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The Wisconsin Lemon Law came into effect from November 3, 1983 and is applicable to new vehicles (car, truck, motorcycle or motor home, to be precise), rented vehicles and all used vehicles that have been bought within the warranty period.
A quick glance at the major points of the Wisconsin Lemon Law throws up the following. In the first place, a vehicle is classified as "lemon" in Wisconsin if
- It has been bought or rented in Wisconsin,
- It is showing signs of strain within the first year of purchase
- It is showing signs of breaking down before the guarantee period has terminated,
- Within the first year of purchase or within the warranty period, four tries by the manufacturer has failed to fix its problems,
- It was non-functional for 30 days (need not be consecutive) during the first year of acquisition or within the warranty period.
An interesting facet of the Wisconsin Lemon Law is that it makes a difference between minor and major malfunctions. You are eligible to apply for compensation or refund or replacement claim under the lemon law only if your vehicle has a serious, that is a major malfunction. So it's no use crying foul if your car has a broken headlight or something equally inconsequential.
And speaking of the major and minor malfunctions, it is always worth knowing the nonconformities of the Wisconsin Lemon Law. They are:
- Conditions that do not affect the use, worth or safety of the vehicle,
- Items not covered by the manufacturer's warranty,
- Situations like poor acceleration of a vehicle with a small vehicle or when heavy steering has been employed on a vehicle without power steering,
- Conditions arising out of incorrect maneuver, misuse, neglect or unauthorized alterations to the setup.
Usually claimants have one or more sore points about lemon laws, but even the most stern claimants cannot help but praise the Wisconsin Lemon Law, which sets no deadline to file your lawsuit; instead the court will decide whether your case is too old to take up.
Under the Wisconsin Lemon Law, you are entitled to a quite a handsome compensation package. It may consist a reimbursement of the vehicle's purchase price plus collateral costs (less a reasonable allowance for use) or a similar new vehicle plus the collateral costs. These collateral costs include repair outlay on the nonconformity and alternative conveyance expenses.
If the manufacturer, who has apparently not taken your claims seriously, doesn't respond to your relief appeal within 30 days and you win at the court, you can pocket double damages, cost of the lawsuit and a lion's share of the lawyer's fees, plus any relief that the court thinks you are entitled to.
With the Wisconsin Lemon Law there are not many chances of your money going down the drains if you are found ineligible to compete for the lemon law. Your problematical vehicle, if it qualifies, can always find refuge by filing for a claim for misrepresentation, breach of warranty or breach of contract, among a host of others.
The Wisconsin Lemon Law is very considerate towards the plight of the one with the defective vehicle and especially shields from the cunning offers of the crafty vehicle manufacturers. Thus, if the manufacturer hands you a lengthy and pricey damage deduction list when you go to him for a refund or compensation, you can gleefully quote the Wisconsin Lemon Law. According to law, you are not liable to pay for normal wear and tear, such as minor dents, scratches, pitted glass, grubby carpets or slight stains.
Under the Wisconsin Lemon Law, justice is never denied nor delayed.
Here in Southern California, there are a good number of BMW and Mercedes dealerships around. In fact, a few years ago, I read that So. Cal. was the largest market in the WORLD for BMW's and Mercedes. I don't know if that's still the case but S. Cal. continues to remain big enough to mean something to these German manufacturers.
Lately, both MBZ and BMW have responded to lemon law claims with the “tampering” defense, i.e. that the consumer tampered with the vehicle to produce repeated problems. In particular, MBZ and BMW have targeted persons of Armenian and Russian descent who have made such claims.
In fairness to BMW and Mercedes, there have been reported tampering cases where consumers with contacts within the dealerships have subtly altered the electronics of the vehicle to produce “codes”, check-engine lights and other electrical malfunctions which would then give rise to a lemon law claim after not being repaired after some repair attempts. However, what we're seeing now is MBZ and BMW stretching the “tampering” defense to just about any lemon law claim, particularly if the complaint involves electronics. As with prior cases, they appear to be targeting Armenian and Russian consumers.
What is particularly unfair about this is the fact that MBZ and BMW vehicles frequently have legitimate electrical defects which give rise to legitimate lemon claims. This is one of the reasons that these manufacturers are stretching the “tampering” defense well beyond its proper boundaries.
If you have a lemon claim AND IF your vehicle's defect is electrical in nature, AND PARTICULARLY IF you are Armenian or Russian, here is how you “short-circuit” the “tampering” defense:
1. When you bring your vehicle in for a repair attempt, deliver a written note to the service writer with the following: “Because of repeated instances of _______________________(describe electrical defect, i.e. “check engine light illumination”), I am considering bringing a lemon law claim for replacement or repurchase of my vehicle. I am concerned that [BMW] [MERCEDES] will accuse me of having tampered with the vehicle's electronics to falsely create a lemon law claim. THEREFORE, I INSIST THAT, DURING THIS REPAIR VISIT, YOU UNDERTAKE ANY AND ALL NECESSARY INSPECTIONS OF THE VEHICLE TO EITHER CONFIRM OR RULE OUT THE EXISTENCE OF ANY TAMPERING.” You can bring this note to the dealership as many times as you want, but once will probably suffice.
2. Obviously keep a copy of the note for your own records.
3. If the vehicle remains unrepaired, you have your lemon law claim in place and you have essentially undermined their “tampering defense” by yourself throwing it into the open for an inspection specifically to either prove or rule out the tampering. This will obviously lend credibility to any future lemon law claim you may have.
I hope this short article has been of assistance to you & thanks for reading.