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Name

Address

City State Zip

Phone

Vehicle year

Vehicle Make

Vehicle Model

Selling Dealer

Purchase/Lease date

Mileage when purchased/leased

Current Mileage

Please describe the current problem(s) with your vehicle and number of times the vehicle has been in the shop for each problem.

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Law Offices of Kan Tung Donohoe, A.P.C. will not sell or give away your personal information. Attorney Kan Donohoe will personally review your potential case and contact you within one business day.

Helpful Tips for Consumers:

Problems with your Vehicle, while it is covered by a manufacturer’s warranty:

To protect your lemon law rights, it is important for you to document the problems with your vehicle.

Take the vehicle to the manufacturer's authorized repair shop to attempt a repair. Make sure the authorized repair shop writes down your vehicle’s problem accurately on the repair order/invoice. Insist on getting a repair order/invoice. Save all repair orders/invoices for your record.

If the problem reoccurs after getting the vehicle back from the repair shop, you should continue taking the vehicle back to an authorized repair facility for more repairs. It is important to your lemon law case that you give the manufacturer’s authorized repair shop a few opportunities to fix the problem. You can try a different authorized repair shop. You do not have to take your vehicle to the selling dealer for warranty repairs if your vehicle is covered by the manufacturer’s warranty.

If the manufacturer’s authorized repair shop still cannot repair your vehicle, you should contact a lemon law attorney to learn about your rights and options.

Avoiding Sour Cars When Purchasing a Used Vehicle:

Ask the dealer about the vehicle history. Ask the dealer if the vehicle has had any mechanical problems, or been involved in accidents, etc. Make sure the dealer/sales person put the history in writing. You should be cautious if the dealer/sales person is not willing to put the information in writing.

Ask for copies of repair and maintenance records.This is a good way to see if the vehicle was well taken care of. If you are looking at a used Honda at a Honda dealer, the dealer should be able to access all the warranty repair claims for the used Honda on their computer.

Test drive the vehicle on hills, highways, and in stop-and-go traffic.
Read the Buyers Guide, which is required by federal law to be displayed on the vehicle. This document provides important information about your vehicle, such as whether it is sold with a warranty or “as is.”

Make sure all the dealer’s oral promises are written onto the Buyers Guide. The dealer can write it onto the Buyer’s Guide by hand. When you purchase the car, the dealer is required to give you the Buyer’s Guide. Dealer keeps a copy for its file.
Have the car inspected by a mechanic you hire.
If the transaction does not feel right, trust your instinct and do not buy the vehicle.

Effective July 1, 2006, a consumer can pay for a two-day contract cancellation option when purchasing a used car from a dealer for less than $40,000. The contract cancellation option does not apply to used cars priced at $40,000 or more, new cars, private party sales, motorcycles, off-road vehicles, recreational vehicles, or vehicles sold for business or commercial use. To learn more about the two-day contract cancellation option, go to Department of Consumer Affairs at: http://www.dca.ca.gov/pubs/car_buyer_rights.htm

Lemon Law related links:

Vehicle defects and Safety Investigation:

www.nhtsa.org

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration web site, featuring recalls, service bulletins, consumer’s vehicle complaints, crash test results, air bag safety, child safety seats, etc. This site is not easy to navigate.

www.autosafety.org

Center for Auto Safety (CAS) was founded by Consumers Union and Ralph Nader in 1970 to provide consumers a voice for auto safety and quality in Washington and to help lemon owners fight back across the country. Has useful information on various vehicle defects and consumer’s vehicle complaints. Also provides the text of all 50 states’ lemon law statutes, so that you can read it for yourself.

www.carconsumers.com

Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety (CARS)is a national, award winning, non-profit auto safety and consumer advocacy organization working to save lives, prevent injuries, and protect consumers from auto-related fraud and abuse

www.alldata.com

Get copies of a manufacturers’ technical service bulletins for a about $25 subscription fee. This site does not provide service bulletins for Honda, Acura, or BMW.

Vehicle Buying and Pricing Guides:

www.nadaguides.com

Dealers tend to use this pricing guide. Provides pricing information for new and used cars, trucks, vans and SUVs, classic, collectible, exotic and special interest vehicles, boats, motorcycles, RVs, personal watercraft, ATVs, snowmobiles and manufactured housing. Also provide reviews, articles, and dealer quotes for vehicles.

www.kbb.com

Kelly Blue book pricing guide. Also provides reviews, information, and dealer quotes for vehicles.

www.edmunds.com

Has the true cost to own calculator, to compare the true costs to own of different vehicles, and take into consideration, insurance, maintenance, etc. Also provides reviews, articles, and dealer quotes for vehicles.

www.swapalease.com

A website where you can list leased vehicle to find someone to take over your lease early or you can find a short-term lease with attractive payments and no money down. Also provides a pricing guide.

www.consumerreports.org

This site has consumer reports and ratings on all consumer products, including vehicles. But you’ll have to subscribe to get the full reports.

Checking Vehicle History and Title:

www.carfax.com

Uses the vehicle’s VIN Number to search for vehicle history. The only caveat is that it only checks DMV records, auto auctions, fleet management and rental agencies, automobile manufacturers, and fire and police departments. Remember that the carfax report is not necessarily complete, because car fax does not have access to all databases. Because autocheck and carfax utilize different reports, you may get slightly different information on the reports. A single vehicle report costs about $20. Unlimited vehicle reports within 30 days costs about $25.00.

www.autocheck.com

Uses the vehicle’s VIN number to search for vehicle history. The only caveat is that it only checks public records and some private databases. Remember that the autocheck report is not necessarily complete, because it does not have access to all databases. Because autocheck and carfax utilize different reports, you may get slightly different information on the reports. A single vehicle report costs about $20. Unlimited vehicle reports within 30 days costs about $25.00.

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