name, phone and email. We review every request and respond as soon as we can

No cost, no obligation. Contacting RockPoint Law does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Check my case Start My Free Case Review Or call (516) 550-3323
Our Team

Meet the Team
Behind RockPoint Law

A dedicated team that stands with you through every step of your Lemon Law claim.

Steven Nassi
Steven Nassi
Managing Partner
Founder · 25+ years of litigation experience
★ Founder & Managing Partner
Natalie Nassi
Natalie Nassi
Managing Partner
Columbia University · 20+ years in consumer advocacy
Ron Kaniuk
Ron Kaniuk
Florida Managing Partner
St. John's University School of Law · Consumer protection & lemon law
Aaron Waldo
Aaron Waldo
Attorney
U.S. Marine Corps veteran · Automotive background
Liam Jones
Liam Jones
Attorney
Licensed in New York & New Jersey
Christian Garcia
Christian Garcia
Senior Case Manager
Case management from intake through resolution
Rudy Gutierrez
Rudy Gutierrez
Intake Manager
First point of contact for new clients & case evaluations

Case results in New York

Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. All case results

FAQ

New York lemon law questions

The questions New York drivers ask us most, and what you should know before you send anything.

Does New York have a lemon law?

Yes. General Business Law section 198-a covers new vehicles bought, leased or registered in New York. If a defect that substantially impairs the vehicle's value isn't fixed within the first 18,000 miles or two years, the manufacturer owes you a full refund or a comparable replacement, and you choose which.

Yes. The New Car Lemon Law is General Business Law section 198-a, and it covers new cars, trucks, motorcycles and motor homes bought, leased or registered in New York and used mostly for personal driving. If a warranty defect that substantially impairs the vehicle's value can't be fixed within the first 18,000 miles or two years from delivery, whichever comes first, the manufacturer must refund the full purchase price or provide a comparable replacement, and you choose which. Four repairs of the same defect, or thirty calendar days out of service, is presumed to be a reasonable number of attempts. Claims go to arbitration under Attorney General rules, to the manufacturer's own program, or to court. Used cars bought from a dealer have a separate law, section 198-b.

How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in New York?

Four repairs of the same defect, or thirty cumulative calendar days out of service, inside the first 18,000 miles or two years. Either one is enough to raise the presumption. A separate refusal route needs no repair count at all: it applies when a dealer won't start repairs within seven days.

Four for the same defect, or thirty days in the shop. Section 198-a(d) presumes the manufacturer has had a reasonable number of attempts when the same defect or condition has been subject to repair four or more times and still exists, or when the vehicle has been out of service by reason of repair for a cumulative thirty or more calendar days, for one or more defects. Both have to happen within the first 18,000 miles or two years from delivery, whichever comes first. The Attorney General's guide adds that a defect fixed on the fifth attempt still qualifies, and that thirty days out of service counts even if the car was eventually repaired. A separate route in section 198-a(b)(2) needs no repair count at all when a dealer refuses to start repairs.

Is there a lemon law shortcut for safety defects in New York?

No. New York has no separate test for safety defects, so a brake failure is counted the same way as a rattle: four repairs or thirty days. A dangerous defect still matters, because it makes the manufacturer's substantial-impairment defense much harder to argue.

No. Section 198-a has no separate test for a serious safety defect. Texas qualifies a serious safety hazard after two failed repairs and Georgia after one, but New York applies the same four-repair and thirty-day presumptions to a brake failure as to a rattle. That doesn't make a safety defect irrelevant. The manufacturer's main defense in section 198-a(c)(3) is that the defect doesn't substantially impair the car's value, and a car that stalls in traffic or loses braking is hard to fit into that defense. A dangerous defect can also add days out of service quickly, because a car that isn't safe to drive sits at the dealer while it waits for parts or diagnosis. Report any safety fault in writing, keep every work order, and don't keep driving a car you believe is unsafe.

How long do I have to file a New York lemon law claim?

The repairs must fall inside the first 18,000 miles or two years from delivery, and section 198-a(j) gives you four years from original delivery to bring an action. The safe course is to treat those four years as the outer limit for every route and to file well before it.

Two time limits apply, and they measure different things. The repair attempts, or the thirty days out of service, have to fall within the first 18,000 miles or two years from original delivery, whichever comes first. Then section 198-a(j) says any action under the section must be commenced within four years of the date of original delivery. Neither the statute nor the arbitration rules in 13 NYCRR Part 300 set a separate deadline for a request for arbitration, so the safe course is to treat four years from delivery as the outer limit for every route and to file well before it. Section 198-a(e) extends the warranty term, the two years and the thirty days for time lost to war, strike, fire, flood or natural disaster. It doesn't extend the 18,000 miles.

How much does New York lemon law arbitration cost?

The state arbitration program charges a $250 filing fee, and you pay it only after the Attorney General accepts your request. A consumer who wins gets the fee back. At RockPoint Law the consultation is free, and qualifying cases are handled on contingency.

The state program charges a $250 filing fee, according to the Attorney General's instructions for the New Car Lemon Law Request for Arbitration. You don't send it with the form. The Attorney General reviews the request first, and only after it's accepted does the program administrator, the New York State Dispute Resolution Association, write to ask for the fee. The day the fee arrives becomes the filing date. If you win, rule 300.16(c) requires the decision to award the fee back to you, and if you withdraw within seven business days of the filing date, rule 300.15(a) refunds it. At RockPoint Law the consultation is free and qualifying cases are handled on contingency, and section 198-a(l) lets a court award reasonable attorney's fees to a consumer who wins in court.

Who decides a New York lemon law arbitration?

A trained volunteer arbitrator working through a local Community Dispute Resolution Center, not a judge and not the Attorney General. The Attorney General only screens your request for eligibility. The decision binds both sides, and court review under CPLR Article 75 is limited.

A volunteer arbitrator, not a judge and not the Attorney General. The Attorney General's Lemon Law Unit decides only whether your request is eligible. The case is then run by the New York State Dispute Resolution Association, which the Attorney General's office contracts to administer the program, and heard by a trained arbitrator working through a local Community Dispute Resolution Center. Rule 300.6(b) bars arbitrators with any bias, any financial or personal stake in the outcome, or any current connection to selling or making vehicles. The hearing is informal: witnesses take an oath, formal rules of evidence don't apply, and the arbitrator may ride in the car. The decision is binding on both sides and final, subject only to limited court review under CPLR Article 75.

Do I have to use the manufacturer's arbitration program first?

Not if you choose the state program. Section 198-a(k) lets every consumer use the Attorney General's arbitration and requires all manufacturers to take part. A manufacturer's own program mainly matters if you want to go straight to court, because section 198-a(g) can require you to try it first.

Not if you choose the state program. Section 198-a(g) says that when a manufacturer has set up an informal dispute settlement mechanism, the refund and replacement remedies don't apply to a consumer who hasn't first resorted to it, which mainly matters if you want to go straight to court. Section 198-a(k) separately gives every consumer the option of the Attorney General's alternate arbitration and requires all manufacturers to submit to it. The Lemon Law Bill of Rights that dealers must hand you says the same thing in plain words. A manufacturer's program has to follow Federal Trade Commission rules, and its arbitrator can't cut a refund below what the statute allows. Using a non-binding manufacturer program first doesn't stop you from applying to the state program afterward, under rule 300.4(i).

How is a New York lemon law refund calculated?

Start from the full purchase price, including the trade-in allowance and options, and add title, registration and other government charges. Then subtract a mileage deduction that ignores the first 12,000 miles: the miles above that, times the price, divided by 100,000. Sales tax comes back separately.

Start with the full purchase price, including the trade-in allowance and options, and add title, registration and other government charges. Then take off the mileage deduction in section 198-a(a)(4): the miles above 12,000, times the purchase price, divided by 100,000. The first 12,000 miles cost you nothing. The Attorney General's guide gives the example of a $20,000 car with 15,000 miles, where the deduction comes to $600. The manufacturer may also deduct a reasonable allowance for damage beyond normal wear. Finance charges, insurance premiums and loss of use aren't included. If there's a loan, the lender is paid what it's owed and you receive the balance. Sales tax is refunded separately, by the Department of Taxation and Finance, on its own form.

Do I get my sales tax back if my car is a lemon in New York?

Yes, but not from the manufacturer. The Department of Taxation and Finance refunds the state and local sales tax on the refunded amount. You apply on form AU-11 within three years of receiving the manufacturer's refund, and the tax on a refunded lease can come back too.

Yes, but not from the manufacturer. Section 198-a(c)(2) requires the manufacturer's refund to come with the Department of Taxation and Finance's application for a sales tax refund, and with a notice that the tax is refundable by the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance under Tax Law section 1139(f). The Attorney General's guide names the form, AU-11, and says you have three years from the date you receive the manufacturer's refund to apply. The Commissioner works out the amount. A lease works the same way: the tax on the refunded part of the lease price is refundable too. Put a reminder in your calendar the day the refund arrives, because the manufacturer's check won't include this money and it's easy to forget once the car is gone.

Does the New York lemon law cover leased cars?

Yes. A lessee is covered on the same terms as a buyer. You get back your deposit and lease payments, less service fees such as interest, the leasing company receives the rest, and the lease ends on the date of the arbitrator's decision with no early-termination penalty.

Yes. Section 198-a covers a lessee on the same terms as a buyer, and the refund is split between you and the leasing company. You receive the capitalized cost, which is the deposit and lease payments you've made, less service fees such as interest and any insurance the lessor paid for you. The leasing company receives the rest of the lease price, a figure the statute defines to include the lessor's purchase cost, freight, accessories, any fee paid to obtain the lease and five percent of the purchase cost. The lease is treated as terminated on the date of the arbitrator's decision, with no early-termination penalty. The Attorney General's worked example, a $1,500 deposit and twelve $300 payments with $100 a month of interest, produces a $3,900 refund to the lessee.

Does the New York lemon law cover used cars?

Yes, under a separate statute. General Business Law section 198-b covers used cars bought or leased from a New York dealer with up to 100,000 miles. If a covered defect survives three or more repair attempts, or the car is out of service for fifteen or more days, you may be entitled to a refund.

A used car bought from a New York dealer falls under a separate statute, General Business Law section 198-b, the Used Car Lemon Law. The Attorney General's summary says it covers cars bought or leased from a New York dealer, meaning someone who has sold at least three cars in the past twelve months, for at least $1,500, with up to 100,000 miles when sold, used mostly for personal purposes. The dealer must give you a written warranty on covered parts. If a covered defect survives three or more repair attempts, or the car is out of service for fifteen or more days, you may be entitled to a full refund. Private sales aren't covered. A car bought inside the first 18,000 miles or two years is treated as new under section 198-a.

What happens if the manufacturer doesn't pay after I win?

It owes you more. The manufacturer has thirty days after you accept the arbitrator's decision to comply, and after that it owes $25 for each business day late, up to $500. If it still refuses, the award can be confirmed in court, and the court can make it pay your attorney's fees.

It owes you more. Once you tell the manufacturer that you accept the arbitrator's decision, section 198-a(h) gives it thirty days to comply. After that you're entitled to $25 for each business day of noncompliance, up to $500, unless the delay is your doing, for example because you asked for a replacement built to order. If the manufacturer still refuses, the award can be confirmed in court and turned into a judgment you can enforce, and the Attorney General's guide says to go to court within one year of the decision. Section 198-a(l) lets the court make the manufacturer pay the reasonable attorney's fees it takes to collect the award. Section 198-a(k) sends any court proceeding about the arbitration to the county where you live or where the hearing was held.

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