California SB 26 opt-in: California lemon law explained (2026)

The plain-English walkthrough — built from the Department of Consumer Affairs' new lemon law page, SB 26, and the statute text (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov), not law-firm marketing. Last reviewed: October 2026.

The 2025 changes in one sentence: AB 1755, effective January 1, 2025, established the new lemon law procedures in Code of Civil Procedure §§ 871.20–871.30, and SB 26, signed April 2, 2025, lets a manufacturer elect — opt in — to be governed by those procedures instead of resolving claims only under the existing California lemon law statutes; this page explains that election and how to check whether your manufacturer made it.

What the SB 26 opt-in is

California's Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) describes three options for manufacturers to resolve lemon law disputes:

1. Opt in to the new process and procedures established by SB 26 and AB 1755;
2. Resolve claims using the existing California lemon law statutes; or
3. Elect to be certified through the DCA's Arbitration Certification Program.

The opt-in is the manufacturer's election, not the buyer's. A manufacturer that opts in is governed by the procedures in Code of Civil Procedure §§ 871.20–871.30, per the DCA. Per the DCA, that election is irrevocable for five calendar years following the date of election, and a manufacturer can make the election regarding its new vehicles sold in 2025 and the previous five years. This page explains that election only — the underlying coverage, presumption tests, and remedies are in our main California lemon law requirements guide.

When SB 26 and AB 1755 took effect

• AB 1755 was signed into law on September 29, 2024, per the DCA. Our California guide describes AB 1755 as effective January 1, 2025.
• SB 26 was signed on April 2, 2025, per the DCA, as legislation intended to streamline the implementation of AB 1755. Our California guide describes SB 26 as effective April 2, 2025.
• One operative date to note: § 871.24 — the pre-suit notice section described below — states that it became operative on July 1, 2025.

How to check whether your manufacturer opted in

SB 26 requires the Arbitration Certification Program within the DCA to publish a list of the manufacturers that have chosen to be governed under the AB 1755 procedures. Per the DCA:

• The DCA must publish the list by December 15 each year.
• Within 2 business days of a manufacturer's election, and upon verification, the manufacturer is added to the published list on the Department's website.

To check: go to the DCA's new lemon law procedures page and look for your manufacturer on its published list before you rely on the opt-in procedures. Check the list itself on the day you check — this page does not reproduce the list, because the list is the DCA's to publish and update. If your manufacturer is not on that list, see the section below.

The registry mechanics are in the statute itself. The December 15 publication duty is statutory (§ 871.29(c)). A manufacturer elects by written notice to the Arbitration Certification Program by October 31 of the preceding year; the election covers five consecutive calendar years and cannot be revoked during that period (§ 871.29(a)). And when a new vehicle is sold, the manufacturer must tell the buyer which procedures govern it — the AB 1755 chapter or the existing Song-Beverly Article 3 procedures (§ 871.29(d)). If your purchase paperwork says which track applies, keep it with your repair records. Keep the dates, repair-order numbers and reported problems together in the free repair log.

Not sure which track your dates fall on? Take the free lemon law quiz → and compare your repair history to the California tests first.

What opting in changes for a buyer

For an opted-in manufacturer, the DCA summarizes the dispute-resolution duties that follow when a consumer exercises lemon law rights:

• Notice information: the manufacturer must place the lemon law notice information, including an email and/or mailing address, on its website, owner's manual, and warranty booklet, in both English and Spanish.
• Acknowledgement: the manufacturer must send the consumer an acknowledgement that it received the consumer's request to repurchase or replace the vehicle.
• Response timeline: if the consumer demands repurchase or replacement in writing at least 30 days before suing, the manufacturer must offer restitution or replacement within 30 days after receiving the notice and complete it within 60 days of receiving the notice. Per the DCA, if the manufacturer does not comply with these timelines, the consumer can sell the vehicle and sue the manufacturer.
• Fee disputes: the manufacturer and consumer must resolve pre-litigation disputes regarding attorney's fees and costs through neutral, binding arbitration (§ 871.24(f)).
• Discovery and court schedule: the manufacturer must disclose required information outlined in the lemon law during discovery, and must follow the filing schedule and settlement solution outlined in the lemon law if the consumer sues.
• Settlement and payment timing: if the parties agree to settle within 60 days from the date the manufacturer received the notice, the manufacturer must follow the payment schedule requirements outlined in the lemon law. Per the DCA, the manufacturer must also process agreed restitution or replacement within 30 days of receipt of a signed release (or daily penalties apply), pay the restitution amount when the consumer returns the vehicle, and pay the vehicle payoff amount, attorney's fees, and relevant civil penalties within one business day of the vehicle return.

Separately, California's state-certified arbitration route has not gone away. As our California guide explains, the DCA certifies manufacturer arbitration programs, decisions are typically rendered within 40 days of a claim being accepted by a certified program, and that process is free to the consumer. See the California lemon law requirements guide for how arbitration, New Motor Vehicle Board mediation, and court fit together.

The 30-day pre-suit notice

This is the AB 1755 pre-suit notice our California guide lists for opted-in manufacturers only. Under § 871.24, at least 30 days before commencing an action seeking civil penalties under Civil Code § 1794(c), the consumer must:

1. Notify the manufacturer of the consumer's name, the accurate VIN, and a brief summary of the repair history and problems with the vehicle; and
2. Demand that the manufacturer repurchase or replace the vehicle.

• The notice must be in writing and sent either by email to the email address prominently displayed on the manufacturer's website for this purpose, or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, to the address provided by the manufacturer in the owner's manual or warranty booklet.
• At the time the notice is sent, the consumer must have possession of the vehicle, and must maintain possession for at least 30 days after the manufacturer's receipt of the written notice.
• Minor deviations in the notice do not, by themselves, disqualify a consumer from seeking civil penalties.
• If, within 30 days after receipt, the manufacturer offers restitution or replacement for the amount provided in Civil Code § 1793.2(d) and § 871.27 (plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs if the consumer is represented) and the replacement or restitution is completed within 60 days from receipt of the original notice, a request for or action seeking civil penalties is not allowed or maintained.
• An action seeking restitution or replacement may be commenced without this notice — but then the consumer must have possession when the complaint is filed and cannot seek civil penalties.

The LemonLawPath $29 packet includes a manufacturer demand letter / pre-suit notice draft. Sending a notice is a step you take yourself — a packet does not send it for you.

Keeping — or selling — the vehicle while you wait

The opt-in track has specific rules about the vehicle itself while a claim is open (§ 871.24(g)–(i)):

• If the manufacturer does not offer restitution or replacement within 30 days of receiving your pre-suit notice, you are permitted to sell the vehicle and still seek remedies, including civil penalties (§ 871.24(g)(1)).
• If the manufacturer does make an offer, you must keep possession of the vehicle for the full 60 days after the manufacturer's receipt of the notice (§ 871.24(g)(2)).
• If you sell under that permission and still want civil penalties, you must first have given the buyer written notice of the basis for your restitution or replacement request and of any pending action (§ 871.24(i)).

How an agreed buyback gets paid

• An agreed restitution or replacement must be completed within 30 days of the signed release, with a mandatory $50-per-day penalty for the manufacturer's delay, unless the parties stipulate otherwise (§ 871.27(g)(2)).
• Restitution funds are provided at the time of the vehicle return, and the payoff, attorney's fees, and any civil penalties are expedited within one business day of the return (§ 871.27(g)(3)).
• A remedy cannot be conditioned on any release other than the Standardized SBA Release in § 871.25, and the release takes effect once the vehicle is returned (§§ 871.25, 871.27(g)(1)).

Mediation — only inside a filed case

Some pages describe AB 1755 mediation as a step to complete before suing. The statute says otherwise. Under § 871.26(d), mediation is required only inside an action filed under § 871.20 against an opted-in manufacturer: the parties must schedule mediation within 90 days after the answer or other responsive pleading is filed, and the mediation must occur within 150 days, before a court-appointed or private mediator.

• Costs are split equally, though the plaintiff may recover them as part of a settlement or judgment (§ 871.26(d)(1)).
• Other discovery is stayed until mediation concludes, apart from the section's initial disclosures and depositions (§ 871.26(e)).
• The requirement applies only to § 871.20 actions filed on or after January 1, 2025, and not to a party who is not represented by counsel (§ 871.26(a), (k), (l)).
• There is no pre-suit mediation requirement anywhere in §§ 871.20–871.30.

Software and over-the-air updates

Neither Song-Beverly, the Tanner Act, nor the AB 1755 procedures contains any rule specific to over-the-air software updates — the word "software" does not appear in those statutes at all. What exists is the general test: whether a nonconformity substantially impairs the vehicle's use, value, or safety (Civil Code § 1793.22(e)(1)). The statutes do not say whether a software problem meets that test on any given facts — if your case turns on a software or update defect, that is a question for a licensed attorney, and our main California guide covers the general nonconformity test.

Deadlines on the opt-in track

Deadlines on this track are the ones our California guide already states for AB 1755 — do not apply them to a manufacturer that has not opted in:

• Presumption window (all tracks): 18 months from delivery or 18,000 odometer miles, whichever first. Calculate yours →
• AB 1755 track: file within 1 year after your express warranty expires, hard-capped at 6 years from delivery — whichever comes first.
• Tolling: § 871.21(c) extends the opt-in deadlines in exactly three ways — as provided by § 1793.22's tolling rules, for time the vehicle is out of service for repair of a nonconformity, and for the post-notice period under § 871.24, capped at 60 days. Time in mediation is not on that list — mediation under § 871.26 happens after suit is filed.
• Classic track: the Act states no limitations period of its own; courts generally apply a 4-year written-contract period with fact-specific accrual. Do not guess this date — it's attorney territory.

If your manufacturer has not opted in

Manufacturers that do not elect the new procedures are subject to the existing California lemon law mandates, per the DCA — including the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (Civil Code §§ 1790–1795.7), the Tanner Consumer Protection Act (§ 1793.22), and Business and Professions Code §§ 472–472.5. Not opting in does not remove the existing lemon law; for a manufacturer that has not elected, §§ 871.20–871.28 do not apply at all (§ 871.29(b)) and the existing Song-Beverly and Tanner rules govern instead. Start with the California lemon law requirements guide for the classic-track tests, notices, routes, and remedies, and use the deadline calculator only for the presumption window — not as a classic-track filing deadline.

When to talk to a lawyer instead

LemonLawPath is for straightforward, DIY-able cases. Talk to a licensed lemon law attorney if any of these apply:

• You're unsure which track your manufacturer is on, or the DCA list and your records point in different directions;
• The manufacturer denied your claim or disputes the defect;
• Your vehicle was bought used;
• You're on the classic track and unsure about the deadline;
• A filing deadline has passed or is close, or anything about your case feels ambiguous.

Sources: DCA — New Lemon Law Procedures (Arbitration Certification Program) · SB 26 (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov) · Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.22 (Tanner Act) · Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.2 · CCP § 871.21 (AB 1755 deadlines)