Nissan is a worldwide automotive manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Japan. While most commonly known for the Nissan Brand, the company also sells vehicles under the Infiniti and Datsun brands. The company was founded in 1933 and has been part of the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance since 1999. Together, this Alliance is the world’s fourth-largest automaker. Nissan is the leading Japanese brand in China, Russia, and Mexico.
The California Lemon Law is a consumer protection measure for helping car buyers who discover an unrepairable issue with their vehicle. For example, suppose you’ve found a problem with your vehicle that keeps returning or won’t disappear despite multiple repair attempts. In that case, the first step is understanding some critical facts about the Lemon Law.
You will only have a valid lemon law claim if you first contact the manufacturer and let them know about the problems you are experiencing. They must get a chance to attempt to fix the issue. If they can’t fix it after a “reasonable” number of attempts, then the vehicle is classified as a Lemon. The manufacturer will owe you compensation for your purchase. It’s essential to note that if you made the repair attempts by yourself or at an independent auto shop without telling the manufacturer about the vehicle’s issues, those repair attempts don’t count toward your case.
The law doesn’t define a “reasonable” number of repair attempts. However, it does give some guidelines, such as if your vehicle has serious problems that could seriously injure or kill someone and two unsuccessful repair attempts were already made.
California’s lemon law only covers your vehicle if it still has a manufacturer warranty. Additionally, the problem must be found within 18 months or 18,000 miles after purchase or within the timeframe determined within the warranty. If the vehicle’s issue is not expressly covered in its warranty, California’s lemon laws may not apply.
New, used, and leased vehicles are covered as long as they have an active warranty.
Often the manufacturer will deny the consumer’s Lemon Law claim. They might argue that the issue the vehicle is experiencing was a result of damages from driving, which would cause the vehicle not to be covered. This is why hiring a skilled lemon law attorney is imperative if you have repeated vehicle problems.
Repeated attempts to fix any warranty-covered defect can lead to a lemon law claim under California’s laws. Common Nissan defects include:
If you have recently discovered that your Nissan is a lemon, you might feel as if there is no one to advocate for you. However, you will find an advocate at the Law Office of Michael Humphries. Seasoned lemon law attorney Michael Humphries represents clients in both Seal Beach and Orange County. He offers free initial consultations to get your claim started. Call our office today to schedule yours. It costs you nothing to find out if you have a potential lemon law claim and how much your claim might be worth.