Car buying – new or used – is an exciting event. This excitement can quickly become frustrating when you discover the vehicle has a manufacturer defect(s). If the manufacturer’s certified repair facility cannot repair this defect(s) with a reasonable number of attempts, you may choose to escalate the matter by filing a lemon law case.
Earning fair compensation for your new car is a tough process of negotiating with car dealers – and the manufacturer’s appointed legal teams. As a California lemon law firm, we work with consumers wondering how to negotiate with car manufacturers to pay for repairs and refunds for the purchase price.
All too often, they come to us after digging themselves into a hole after trying to manage their own lemon law case. In this post, we want to discuss five crucial tips to set yourself up for success.
Tip 1. Understand What You’re Up Against as a Consumer
In the grand scheme of things, ending up with a lemon vehicle is very rare – whether it’s a new vehicle or a used car. To give you an idea, less than one percent of vehicles sold in California end up as lemons.
Nearly all affected consumers are facing California’s lemon law process for the first time.
Automakers have precisely zero intention of taking responsibility for producing, approving, and selling defective vehicles. It doesn’t matter if a new vehicle or leased vehicle clearly meets the key guidelines of California lemon law – they will fight tooth and nail to protect their bottom line and brand image.
Auto manufacturers have extremely high-powered (and well-paid) legal defense teams to fight against lemon law cases. As a consumer filing a lemon law case for the first time, negotiating with car dealers for fair compensation is like playing a game of basketball against a team of NBA players singlehandedly – and you just learned the rules of the game yesterday.
If you’re wondering how to negotiate with car manufacturers to pay for repairs, it’s crucial to understand that the odds are extremely stacked against you. You need a seasoned California lemon law lawyer to fight for your rights.
Tip 2. Prepare and Organize All Paperwork
Getting a refund for a defective new vehicle is not like returning an item to Walmart or Target.
You need more than a receipt to win a lemon law case in California. When you’re negotiating with car dealers for a buyback or replacement, failing to provide clear and organized paperwork tells them you have no idea what you’re doing – and it will be easy for them to take advantage of you. This sounds harsh, but it’s the reality.
You need documented proof that your vehicle meets the qualifications of the state’s lemon laws.
What does this include?
On a foundational level, you will need to provide the following:
- Your original manufacturer or dealer warranty.
- The manufacturer suggested retail price or (sticker price) for the vehicle.
- Down payment and each monthly payment made.
- Registration fees
- Sales tax
- Any dealer fees
- Proof that you reported the defect to the manufacturer while the warranty was still in effect.
- Issue(s) with the vehicle.
- Dates of repair attempts.
- Repair orders (closed).
- All related receipts and invoices.
Do your best to organize these in chronological order. By presenting your documentation in an organized manner, it tells the dealership/manufacturer that you’ve taken the time to educate yourself on the California lemon law process and you know what you’re doing.
When you meet with a California lemon law lawyer, they will ask you to provide the same documents listed above.
Tip 3. Keep Your Emotions Out of It
This is a big one to remember when negotiating with car dealers.
We get it. You purchased a defective vehicle – through no fault of your own – and now you’re being forced to jump through a series of hoops to make it right. It’s an infuriating situation. You probably have some choice words for the automaker.
But it’s extremely important (in any legal situation) to keep a cool head.
Cursing at the representatives and letting your temper get the best of you won’t do any favors when you’re negotiating with car dealers.
Truth be told, your likeability plays a big role in your ability to win a lemon law case.
If your case ends up going to court, any outbursts, nasty emails, angry messages, etc. made throughout the lemon law negotiation process may be presented to the jury. These instances may be used to paint you as an unreasonable person.
The manufacturer’s legal teams have no problem making your lemon law case a nightmare – plagued with delays, shady negotiation tactics, and lies. Do your best to keep a level head.
Tip 4. Be Mindful of the Common Baiting Tactics
Negotiating with car dealers for a lemon law case is a process full of baiting.
The legal teams have all sorts of tricks and tactics up their sleeves to avoid responsibility.
For starters, they may try to blame you for the defect – attributing it to driver abuse/neglect.
If the nature of the defect is indisputable, they may encourage you to choose arbitration over filing a lemon law case. They may tell you that arbitration is a cheaper and faster way to resolve the claim – and they pay for all costs associated with arbitration.
What the manufacturers don’t tell you is the arbitrators may or may not be biased and rule in their favor.
Don’t take this bait. When you have a lemon, you ALWAYS want to pursue a full buyback or replacement. Arbitration almost always ends in a lowball settlement – or the consumer leaving empty-handed.
Tip 5. Don’t! Hire a Lemon Law Lawyer
As a common theme in this post, the best advice we can give you for negotiating with car dealers is to leave it to the pros.
To reiterate, auto manufacturers and local dealerships have experienced legal teams specifically to dispute lemon lawsuits. Trying to negotiate a fair settlement without a skilled California lemon law lawyer will almost certainly end poorly for you.
Now, the manufacturer might try to tell you that lemon law lawyers are extremely expensive. What they will conveniently leave out is that manufacturers are required to pay your attorney’s fees as part of the lemon law buyback.
This is why most California lemon law firms work on a contingency fee agreement. They won’t charge you a penny out-of-pocket to take your case – and they won’t take your lemon law case unless they think they can win.
The bottom line is this: hiring a California lemon law attorney to manage the negotiation process is the best way to earn fair compensation – and it costs you nothing!
What’s the Next Step?
If you think your vehicle may be a lemon, it never hurts to speak with a lemon lawyer. Most understand you’re facing this situation for the first time – and are more than happy to guide managing the process with the car dealer or manufacturer.
At Cline APC, we work with California consumers to help them earn rightful justice after being sold or leased a defective vehicle. Our experienced team is here to answer any questions you might have about what the lemon law covers, look over your documentation, and determine if a lemon law claim is necessary.
Call 888-982-6915, send an email to info@clineapc.com, or fill out a case evaluation to schedule a FREE consultation.
