Is There a Lemon Law in Virginia? 18-Month Window and Refunds

Yes, Virginia has a lemon law. The Virginia Lemon Law, formally called the Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act, lets buyers of new vehicles get a refund or a replacement when a significant defect can’t be fixed after a reasonable number of repair attempts during the first 18 months after delivery.¹ Whether you actually get that remedy depends on meeting one of three specific conditions and keeping the paperwork to prove it.

When a Vehicle Legally Qualifies as a Lemon

The law creates a legal presumption that your vehicle is a lemon if any one of three conditions is met during the 18-month rights period. You only need to meet one.

The manufacturer or an authorized dealer has tried to fix the same problem three or more times and it still exists.²
The defect is likely to cause death or serious bodily injury, and one repair attempt has already failed.²
The vehicle has been out of service for repairs for a cumulative total of 30 or more calendar days. The days don’t have to be consecutive, but days lost to events outside the manufacturer’s control, like natural disasters or labor strikes, don’t count.³

Because this is a presumption, meeting one of the conditions flips the burden: the manufacturer has to prove the vehicle isn’t defective, rather than you having to prove it is. That shift matters a great deal in arbitration or court.

A visit where the dealer says they “could not replicate” the problem still counts as a repair attempt. So does any visit where the technician worked on the car but the defect returned.

Which Vehicles and Defects Are Covered

The law covers new passenger cars, pickup trucks, and multipurpose vehicles bought or leased in Virginia for personal or family use. Demonstrator vehicles are included. Motorcycles, motor homes, and vehicles bought primarily for business don’t qualify. Coverage also disappears if the defect was caused by abuse, neglect, or unauthorized modifications you made.³

The defect itself must be a “nonconformity” that significantly impairs the vehicle’s use, market value, or safety. That phrase is deliberately broad. It covers obvious hazards like failing brakes, but it also reaches persistent electrical faults, paint defects, or a malfunctioning infotainment system, as long as the impairment is significant.¹

The problem also has to fall within the scope of a warranty, which Virginia defines broadly. It includes the manufacturer’s written warranty, any implied warranty (such as the basic expectation that the vehicle works for ordinary driving), and any promises made in connection with the sale. You aren’t limited to the fine print on the warranty card.¹

The 18-Month Clock

Every deadline ties back to one date: the day the vehicle was first delivered to you. The lemon law rights period runs for 18 months from delivery. During that window you must report the problem to the manufacturer, its agent, or an authorized dealer. If your first service visit for the defect happens in month 19, you’ve missed the window even if the problem existed all along.¹

One detail people often miss: repairs that happen after month 18 still count toward your case, as long as you first reported the problem before the period expired.¹

Any lawsuit under the Act must also be filed within 18 months of the original delivery date.³ If you used a manufacturer’s dispute resolution program, that deadline may be extended, but treat 18 months as your baseline.

Documentation and Written Notice

The most common reason lemon law claims fall apart isn’t a weak defect; it’s weak records. Start the paper trail the first time something goes wrong.

Get a written repair order every time the car is in the shop. It should show the date you dropped the car off, the problem you described, the work performed, the date you picked it up, and whether the issue was resolved. Keep the originals of your purchase or lease agreement, and save every email or letter you exchange with the dealership or manufacturer. A short personal log, with the date, odometer reading, and a note on what happened each time the defect appeared, fills gaps when repair orders are vague or go missing.

Before you can demand a refund or replacement, Virginia law requires you to give the manufacturer formal written notice describing the defect and the history of repair attempts. Send it by certified mail. Identify the vehicle by year, make, model, and VIN; describe the nonconformity plainly; and list each repair visit with its date.¹ This notice is the manufacturer’s final chance to fix the problem. If repairs still fail, you can move on to a formal claim.

Some manufacturers run their own informal dispute resolution programs. Virginia law makes clear that using these programs is entirely voluntary; the manufacturer cannot force you through its process before you sue.⁴ They are usually free and faster than litigation, which is reason enough to consider one if it’s offered.

Refund or Replacement: Your Choice

When a vehicle qualifies as a lemon, you choose between a refund and a replacement. The manufacturer does not get to pick.²

A refund covers the full contract price along with collateral charges and incidental damages. In practice that includes taxes, registration fees, finance charges, towing costs, and rental expenses you ran up because of the defect. The manufacturer can subtract a reasonable allowance for the miles you drove, but only for miles up to the date you first reported the problem. Every mile you put on the car after that first report is excluded. If you have a car loan, the refund is split between you and the lienholder based on each party’s financial interest.⁵

A replacement must be a comparable vehicle, meaning similar in features and value to what you originally bought, and acceptable to you. If a manufacturer offers something that isn’t genuinely comparable, you can reject it and insist on the refund.

A consumer who wins a case under the Act can also recover reasonable attorney’s fees from the manufacturer. That provision is what makes hiring a lawyer realistic in most lemon law cases.

If You’re Outside the 18 Months or Bought Used

Virginia’s lemon law only covers new vehicles within the 18-month rights period. If your situation falls outside that window, or you bought a used vehicle that came with a written warranty, a federal law called the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act may still help. It applies to any consumer product sold with a written warranty and makes breach of that warranty a federal violation.⁶

Magnuson-Moss adds protections that work alongside state law. A manufacturer who gives a written warranty cannot eliminate implied warranties, so the basic protection that the product is fit for ordinary use always stays with the consumer. The law also bars “tie-in” terms that force you to buy parts or services from a specific company to keep coverage, and it lets winning consumers recover court costs and reasonable attorney fees.⁶

The federal act doesn’t carry Virginia’s 18-month clock or the three-repair presumption, so a federal claim requires you to prove the warranty was breached. That’s a heavier lift. For used car buyers with a defective vehicle still under a dealer or manufacturer warranty, it’s often the strongest tool available.

1
Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia – Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act
2
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 59.1-207.13 – Nonconformity of Motor Vehicles
3
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Lemon Law
4
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 59.1-207.15 – Informal Dispute Settlement Procedure
5
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 59.1-207.13 – Nonconformity of Motor Vehicles
6
Federal Trade Commission. Businessperson’s Guide to Federal Warranty Law