The used car broke. The dealer says "as is." New York says otherwise.

GEN. BUS. LAW § 198-b

The used car lemon law in one paragraph.

General Business Law § 198-b is New York's used car lemon law. It requires a dealer who sells a used car to a consumer, above a price floor and below a mileage cap, to provide a written warranty covering the car's major mechanical components for a period that depends on the car's mileage at sale. If a covered part fails during the warranty, the dealer must repair it. If the dealer cannot fix the same problem after a set number of attempts, or the car is out of service for repair for a set number of days during the warranty, the consumer can demand a refund of the purchase price, less an allowance for use, or a comparable replacement. Disputes can go to an arbitration program administered under the Attorney General, to court, or, first, to a demand letter.

That is the whole structure. Everything below is detail.

Who and what is covered.

Dealers, not private sellers. The statute applies to sales by a dealer, which the law defines broadly enough to reach anyone who sells more than a small number of used cars in a year, not just franchised showrooms. A private individual selling one car is not covered, and "as is" from a private seller generally sticks. See bought a used car as is.

Cars above a price floor. The law excludes very cheap cars. The floor is low enough that almost any car sold on a dealer lot qualifies.

Cars under 100,000 miles. Above that, the statute does not require a warranty. Under it, the dealer must give one.

Consumers. Buyers who purchase for personal, family, or household use. A car bought for a business may fall outside the statute.

The warranty: length scales with mileage.

The warranty the dealer must give is not one size. Its length depends on the odometer at sale:

• Fewer than 36,000 miles: 90 days or 4,000 miles, whichever comes first.
• 36,000 to 79,999 miles: 60 days or 3,000 miles.
• 80,000 to 100,000 miles: 30 days or 1,000 miles.

These are minimums. A dealer may give more, and many do as a selling point. A dealer may not give less, and a document that purports to shorten or waive the statutory warranty is ineffective to that extent. The warranty period is also extended by any time the car sits at the dealer for repair.

Covered parts.

The statute lists the components the warranty must cover, and the list is aimed at the expensive systems: the engine and its major internal parts, the transmission, the drive axle, the brakes, the steering, the radiator, the alternator, the generator, the starter, and the ignition system, with a specific exception for the battery. Tires, wipers, trim, electronics, air conditioning, and the infotainment system are not on the statutory list, though a dealer's own warranty may include them.

Two qualifications. The defect must substantially impair the value of the car, a low bar for a transmission that slips and a high one for a minor noise. And the warranty does not cover a failure caused by the buyer's abuse, neglect, or an accident after the sale.

The dealer's repair attempts.

When a covered part fails during the warranty, you bring the car back and the dealer repairs it at no charge for parts or labor. The dealer gets a reasonable number of chances. Under the statute, a refund or replacement becomes available when either of two things happens: the same defect has been subject to repair three or more times and continues to exist, or the car has been out of service for repair for a cumulative fifteen or more days during the warranty period. Those thresholds are not to be confused with the new car lemon law's, which are different.

Every visit must be documented, which means a written repair order from the dealer each time, showing the date in, the date out, the complaint, and the work done. A dealer who refuses to write one up is a dealer who knows what the count means. How to run this sequence is on dealer won't fix my used car.

The remedy: refund or replacement.

Once the threshold is crossed, the statute entitles you to a refund of the purchase price, including sales tax and fees the statute identifies, less a reasonable allowance for the miles you drove, or to a comparable replacement vehicle if you and the dealer agree. The dealer takes the car back. If you financed, the lender is paid from the refund and you receive the balance.

The dealer does not get to choose "we'll keep trying." After three failed attempts at the same problem, the choice is yours.

"As is" is not a defense for a covered dealer.

Used car dealers in New York still hand buyers a document with an "AS IS" box checked, and buyers still believe it. For a car the statute covers, it is not effective. The dealer was required to give the statutory warranty, and a disclaimer that contradicts it does not waive your rights. The Department of Motor Vehicles regulates dealers, and a dealer who sells covered cars "as is" is inviting a DMV complaint on top of the lemon law claim. Where "as is" does and does not bind you is on bought a used car as is.

One more thing the as-is form does not do: it does not shorten the statute of limitations on your claim or require you to use the dealer's chosen forum. Read any arbitration clause in the buyer's order carefully, but understand that the statutory arbitration program and the courts remain available for the statutory warranty claim.

Where to complain: DMV, AG, or court.

Three forums exist beside the dealer's service bay. The Department of Motor Vehicles licenses dealers and takes complaints about their practices; a DMV complaint creates a record and can pressure a dealer who cares about its license, but the DMV is not a court and does not order refunds. The Attorney General administers an arbitration program specifically for used car lemon law claims, which is faster and cheaper than court and produces a binding decision; the details are on used car lemon law arbitration. And you may sue, in small claims for a car worth up to the court's limit, or in civil court for more; see the New York small claims court guide.

What a demand letter does here.

Before arbitration and before court, a demand letter does what the dealer's service writer has been avoiding: it puts the whole history in one document, counts the repair attempts and the days out of service against the statutory thresholds, states that the threshold has been met, and demands the refund the statute provides, with a number. It cites § 198-b, attaches the repair orders, and sets a deadline. It tells the dealer that arbitration or suit follows, and it mentions the DMV.

Dealers respond to this for a practical reason: arbitration costs them time and often produces exactly the refund the letter demanded, plus a record with the AG. A letter that shows the buyer understands the statute and has the repair orders in hand is frequently the point at which the dealer offers the refund, a replacement, or a negotiated buyback. It is also the point at which a dealer who was planning to stall runs out of room. Our flat-fee demand letters page explains how we handle it, and DemandLetterNY offers a used car lemon law demand letter built on the statute.

A worked example.

A Bronx buyer pays $14,500 for a 2017 sedan with 62,000 miles from a lot on Jerome Avenue. The dealer's paperwork says "as is, no warranty." Under the statute the car carries a 60-day, 3,000-mile warranty whether the paper says so or not. On day twelve the transmission starts slipping. The dealer "resets the computer." Day twenty-five, same problem; the dealer keeps it a week and replaces a solenoid. Day forty-eight, same problem; the dealer keeps it nine days and says it is "within normal range."

That is three attempts at the same covered defect and sixteen days out of service, either of which crosses the line. The letter recites all three repair orders, cites § 198-b, notes that the "as is" language is ineffective, and demands a refund of $14,500 plus tax and fees less a mileage allowance, by a date. It notes that the AG's arbitration program and a DMV complaint follow. The dealer, who has been through arbitration before, offers a buyback within two weeks. Had the dealer refused, arbitration would have produced the same result with a binding award.

When the lemon law is not your case.

• Private sale. No statutory warranty. Your claims are fraud or misrepresentation, which are harder. See as is purchases.
• Over 100,000 miles or under the price floor. Outside the statute. A dealer's own warranty, if any, and the deceptive practices law are what remain.
• The defect is not a covered part. A bad air conditioner is miserable and not a lemon law claim. The dealer's written warranty and ordinary contract law apply.
• The warranty expired before the first failure. The statute is strict about the period. Document the first complaint date carefully; it is often earlier than the first repair order.
• Odometer or title fraud. That is a different and often stronger case, under federal and state law, and it belongs in a different letter.

Read next.

• Dealer won't fix my used car: the repair-attempt sequence, documenting, and the letter.
• Bought a used car as is: when the disclaimer sticks and when it does not.
• Used car lemon law arbitration: the AG's program versus a demand letter, and sequencing.
• Car dealer won't return my deposit: the deal that never closed.