Lemon Law Demand Letter - Pennsylvania

PENNSYLVANIA AUTOMOBILE LEMON LAW DEMAND

Delivery method: [________________________________]
Tracking or confirmation number: [________________________________]

Date: [__/__/____]

To:

[MANUFACTURER LEGAL NAME]
Attn: [CUSTOMER RELATIONS / WARRANTY DEPARTMENT / REGISTERED AGENT]
[ADDRESS]
[CITY, STATE ZIP]

Copy to: [AUTHORIZED PENNSYLVANIA SERVICE AND REPAIR FACILITY]

From:

[PURCHASER OR COUNSEL NAME]
[ADDRESS]
[CITY, STATE ZIP]
[PHONE]
[EMAIL]

Re:

Dear [MANUFACTURER REPRESENTATIVE]:

This letter requests relief under the Pennsylvania Automobile Lemon Law, 73 P.S. §§ 1951–1963. The Act does not create a general pre-suit consumer demand or “final repair” letter requirement. Instead, 73 P.S. § 1954(b) ordinarily requires the purchaser to deliver the vehicle to the manufacturer's authorized Pennsylvania service and repair facility.

Select the applicable purpose:

☐ Voluntary resolution demand: The vehicle has been delivered for the repairs listed below, and this letter requests refund or replacement.

☐ Written notice because return is not reasonably possible: Because of the vehicle's size, weight, attachment, installation, or the nature of the nonconformity, the purchaser cannot reasonably deliver it. This letter gives the notice described in 73 P.S. § 1954(b) and requests that the manufacturer repair at the location, pick up the vehicle, or arrange transportation at the manufacturer's expense.

No delivery method or response date requested in this letter is represented as a statutory pre-suit notice deadline.

I. COVERED PURCHASER AND VEHICLE — 73 P.S. § 1952

Purchaser

☐ Obtained possession or ownership by lease, transfer, or purchase.

☐ Entered an agreement or contract for lease or purchase.

☐ Uses, leases, or bought the vehicle primarily for personal, family, or household purposes.

New motor vehicle

☐ New and unused self-propelled motorized conveyance driven on public roads, streets, or highways.

☐ Designed to transport no more than 15 persons.

☐ Purchased or leased and registered in Pennsylvania.

☐ Purchased or leased elsewhere and registered for the first time in Pennsylvania.

☐ Manufacturer or dealer demonstrator or dealer car before sale.

Vehicle type

☐ Motorcycle
☐ Other covered new motor vehicle
☐ Motor home — excluded
☐ Off-road vehicle — excluded
☐ Dual sport motorcycle driven off road — excluded

Motorcycles have been included since the November 18, 2024 amendment. The Act does not impose a gross-vehicle-weight exclusion.

II. RIGHTS PERIOD AND NONCONFORMITY — 73 P.S. §§ 1952 AND 1954

A “nonconformity” is a defect or condition that substantially impairs the vehicle's use, value, or safety and does not conform to the manufacturer's express warranty.

Applicable rights period

☐ Motorcycle: Earlier of one year after actual delivery or the warranty term. The 12,000-mile limit does not apply.

☐ Other covered new motor vehicle: Earliest of one year after actual delivery, the first 12,000 miles of use, or the warranty term.

Claimed nonconformities

The nonconformity occurred within the applicable rights period because [SHOW DATE, MILEAGE, AND WARRANTY CALCULATION].

III. DELIVERY AND REPAIR HISTORY — 73 P.S. § 1954(b)

☐ The purchaser delivered the vehicle to an authorized Pennsylvania service and repair facility.

☐ The purchaser cannot reasonably deliver the vehicle and requests the manufacturer to select repair at the location, pickup, or transportation to an authorized facility at the manufacturer's expense.

Same-nonconformity repair attempts: [____]
Cumulative calendar days out of service: [____]

IV. PRESUMPTION — 73 P.S. § 1956

The purchaser relies on:

☐ Three-repair route: The same nonconformity was subjected to repair three times by the manufacturer, its agents, or authorized dealers and still exists.

☐ Out-of-service route: The vehicle was out of service by reason of any nonconformity for 30 or more cumulative calendar days.

Claimed extension, if any

The ordinary 30-day minimum may be extended under 73 P.S. § 1956(b) only as follows:

• No more than 30 additional calendar days where repair could not be completed because of war, terrorism, civil unrest, fire, flood, or natural disaster;
• No more than 90 additional calendar days if the manufacturer also files the required sworn affidavit with the Office of Attorney General; and
• Only while the manufacturer, agent, or authorized dealer lends the owner a motor vehicle at no charge during each extension period.

Motorcycle-only conditions

For a motorcycle claim:

☐ Manufacturer-sourced parts were used in the repair attempts.

☐ All repair attempts were made by the same manufacturer's authorized service and repair facility.

☐ If more than one facility was involved, a complete set of repair records was provided to the new facility and the repairing facility supplied the required affidavit.

☐ No motorcycle storage period excluded by 73 P.S. § 1956(b)(4) is included in the 30-day total, or the signed storage waiver is attached.

V. PURCHASER'S REMEDY ELECTION — 73 P.S. § 1955

If the manufacturer fails to repair or correct the nonconformity after a reasonable number of attempts, the purchaser may select:

☐ Replacement: A comparable motor vehicle of equal value.

☐ Refund: Return of the vehicle in exchange for the full purchase or lease price, including collateral charges, less a reasonable allowance for use.

The purchaser elects: [REPLACEMENT / REFUND].

Refund worksheet

Reasonable allowance for use

The allowance is the amount directly attributable to the purchaser's use before the first report of the nonconformity to the manufacturer. It may not exceed the lesser of:

• 10 cents per mile driven; or
• 10% of the purchase or lease price.

These figures are statutory caps; the Act does not automatically define the allowance as the cap.

If refund is selected, payment must be made within 30 days of the election. The refund must be made to the purchaser and any lienholder as their interests appear. This letter does not assume that the refund necessarily equals every outstanding loan or lease obligation.

The purchaser is not entitled to refund or replacement if the nonconformity does not substantially impair use, value, or safety or resulted from the purchaser's abuse, neglect, modification, or alteration. For a motorcycle, a modification or alteration after actual delivery is included in that rule.

VI. INFORMAL DISPUTE SETTLEMENT — 73 P.S. § 1959

Select one:

☐ The manufacturer has not identified a procedure complying with 16 C.F.R. part 703.

☐ The manufacturer identified [PROGRAM], and the purchaser first resorted to it on [__/__/____]. The result was [________________________________].

☐ The purchaser disputes that the identified procedure complies with 16 C.F.R. part 703 because [________________________________].

If the manufacturer established a complying procedure, the purchaser must first resort to it before bringing the 73 P.S. § 1958 civil action. The procedure is not binding on the purchaser.

VII. CIVIL REMEDY — 73 P.S. §§ 1958 AND 1961

A purchaser who suffers loss due to a vehicle nonconformity as a result of the manufacturer's failure to comply may bring a civil action in a court of common pleas and, in addition to other relief, recover reasonable attorney fees and all court costs under 73 P.S. § 1958.

Section 1961 states that a violation of the Automobile Lemon Law is also a violation of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. This demand does not assume that every companion private remedy or enhanced-damages element is established; counsel must separately plead and prove any such claim.

The Automobile Lemon Law does not state an internal civil-action filing period. Counsel must identify and calendar every applicable limitations period from controlling authority for the claims actually asserted.

VIII. REQUESTED RESPONSE

Please respond in writing by [__/__/____] and:

1. Confirm receipt;
2. If the vehicle cannot reasonably be delivered, provide the manufacturer's selected repair, pickup, or transportation arrangement;
3. Identify any 73 P.S. § 1959 procedure the manufacturer contends applies and provide its governing materials; and
4. Accept the purchaser's election of [REPLACEMENT / REFUND] or state the factual and legal basis for denial.

The requested response date is a voluntary settlement deadline, not a statutory final-repair or pre-suit response period.

Sincerely,

[NAME]
[LAW FIRM, IF ANY]
[PA ATTORNEY I.D. NUMBER, IF ANY]
[ADDRESS]
[PHONE]
[EMAIL]

ENCLOSURES

☐ Purchase or lease agreement
☐ Warranty
☐ Registration
☐ Repair orders and itemized statements
☐ Prior notices and communications
☐ Informal dispute settlement submissions and decision
☐ Motorcycle repair records, affidavit, parts records, or storage waiver
☐ Other: [________________________________]

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Pennsylvania Automobile Lemon Law, Act of March 28, 1984, P.L. 150, No. 28, current official text: https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/US/HTM/1984/0/0028..HTM