Virginia Lemon Law: How to File a Claim

Virginia's lemon law is the Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act (Va. Code §§ 59.1-207.9–207.16:1). It covers vehicles used in substantial part for personal, family, or household purposes. In the 18-month rights period: 3+ repairs of one nonconformity, a serious safety defect repaired 1+ time, or 30+ days out of service. There is no state program; enforcement is by private action.

The complete, plain-English walkthrough — built from the Virginia Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act (Va. Code §§ 59.1-207.9–207.16:1) and the Virginia Attorney General's lemon law page, not law-firm marketing. Last reviewed: October 2026.

Virginia lemon law at a glance

• The law: the Virginia Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act, Va. Code Title 59.1, Chapter 17.3 (§§ 59.1-207.9–207.16:1).
• Who runs disputes: no state agency. In the Attorney General's words, the Act's provisions are enforceable "by private action brought by the consumer, not by a governmental agency" — there is no state board, hearing, or filing program.
• Rights period: the "lemon law rights period" ends 18 months after the date of original delivery of the vehicle to the consumer. It is the period during which you can report a nonconformity and pursue rights under the Act.
• The three tests: the same nonconformity repaired 3 or more times and still present; a serious safety defect repaired 1 or more times and still present; or the vehicle out of service for repair a cumulative 30 calendar days — each measured during the rights period.
• Notice: written notification to the manufacturer is required before you may be eligible for a refund or replacement. Send it to the name and address the manufacturer includes with the warranty or in the owner's manual.
• The hard deadline: any action under the Act must be commenced within the 18-month rights period. If you first used the manufacturer's informal dispute procedure within that period, you get the longer of the rights period or 12 months from the manufacturer's final action in the procedure.
• The remedy: your choice — a comparable replacement vehicle acceptable to you, or a refund of the full contract price including collateral charges and incidental damages, less a reasonable allowance for use that is capped by statute (see Remedies).
• Questions: Attorney General Consumer Protection Hotline, 1-800-552-9963 from Virginia, or (804) 786-2042 from the Richmond area or outside Virginia — 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

What vehicles are covered

A "consumer" under the Act is the purchaser (other than for purposes of resale) or the lessee of a motor vehicle used in substantial part for personal, family, or household purposes — and, as explained in the used-vehicles section below, certain later owners as well. A "manufacturer" is a person or entity engaged in manufacturing or assembling motor vehicles, or in distributing motor vehicles to motor vehicle dealers.

A "motor vehicle" means only:

• Passenger cars — a vehicle (other than a motorcycle or autocycle) designed and used primarily for the transportation of no more than 10 persons, including the driver;
• Pickup or panel trucks — within a weight boundary borrowed from § 46.2-100: a registered gross weight of 7,500 pounds or less, or over 7,500 but not over 10,000 pounds if the vehicle is registered for personal use and designed to transport property on its own structure. Heavier trucks are not in the Act's vehicle list;
• Motorcycles — covered expressly, on the same terms as cars: the Act states no motorcycle-specific test, window, or offset;
• Autocycles — three-wheeled motor vehicles with a steering wheel and seating that does not require the operator to straddle or sit astride, manufactured to comply with federal safety requirements for motorcycles;
• Mopeds — as defined in § 46.2-100 (among other limits, a motor displacing 50 cubic centimeters or less, or 1500 watts or less input, and not operated above 35 miles per hour);
• The self-propelled motorized chassis of motor homes — only the chassis. The definition does not reach the living-quarters or coach portion of a motor home;
• Demonstrators or leased vehicles with which a warranty was issued.

One scope note: the Act's definition of "motor vehicle" states no requirement that the vehicle have been purchased in Virginia, and this guide does not add one.

What counts as a defect. A "nonconformity" is a failure to conform with a warranty, a defect, or a condition — including ones that do not affect the driveability of the vehicle — which significantly impairs the use, market value, or safety of the vehicle. "Significant impairment" means rendering the vehicle unfit, unreliable, or unsafe for ordinary use or reasonable intended purposes. A "serious safety defect" is a life-threatening malfunction or nonconformity that impedes your ability to control or operate the vehicle for ordinary use or reasonable intended purposes, or creates a risk of fire or explosion. "Warranty" is broad: it means any implied warranty or written warranty of the manufacturer, or any affirmations of fact or promise made by the manufacturer in connection with the sale or lease that become part of the basis of the bargain.

The repair duty. If a new motor vehicle does not conform to all warranties and you report the nonconformity to the manufacturer, its agents, or its authorized dealer during the manufacturer's warranty period, the manufacturer must make the repairs necessary to conform the vehicle to the warranties — even if the repairs are made after that warranty period expires. Report problems promptly, and keep every repair order.

What is not covered. It is an affirmative defense for the manufacturer that an alleged nonconformity does not significantly impair the use, market value, or safety of the vehicle, or that a nonconformity resulted from abuse, neglect, or unauthorized modification or alteration by a consumer.

The three tests

All three tests are measured during the lemon law rights period — the period ending 18 months after original delivery. If any one test is met, it is presumed that a reasonable number of attempts have been undertaken to conform the vehicle to the warranty and that the vehicle is significantly impaired.

1. Three-times test (same nonconformity)

The same nonconformity has been subject to repair three or more times by the manufacturer, its agents, or its authorized dealers, and the same nonconformity continues to exist. Different defects don't combine under this test.

2. One-time test (serious safety defect)

The nonconformity is a serious safety defect (see the definition above) and has been subject to repair one or more times by the manufacturer, its agent, or its authorized dealer, and the same nonconformity continues to exist.

3. 30-calendar-day test

The vehicle is out of service due to repair for a cumulative total of 30 calendar days during the rights period — calendar days, not business days, and they need not be consecutive. The one carve-out: days do not count if the repairs could not be performed because of conditions beyond the control of the manufacturer, its agents, or authorized dealers, including war, invasion, strike, fire, flood, or other natural disasters.

Meeting a test is only part of the sequence. The refund-or-replacement remedy also turns on the written notice in Step 1 — and the deadline in the deadline section below runs whether or not the repairs are finished.

Step 1: written notice to the manufacturer

Virginia builds a written-notice precondition into the Act. The manufacturer must clearly and conspicuously disclose to you, in the warranty or owner's manual, that written notification of the nonconformity to the manufacturer is required before you may be eligible for a refund or replacement — and it must include with the warranty or owner's manual the name and address to which you send that notification. There is no single state-published manufacturer address; the address in your warranty or owner's manual is the one to use.

Before you avail yourself of the Act's provisions, it is your responsibility (or your representative's) to notify the manufacturer of the need for the correction or repair of the nonconformity, unless the manufacturer has already been notified as the Act defines it. Under that definition, the manufacturer is deemed notified if:

• a written complaint of the defect or defects has been mailed to it; or
• it has responded to you in writing regarding a complaint; or
• a factory representative has inspected the vehicle, or met with you or an authorized dealer, regarding the nonconformity.

If a notification is mailed to an authorized dealer, the dealer must forward it to the manufacturer on receipt. The Act prescribes no mailing method for the notice — no certified or registered mail requirement. Mailing in a way that gives you proof of mailing and of the mailing date (for example, certified mail with a return receipt) is a proof-keeping step we recommend, not a statutory requirement.

The manufacturer's additional opportunity. If the manufacturer or its factory representative had not been notified of one of the presumption conditions in the tests section, and that condition already exists, the manufacturer must be given an additional opportunity, not to exceed 15 days, to correct or repair the nonconformity. Build those 15 days into your timeline — they sit inside the same 18-month rights period that carries your filing deadline.

The LemonLawPath $29 packet includes a draft of this notice letter, addressed using the name and address from your warranty or owner's manual.

Step 2: your routes — a private action, and the manufacturer's optional procedure

Virginia has no state lemon law program: no board, no state hearing, no state claim form. In the Attorney General's words, the Act's provisions are enforceable "by private action brought by the consumer, not by a governmental agency." The enforcement route the chapter creates is a civil action: any consumer who suffers loss by reason of a violation of any provision of the chapter may bring a civil action to enforce it. The Act names no particular court — § 59.1-207.16 speaks of filing "an action in the proper court" — so this guide does not point you to a specific court.

Optional: the manufacturer's informal dispute settlement procedure

If a manufacturer provides an informal dispute settlement procedure, it is your choice whether or not to use it before availing yourself of your rights under the Act. Using it is never a prerequisite.

• If the decision is for a refund or a comparable motor vehicle, the manufacturer has 40 days from its receipt of your acceptance of the decision (or from the date of a court order) to comply with the decision.
• If the manufacturer fails to comply, a court may triple the value of the award stipulated in the decision, plus award other equitable relief the court deems appropriate, including additional attorney's fees.
• Timing protection: using the procedure within the rights period can extend your time to file in court — see the deadline section below.

Complaint routes that are not filings

The Attorney General's lemon law page lists three places to file a complaint: BBB AUTO LINE®, the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia, and the Virginia State Bar Lawyer Referral Service. A complaint to the Attorney General or the BBB is not a lemon law filing, and the chapter gives a complaint no effect on your deadline — the only timing rules the chapter states are the ones in the deadline section below. The Attorney General's Consumer Protection Hotline is 1-800-552-9963 from Virginia, or (804) 786-2042 from the Richmond area or outside Virginia, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The deadline that matters: 18 months

Virginia runs one main clock, plus one computable extension and one open-ended flag:

• The base rule: any action brought under the Act shall be commenced within the lemon law rights period — the period ending 18 months after the date of original delivery of the vehicle to the consumer. The repair tests are measured inside the same period. The Virginia DMV puts the consumer-facing version plainly: "All claims must be filed within 18 months following the date you first received the vehicle."
• The informal-procedure extension: if your good-faith attempts to settle under the manufacturer's informal dispute settlement procedure (§ 59.1-207.15) did not satisfactorily resolve the matter, and that procedure was resorted to within the rights period, your deadline is 12 months from the date of the final action taken by the manufacturer in that procedure, or the original rights period, whichever is longer.
• The flag (not a computation): the rights period itself is extended if the manufacturer has been notified but the nonconformity has not been effectively repaired by the manufacturer or its agent by the expiration of the rights period. The chapter states no fixed length for this extension — it is fact-specific. Do not let the 18-month date pass on the assumption that it applies to you; talk to a licensed Virginia attorney first.

Check your Virginia lemon law deadlines →

Remedies: refund or replacement

If the manufacturer, its agents, or its authorized dealers do not conform the vehicle to an applicable warranty after a reasonable number of attempts during the lemon law rights period, the manufacturer must — at your election — replace the vehicle or take it back and refund you:

• Replacement: a comparable motor vehicle acceptable to the consumer — a vehicle identical or reasonably equivalent to yours as it existed at the time of purchase or lease, with an offset from this value for a reasonable allowance for its use.
• Refund: the full contract price, including all collateral charges and incidental damages, less a reasonable allowance for use (below). Refunds or replacements are made to the consumer, lessor, and any lienholder, as their interests may appear.
• Your choice is unconditional. The consumer has the unconditional right to choose a refund rather than a replacement vehicle, and the right to drive the motor vehicle until he receives either the replacement vehicle or the refund.
• Collateral charges are sales- or lease-related charges including, but not limited to, sales tax, license fees, registration fees, title fees, finance charges and interest, transportation charges, dealer preparation charges, and charges for service contracts, undercoating, rust proofing, or installed options — so long as they are not recoverable from a third party. For a lease refund, collateral charges also include capitalized cost reductions, credits and allowances for any trade-in vehicles, fees to another to obtain the lease, and insurance or other costs expended by the lessor for the benefit of the lessee.
• Incidental damages carry the meaning given in Va. Code § 8.2-715: expenses reasonably incurred in inspection, receipt, transportation, and care and custody of goods rightfully rejected; any commercially reasonable charges, expenses, or commissions in connection with effecting cover; and any other reasonable expense incident to the delay or other breach.
• Also recoverable: mileage, expenses, and reasonable loss of use necessitated by attempts to conform the vehicle to the express warranty may be recovered separately.
• Leased vehicles: on a replacement or refund for a leased vehicle, the vehicle is returned to the manufacturer and your written lease is terminated by the lessor without penalty to you; the lessor transfers title to the manufacturer as necessary, whether you choose replacement or a refund.
• Fees and costs: a consumer who is successful in a civil action under the chapter recovers reasonable attorney's fees, expert witness fees, and court costs. The rule runs both ways: a defendant in a frivolous action brought by a consumer also recovers them.

The use allowance: a cap, not a formula

Virginia's "reasonable allowance for use" is subtracted under either a replacement or a refund, and it is measured only up to the date of the first notice of nonconformity given to the manufacturer, its agents, or its authorized dealer — not to the date of the buyback. The statute states no per-mile formula and no dollar rate. What it states is a ceiling: the allowance "shall not exceed one-half of the amount allowed per mile by the Internal Revenue Service, as provided by regulation, revenue procedure, or revenue ruling promulgated pursuant to § 162 of the Internal Revenue Code, for use of a personal vehicle for business purposes, plus an amount to account for any loss to the fair market value of the vehicle resulting from damage beyond normal wear and tear, unless the damage resulted from nonconformity to any warranty." Because the cap is stated by reference to the IRS rate rather than as a number, neither this guide nor our buyback worksheet computes a Virginia offset figure — be wary of any source that quotes you one as if it came from the statute.

Nothing in the chapter limits or impairs the rights and remedies available to you under any other law. Our buyback calculation guide explains how Virginia's cap-only approach compares with the states that use a mileage formula.

Used vehicles: the transferee route

The chapter has no separate used-vehicle lemon law, and there is no used-vehicle packet track. The Act's only used-vehicle route is built into its definition of "consumer," which includes — alongside the purchaser and lessee — any person to whom the vehicle is transferred for the same personal, family, or household purposes during the duration of any warranty applicable to the vehicle, and any other person entitled by the terms of the warranty to enforce its obligations.

In practice, that means a later owner can hold rights under the Act where the vehicle came to them during the life of an applicable warranty and the warranty's terms support enforcement — while the Act's own clocks, including the 18-month rights period running from original delivery, still frame the claim. If you bought used and are unsure whether the transferee definition reaches your purchase, that is a question for a licensed Virginia attorney before you rely on this page's process.

When to talk to a lawyer instead

Virginia's process is a private action, so the packet on this site is preparation — not a substitute for counsel where the case needs it. Use LemonLawPath to get organized, then talk to a licensed Virginia lemon law attorney — especially if:

• Your defect is a serious safety defect;
• The manufacturer denied your claim or disputes the defect;
• Your 18-month rights period is close to ending, or you are counting on the extension for a notified-but-unrepaired defect;
• The manufacturer failed to comply with an informal-procedure decision within 40 days (the Act lets a court triple that award);
• You are weighing whether to sue at all — remember that the fee rule cuts both ways, and a defendant in a frivolous action recovers fees and costs too;
• Anything about your case feels ambiguous.

The Virginia State Bar Lawyer Referral Service is one of the three complaint routes the Attorney General lists on its lemon law page.

Sources: Va. Code § 59.1-207.11 (definitions) · Va. Code § 59.1-207.13 · Va. Code § 59.1-207.16 · Virginia Attorney General — Lemon Law · Virginia DMV — Lemon Law. Attorney General Consumer Protection Section (as published by the DMV): 900 East Main Street, Richmond, VA 23219; hotline 1-800-552-9963 / (804) 786-2042.