LEMON LAW ARBITRATION

Example: Mary has a limited income and lives in rural Harpursville, New York. She bought a compact car at a reasonable price. Mary primarily uses this car to travel back and forth to work, buy groceries and to take care of her elderly parents who live three miles away. Two weeks after she bought the car, it started breaking down. There was one problem after the other. She had to continuously take the car back to the dealership where they would "fix" it and then a few days later she would have to take it back again. Mary felt like the dealership was taking advantage of her. She needed her car and does not know where to turn... Mary, you have options!

New York State 's Lemon Law Arbitration Program provides a legal remedy for consumers who purchase or lease new and certain used motor vehicles that turn out to be "lemons" due to ongoing repair and maintenance issues.

Consumers who experience ongoing problems with cars may file complaints with the Attorney General's Office who then determines whether the problems are eligible to be resolved through NYS Lemon Law Arbitration. When accepted, the filing is referred to NYSDRA (New York State Dispute Resolution Association). Consumers have the choice of location for the Lemon Law hearing. When such a case is referred to ACCORD, the Intake Coordinator schedules the hearing in Binghamton. The Coordinator is available to answer questions and can at times assist in obtaining necessary information. The process is an alternative to the Courts and is intended to provide a prompt resolution of the problem. The Lemon Law Arbitration decisions are binding and are usually provided within 45 days of the date the case was filed with NYSDRA.

Do you need more information? Feel free to click on the links below or call ACCORD at (607) 724-5153

ACCORD A Center for Dispute Resolution E-mail	NYSDRA Lemon Law Arbitration Program
NYS Attorney General's Office	ACCORD Special Projects Home Page