If you think you may have a lemon car on your hands, an attorney for lemon cars can be hugely helpful. An experienced attorney can guide you in gathering and collecting the right documentation to build a strong lemon law case. Keep reading to learn more about what type of paperwork an attorney can assist you with compiling.
The Purchase Documentation
One of the first things a lemon law attorney will help you pull together is all the paperwork related to the original purchase of your possibly lemon vehicle. This includes the sales contract, invoices for the car and any add-ons purchased, loan documents if you financed, the manufacturer’s warranty information, any advertising or marketing materials you received, and more. Your attorney will comb through this documentation looking for anything related to implied or expressed warranties that may have been violated now that you have recurring problems.
The Repair Orders and Invoices
The repair history for your vehicle will be crucial evidence in a lemon law case. Your lawyer can help you compile this paperwork to demonstrate the repeated failed attempts to fix your car. Any repair orders, invoices for diagnostic tests or parts/labor, or other documents from the dealer related to repair attempts should be gathered. Make sure to get paperwork for repair attempts even if they were during a manufacturer warranty period and you did not personally pay out of pocket. This shows the recurring nature of the issues.
Communication Logs with the Dealer and Manufacturer
In addition to documentation directly related to the purchase and repairs for your car, a lemon law attorney can also help collect a record of your communication attempts with both the dealer and vehicle manufacturer. This includes any emailed complaints you sent, logs of phone calls made or letters mailed, and responses received or lack thereof. Your correspondence showing efforts to address problems can demonstrate another angle of breach of good faith obligations.
Photographic and Video Evidence
Visual evidence can also be beneficial for a lemon law claim. Your attorney may recommend compiling any photos or videos you have which document issues with your car, particularly if you managed to capture visible defects like panel misalignment in pictures/videos. Names and dates should be associated with the media files whenever possible.
A Lemon Law Attorney Can Help with the Lemon Law Process Documentation
If you do proceed with officially pursing lemon law arbitration or litigation after consulting with an attorney, that legal process will generate its own trail of paperwork as well. Your lawyer can help explain, gather, complete, and organize everything needed such as: arbitration requests filed, supporting affidavits outlining issues, responses from auto manufacturers, hearing records, final arbitrator decisions, appeals paperwork if needed, and beyond.
Prior Legal Paperwork
Finally, if you previously attempted to handle a lemon law case yourself without legal representation, your attorney will also want to review any paperwork from that to understand where things stand currently. This may include past arbitration rulings, records if you already went to court over disputes related to the vehicle problems, or more. Let your lawyer know your full legal history with issues for the car.
As you can see, an experienced lemon law attorney can guide you in gathering a wide variety of relevant documentation to prove your case and demonstrate your legal rights as a consumer were violated by the defective vehicle sold to you. If you believe you purchased a “lemon”, consult a qualified attorney to get assistance with evidence compilation and take back control of the situation.
