How our process works
No deck. No discovery invoice. Just a clear path from "this car keeps breaking" to a cash settlement that gets you on with your life.
- Take the case eligibility quiz. Walk through a few quick questions about your California purchase date, mileage at first failure, and your Song-Beverly presumption math. California's Song-Beverly Act gives the strongest consumer protections in the country — four repair attempts (or two for safety defects) within 18 months/18,000 miles triggers the statutory remedy. The quiz tells you which path — Song-Beverly buyback vs MMWA cash — is right for your facts.
- We review your documents. Upload (or text us photos of) your purchase agreement, every repair order, and your warranty booklet. We tell you whether the facts support a federal MMWA or state lemon law claim.
- We make the demand. We file a formal demand citing Song-Beverly and federal MMWA together. The Song-Beverly civil-penalty provision (up to 2× actual damages for willful violations) can escalate a manufacturer's exposure significantly.
- You get a cash settlement. Cash-only settlements are our default — you keep the vehicle (or sell it on the private market) and pocket a cash payment. We seek to have the manufacturer pay our attorney fees under federal warranty law. Never out of your settlement.
Cash-only settlements — what that actually means
Most lemon law firms push you toward a "buyback" — you give the manufacturer the car, they give you a reduced refund. We do it different.
Our default settlement structure: you keep the vehicle, we get you a cash payment for the diminished value. If your repairs took six months total and the dealer keeps saying "no problem found," that's a real loss — and it's real money the manufacturer owes you.
The numbers we typically see: 15–25% of the original purchase price as a cash settlement, plus manufacturer-paid attorney fees on top under federal warranty law. Never out of your pocket. Never out of your settlement.
Buybacks make sense in some cases (severe safety defect, total-loss-equivalent situations). When buyback IS right, we run the math hard so the offer includes the full purchase price, every payment, every dealer-imposed fee — minus only a fair mileage offset.
If your situation doesn't qualify, we'll tell you straight. No padded cases.
MMWA vs California lemon law — plain English
Two laws can apply to your case. We file under both when the facts support it.
California Lemon Law
- Citation: Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.22
- Common name: Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act
- Presumption window: 18 months / 18,000 miles — whichever comes first
- Arbitration: BBB AUTO LINE (manufacturer-funded; non-binding for the consumer)
- Typically applies to new vehicles in the original warranty
- State courts and procedures apply
Federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act
- Citation: 15 U.S.C. § 2301 et seq.
- Applies: Any state, any vehicle with a written warranty
- Covers used vehicles with any remaining warranty
- Fee-shifting: Manufacturer pays your attorney fees when you win
- Federal court is an option (or state court)
- Often the stronger lever when state law has narrow scope
California note: California's Song-Beverly Act is one of the most consumer-friendly lemon laws in the country. It applies to new AND used vehicles still under the manufacturer's original warranty — broader than most state laws. The manufacturer pays the buyer's attorney fees when the consumer wins, similar to federal MMWA.
Song-Beverly typically governs, but federal MMWA stays available as a backstop — especially when the vehicle is outside the state-law warranty window or when the manufacturer is fighting hard on Song-Beverly coverage. We file under both when the facts support it.
Eligibility basics — what we'll ask for
A real case requires real documentation. Here's what we need to evaluate yours.
- Purchase or lease agreement — the full document, all pages. This proves the date of delivery and warranty start.
- Every repair order — the dealer is legally required to give you a written repair order for every warranty visit. Save all of them. Even the ones that say "no problem found" — especially those.
- The manufacturer's warranty booklet — usually a small booklet in your glovebox. Defines the warranty terms.
- Photos or videos of the defect — if you can capture the problem on camera (the way the transmission slips, the steering issue, the dashboard warning light), do it.
- DMV registration — confirms ownership and current mileage.
- Manufacturer correspondence — any letters, emails, or recorded calls with the manufacturer (not just the dealer). These often establish what they knew and when.
What counts as a repair attempt? A documented dealer visit for the same defect. The dealer giving you the car back with the problem unresolved counts — even if they wrote "no problem found." Especially if they wrote "no problem found."