Consumer Protection · Lemon Law
Lemon Law by State
How many repair attempts, and how many days out of service, before your car is presumed a lemon, plus whether used cars are covered. Every figure is a rebuttable presumption that shifts the burden to the manufacturer, cited to the statute.
The used-car coverage map
Tap a state. Green states have a real used-car lemon law; amber cover used cars only while under the original warranty; teal are new-vehicle only.
Two things every lemon law gets misread on
1. The numbers are a presumption, not a hard gate. Every state here (California is only the most famous) writes its repair-attempt and out-of-service thresholds as a rebuttable presumption. Hitting the number shifts the burden onto the manufacturer to prove your vehicle is not a lemon; it is not an automatic win, and you may still qualify with fewer attempts if a reasonable number of repairs is shown another way.
2. "Used cars" splits three ways. Only 5 states (New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts) have a genuine used-car lemon law with a mileage-tiered dealer warranty. In 4 states a used car is covered only while it is still under the original manufacturer warranty. The remaining 41 cover new vehicles only. A plain "used: yes/no" would be wrong for the middle group.
Type a state to jump straight to its full lemon law guide.
Every state in one table
The presumption triggers, the coverage window, and the statute, grouped by used-car coverage. The attempt and day counts trigger a legal presumption that shifts the burden to the manufacturer; they do not decide a case.
Has a separate used-car lemon law (5)
These states also give used cars their own mileage-tiered dealer warranty. The columns here show the new-vehicle presumption.
| State | Repair attempts (presumption) | Days out of service | Coverage window | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | 42 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | Conn. Gen. Stat. §42-179 |
| Massachusetts | 3 | 15 business days | 1 year or 15,000 miles from delivery (the "term of protection", whichever comes first) | M.G.L. c.90 §7N½ (new vehicles) |
| Minnesota | 41 for serious safety defect | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 2 years from delivery (no mileage cap) | Minn. Stat. §325F.665 |
| New Jersey | 3 | 20 calendar days | 2 years or 24,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | N.J.S.A. §56:12-29 et seq. (new vehicles) |
| New York | 4 | 30 calendar days | 2 years or 18,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law §198-a (new vehicles) |
Used cars covered only under the original warranty (4)
No separate used-car law. A used vehicle is covered only while the original manufacturer warranty still runs.
| State | Repair attempts (presumption) | Days out of service | Coverage window | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 42 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | 18 months or 18,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | Cal. Civ. Code §1793.22 (Tanner Act); §1795.5 (used goods) |
| Michigan | 4 | 30 calendar days | Warranty term or 1 year from delivery (reporting); the defect must qualify within 2 years of the first repair attempt | MCL §257.1401–.1410 (presumption §257.1403) |
| Texas | 42 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 24 months / 24,000 miles from delivery | Tex. Occ. Code §2301.605 |
| Virginia | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | 18-month "Lemon Law rights period" from delivery (no mileage cap) | Va. Code §59.1-207.13 (presumption); §59.1-207.11 (definitions) |
New vehicles only (41)
| State | Repair attempts (presumption) | Days out of service | Coverage window | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 3 | 30 calendar days | Presumption measured over 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery; the "lemon law rights period" itself runs 1 year / 12,000 miles (whichever comes first) | Ala. Code §8-20A-3 (presumption); §8-20A-2 (definitions) |
| Alaska | 3 | 30 business days | Express warranty term or 1 year from delivery to the original owner, whichever ends first; no mileage cap | AS §45.45.300–.360 (presumption §45.45.320) |
| Arizona | 4 | 30 calendar days | Shorter of the express-warranty term or 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery | A.R.S. §44-1261 to 44-1265 (presumption §44-1264) |
| Arkansas | 31 for serious safety defect5 across different defects | 30 calendar days | 24 months or 24,000 miles from delivery, whichever comes later | Ark. Code §4-90-406 (repair attempts); §4-90-410 (presumption); §4-90-403 (definitions) |
| Colorado | 32 for serious safety defect | 24 business days | 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | C.R.S. §42-10-103 (as amended by SB 24-192) |
| Delaware | 4 | 30 calendar days | Warranty term or 1 year from delivery (whichever is earlier) | 6 Del. C. §5004 (presumption); §5001 (definitions) |
| Florida | 3 | 30 calendar days60 for recreational vehicles | 24 months from delivery (the "Lemon Law rights period"). No mileage cap | Fla. Stat. §681.104 (presumption); §681.102 (definitions) |
| Georgia | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | 24 months or 24,000 miles from delivery (the "Lemon Law Rights Period", whichever comes first) | O.C.G.A. §10-1-784 (presumption); §10-1-782 (rights period) |
| Hawaii | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery | Haw. Rev. Stat. §481I-3 |
| Idaho | 41 for serious safety defect | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 2 years / 24,000 miles from delivery | Idaho Code §48-903 |
| Illinois | 4 | 30 business days | 1 year or 12,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | 815 ILCS 380/3 (presumption); 380/2 (definitions) |
| Indiana | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of 18 months or 18,000 miles from delivery | Ind. Code §24-5-13-15 |
| Iowa | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | Earliest of warranty expiration, 2 years, or 24,000 miles from delivery (the "lemon law rights period") | Iowa Code §322G.4 (presumption); §322G.2 (definitions) |
| Kansas | 410 across different defects | 30 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | K.S.A. §50-645 |
| Kentucky | 4 | 30 calendar days | 1 year or 12,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | KRS §367.842 (presumption); §367.841 (definitions) |
| Louisiana | 4 | 45 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | La. R.S. §51:1943 (Lemon Law; §51:1941 et seq.) |
| Maine | 31 for serious safety defect | 15 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 3 years / 18,000 miles from delivery | 10 M.R.S. §1163 (Lemon Law; §1161 et seq.) |
| Maryland | 41 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 24 months / 18,000 miles from delivery | Md. Com. Law §14-1502 (Automotive Warranty Enforcement Act; §14-1501 et seq.) |
| Mississippi | 3 | 15 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery (no mileage cap) | Miss. Code §63-17-159 |
| Missouri | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery (no mileage cap) | Mo. Rev. Stat. §407.567 |
| Montana | 4 | 30 business days | 2 years from delivery or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first | Mont. Code §61-4-504 (presumption); §61-4-501 et seq. |
| Nebraska | 4 | 40 calendar days | Express warranty term or 1 year from delivery, whichever comes first (no mileage cap) | Neb. Rev. Stat. §60-2704 (presumption); §60-2701 et seq. |
| Nevada | 4 | 30 calendar days | Express warranty term or 1 year from delivery, whichever comes first (no mileage cap) | Nev. Rev. Stat. (NRS) §597.600 et seq. |
| New Hampshire | 3 | 30 business days | The express warranty term (the presumption thresholds must be met during that term) | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §357-D:3 (presumption); §357-D:1 et seq. |
| New Mexico | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | N.M. Stat. Ann. §57-16A-3(C) (presumption); §57-16A-1 et seq. (Motor Vehicle Quality Assurance Act) |
| North Carolina | 4 | 20 business days | 24 months or 24,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | N.C.G.S. §20-351 et seq. (presumption §20-351.5) |
| North Dakota | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | N.D. Cent. Code §51-07-19 (presumption); §51-07-16 et seq. |
| Ohio | 31 for serious safety defect8 across different defects | 30 calendar days | 1 year or 18,000 miles from delivery (whichever comes first) | R.C. §1345.71–.78 (presumption §1345.73; window §1345.72) |
| Oklahoma | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of express warranty expiration or 1 year from original delivery | 15 O.S. §901 |
| Oregon | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | 2 years from delivery or 24,000 miles (whichever comes first) | ORS 646A.404; 646A.406 (presumption) |
| Pennsylvania | 3 | 30 calendar days | 1 year, 12,000 miles, or the warranty term (whichever comes first) | 73 P.S. §1951–1963 (presumption §1956) |
| Rhode Island | 4 | 30 calendar days | 1 year or 15,000 miles from original delivery (the "term of protection", whichever comes first) | R.I. Gen. Laws §31-5.2-5 (presumption); §31-5.2-1 (definitions) |
| South Carolina | 3 | 30 calendar days | 12 months or 12,000 miles from purchase (whichever comes first) | S.C. Code §56-28-10 et seq. (presumption §56-28-50) |
| South Dakota | 4 | 30 calendar days | 1 year or 12,000 miles from delivery (the "lemon law rights period") | S.D.C.L. §32-6D-1 et seq. (presumption §32-6D-5) |
| Tennessee | 3 | 30 calendar days | Warranty term or 1 year from delivery (whichever comes first) | Tenn. Code §55-24-101 et seq. (presumption §55-24-105) |
| Utah | 4 | 30 business days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | Utah Code §13-20-5 |
| Vermont | 3 | 30 calendar days | During the express warranty term (arbitration must be filed within 1 year after it expires) | 9 V.S.A. §4172 |
| Washington | 42 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days60 for motor homes | 2 years or 24,000 miles from delivery (the "eligibility period", whichever comes first) | RCW 19.118.041 (presumption); 19.118.021 (definitions) |
| West Virginia | 31 for serious safety defect | 30 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year from delivery | W. Va. Code §46A-6A-5 |
| Wisconsin | 4 | 30 calendar days | Earlier of warranty expiration or 1 year after first delivery | Wis. Stat. §218.0171 |
| Wyoming | 4 | 30 business days | 1 year after original delivery to the consumer | Wyo. Stat. §40-17-101 |
Jump to your state
Open any state for its full detail, cited to the statute.
How to read a lemon law
A lemon law asks whether the manufacturer had a reasonable number of attempts to fix a substantial defect under warranty. The states put a number on "reasonable": often four attempts, or three for the same defect, or one for a serious safety defect, or a stretch of days out of service. But that number only creates a presumption. Watch three details that trip people up: some states count out-of-service time in business days (Illinois, North Carolina, Massachusetts) rather than calendar days; only six states give a reduced count for safety defects; and used-car coverage is genuinely three different things. Every entry links to its statute or managing agency, and pages still pending verification say so plainly. This is legal information, not legal advice.