California Lemon Law is Consumer Friendly

News is that BMW had recently bought a defective Mini Cooper back from a consumer in California. Statistics show that the chances of car manufacturers buying their defective vehicles back are much higher in California than they are in Texas. The lemon laws may be named alike but they differ in essence from state to state.

• CA lemon law has an ‘automatic attorney fee shifting’ provision that forces the car manufacturer to pay the consumer’s attorney fees
• In Texas, the ‘attorney fee shifting’ is not automatic
• In Texas, during the lemon law administrative hearing, a car manufacturer is required to pay the consumer’s lemon law only if he obtains his own attorney
• In Texas, during the lemon law administrative hearing, a car manufacturer is required to pay the consumer’s lemon law only if he provides the consumer with proper notice
• In Texas, the car manufacturer may not hire an attorney at all
• In Texas, he would hire car experts trained by attorneys to attend hearings on a regular basis

These considerations make California Lemon Law, the Song-Beverly Act much more consumer friendly than the Texas Lemon Law.

Texas Lemon Law for replacement or repurchase of a Defective car

Texas Lemon Law has a defined approach to allow vehicles to become eligible for a lemon law buyback or replacement.
The Texas Occupations Code states a vehicle meets the rebuttable presumption if

• The same nonconformity remains after four or more repairs
• The same nonconformity creates a serious safety hazard and continues even after two or more repairs
• The nonconformity substantially impairs the vehicle’s use or market value
• The vehicle is out of service for repairs for a total of 30 or more days

The rebuttable presumption: The rebuttable presumption is a statement that the court recognizes as the truth, unless it is otherwise established by the manufacturer or the car dealer.

The ‘Same nonconformity’ does not have to be with the same one part in the vehicle. It can be the transmission system, brake system, engine, electrical or electronic system or the body. It is very important that the consumer has to impress upon the administrative judge and the Texas Department of Transportation (DOT) case handler of the nonconformity.