Last reviewed: 1 October 2026
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United StatesLouisiana's lemon law: what the motor vehicle warranties chapter says
Louisiana's lemon law, R.S. 51:1941 through 51:1948, requires a manufacturer to replace a new vehicle or refund its price when a defect covered by the manufacturer's express warranty is not fixed after four repair attempts or 45 days out of service, within the warranty term or the first year, and after any required dispute step. It applies to the manufacturer's warranty, not to a service contract you bought.
The short answer
- The trigger: a refund-or-replacement duty arises if, after four or more attempts within the warranty term or the first year after delivery (whichever ends first), the defect has not been repaired, or the vehicle has been out of service for repair for a cumulative 45 or more calendar days during the warranty period (51:1944(A)).3
- The remedy: the manufacturer must replace the vehicle with a comparable new one or, at its option, take it back and refund the full purchase price plus amounts paid at the point of sale and all collateral costs, less a reasonable allowance for use. "Collateral costs" means sales tax, license and registration fees, and similar governmental charges (51:1941(1); 51:1944(A)).13
- The first step: if the manufacturer runs an informal dispute procedure that substantially complies with 16 C.F.R. Part 703, the refund-or-replacement provisions do not apply to a consumer who has not first used it (51:1944(D)).3
- The deadline to sue: no more than three years from the purchase date, or until one year from the end of the warranty period, whichever is longer (51:1944(E)).3
- What it is not: a service contract. The chapter turns on the "manufacturer's express warranty," defined as the manufacturer's written warranty of the vehicle's condition and fitness for use (51:1941(5)).1
Why it matters
A lemon law and a purchased service contract are different things with different triggers, a point our general guide on lemon laws vs. vehicle service contracts explains. This page covers the Louisiana statute. Knowing the numbers in the statute helps a buyer tell what the law already provides from what a dealer might offer to sell.
Who and what the chapter covers
A "consumer" is the purchaser, other than for resale, of a new motor vehicle normally used for personal, family, or household purposes and subject to a manufacturer's express warranty. The term also includes a person to whom the vehicle is transferred during the express warranty, a person to whom the vehicle is leased, and anyone else entitled to enforce the warranty.1 "Motor vehicle" means a passenger vehicle, or a passenger and commercial vehicle as defined in R.S. 32:1252, sold in Louisiana on or after September 1, 1984. The definition also includes personal watercraft and all-terrain vehicles used exclusively for personal purposes. It excludes vehicles of 10,000 GVW or above and vehicles used exclusively for commercial purposes.1
A "nonconformity" is any specific or generic defect or malfunction, or any defect or condition that substantially impairs the vehicle's use, market value, or both.1
The numbers in the statute
| Item | What the statute says |
|---|---|
| Duty to repair | If the consumer reports a nonconformity and makes the vehicle available for repair before the warranty expires or within one year of original delivery (whichever is earlier), the manufacturer, agent, or dealer must make the repairs, even if they happen after that term (51:1942)2 |
| Presumption of a reasonable number of attempts | Cumulative 45 or more calendar days out of service for repair, or the same nonconformity repaired 4 or more times, within the warranty term or one year from delivery, whichever is earlier (51:1943(A)(1))2 |
| Failure to respond | A manufacturer that fails to respond or repair within those periods is considered to have waived its right to a final attempt to cure (51:1943(A)(2))2 |
| Disasters | The warranty term is extended, and the presumption suspended, for any period when repair services are unavailable because of war, invasion, strike, fire, flood, or natural disaster (51:1943(B)-(C))2 |
| Remedy deadline | Replacement or refund within 30 days after the consumer offers to transfer title, or after an informal dispute decision awarding one (51:1945)4 |
| Suit deadline | Three years from purchase or one year after the warranty period ends, whichever is longer (51:1944(E))3 |
| Attorney fees | Once the consumer has complied with the chapter's requirements, reasonable attorney fees actually incurred if judgment is rendered in whole or part for the consumer (51:1947)5 |
| Rental reimbursement | Up to $20 per day while the vehicle is in for repair if the repair period exceeds ten work days or the same defect was tendered on two earlier occasions; limited to the warranty length or two years, whichever is first; damages of at least $200 and attorney fees for a violation; not applicable to personal watercraft or all-terrain vehicles (51:1948)6 |
Leases, resale, and other remedies
For a leased vehicle, the manufacturer may replace it or, if the lessor is willing, accept its return and reimburse the lessee's reasonable lease-related expenditures (51:1944(B)).3 If a vehicle that was returned to a manufacturer for nonconformity is resold, the statute requires a written disclosure in a prescribed form and a notice on the certificate of title; a dealer's failure to deliver the disclosure is a violation punishable by a fine of $500 to $1,000 for each violation (51:1945.1).7 The chapter also says it does not limit other rights or remedies a consumer has under any other law (51:1946); see our guide to Louisiana redhibition for one of those.8
Practical steps
- Find the manufacturer's express warranty in the owner's materials and note its term. The statute's time windows run from the warranty term or the first year, whichever ends first.
- Keep each repair order. The statute counts repair attempts and cumulative calendar days out of service.
- Check whether the manufacturer has an informal dispute program. If it complies with 16 C.F.R. Part 703, the statute says to use it first; our guide to Magnuson-Moss informal dispute settlement explains that federal rule.
- Do not treat a purchased service contract as a substitute. See Louisiana vehicle service contracts and extended warranty vs. manufacturer warranty.
Limits and unknowns
This page describes statute text only. It does not discuss court decisions, and it does not say how a particular claim would turn out. It describes new vehicles under a manufacturer's express warranty, including a later owner who receives the vehicle during that warranty. It does not address vehicle types the definitions treat differently, or a vehicle bought after the warranty has ended. Louisiana also has a separate civil-law remedy for defects in things sold, and federal warranty law applies on its own terms.
Last reviewed: 1 October 2026. Statute text as published by the Louisiana Legislature, with section histories through Acts 2021, No. 220 for the definitions and the replacement-or-refund provisions. See how we check and the Register for how we handle state requirements.