The lemon law is a law enacted to protect consumers who purchase a faulty vehicle from a dealership or private owner. Each state has its own regulations regarding the lemon law, so it’s important to understand how your state handles lemon law cases. The Nebraska lemon law is pretty straight forward and allows buyers of faulty vehicles two choices. You can try to settle with the dealership or manufacturer through arbitration, without the need for an attorney, or hire an attorney and take the manufacturer or seller to court.
Using Arbitration to Handle a Lemon Law Case
Arbitration is between you and the car manufacturer. It’s a legally binding process but does not require the services of an attorney. You and the manufacturer or their representative go before the arbitrator and provide proof that under the Nebraska lemon law you were sold a bad vehicle. The arbitrator considers both sides and then makes a judgment.
In order to handle a lemon law case with arbitration, you must have an active warranty and provide service and repair information to the arbitrator. It can take a little more than a month to reach a decision, so don’t expect something to happen in a week or two. If the arbitrator judges against you, then you still have the option to hire an attorney and sue.
Suing the Car Manufacturer and Hiring an Attorney
Your other option under the Nebraska lemon law is to hire an attorney and take the manufacturer to court. You may choose to do this if you lose during arbitration, or you can choose to sue right away because you believe you have a strong case under the lemon law. In Nebraska, you are entitled to receive the purchase price of the vehicle and taxes and fees associated with it, if you win your case. Your attorney will bill the manufacturer for legal fees if a judge decides that they did sell you a lemon or didn’t meet warranty terms.
Depending on the manufacturer of your car, you may have more problems fighting one than another. If you worry that you won’t be able to handle your case without an attorney, consider filing a suit right away. However, you may need to check and see if it’s required that you go through arbitration first before being allowed to sue. For more information visit the site http://www.yourlemonlawrights.com
