Colorado Lemon Law (42-10-101 - 42-10-107)

Colorado consumers with lemon vehicles may be protected under either the Colorado Lemon Law, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (the federal lemon law), or both. Remedies may include refund, replacement or cash compensation such as diminished value and/or incidental and consequential damages. Attorneys’ fees also available meaning qualified consumers may receive Colorado lemon law attorney representation at no cost.

And even if a vehicle doesn’t qualify under either of these lemon laws, the Truth In Lending Act and/or other related car buying laws may provide an avenue to recover cash damages that can help you trade out or pay for repairs.

Connect here for a free, no obligation Colorado Lemon Law case review. In most instances to qualify under a lemon law your vehicle must only have an unreasonable repair history under the warranty, including (but not limited to) 3-4 repair attempts for the same problem, 6 repairs total on the vehicle, or 30 days out of service by reason of repair.

• C.R.S.A. 42-10-101. Definitions
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-102. Repairs to Conform Vehicle to Warranty
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-103. Failure to Conform Vehicle to Warranty–Replacement or Return of Vehicle
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-104. Affirmative Defenses
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-105. Limitations on Other Rights and Remedies
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-106. Applicability of Federal Procedures
• C.R.S.A. 42-10-107. Statute of Limitations

As used in this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. “Consumer” means the purchaser, other than for purposes of resale, of a motor vehicle normally used for personal, family, or household purposes, any person to whom such motor vehicle is transferred for the same purposes during the duration of a manufacturer’s express warranty for such motor vehicle, and any other person entitled by the terms of such warranty to enforce the obligations of the warranty.
2. “Motor vehicle” means a self-propelled private passenger vehicle, including pickup trucks and vans, designed primarily for travel on the public highways and used to carry not more than ten persons, which is sold to a consumer in this state; except that the term does not include motor homes as defined in section 42-1-102(57) or vehicles designed to travel on three or fewer wheels in contact with the ground.
3. “Warranty” means the written warranty, so labeled, of the manufacturer of a new motor vehicle, including any terms or conditions precedent to the enforcement of obligations under that warranty.

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If a motor vehicle does not conform to a warranty and the consumer reports the nonconformity to the manufacturer, its agent, or its authorized dealer during the term of such warranty or during a period of one year following the date of the original delivery of the motor vehicle to a consumer, whichever is the earlier date, the manufacturer, its agent, or its authorized dealer shall make such repairs as are necessary to conform the vehicle to such warranty, notwithstanding the fact that such repairs are made after the expiration of such term or such one-year period.

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1. If the manufacturer, the manufacturer's agent, or the manufacturer's authorized dealer is unable to conform the motor vehicle to the warranty by repairing or correcting the defect or condition that substantially impairs the use and market value of or safety of the motor vehicle after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer shall, at the manufacturer's option, replace the motor vehicle with a comparable motor vehicle or accept return of the motor vehicle from the consumer and refund to the consumer the full purchase price, including the sales tax, license fees, and registration fees and any similar governmental charges, less a reasonable allowance for the consumer's use of the motor vehicle. Refunds shall be made to the consumer and lienholder, if any, as their interests may appear.
2. 1. A reasonable number of attempts is presumed to have been undertaken to conform a motor vehicle to the warranty if:
      1. The same nonconformity has been subject to repair three or more times by the manufacturer, the manufacturer's agent, or the manufacturer's authorized dealer within the first twenty-four thousand miles or within two years following the date of the original delivery of the motor vehicle to the consumer, whichever occurs earlier, but the nonconformity continues to exist;
      2. The motor vehicle is out of service by reason of repair for a cumulative total of twenty-four or more business days of the repairer during the mileage specified in subsection (2)(a)(I) of this section or during the time period specified in subsection (2)(a)(I) of this section, whichever occurs earlier; or
      3. A safety-based nonconformity has been subject to two or more repair attempts by the manufacturer, the manufacturer's agent, or the manufacturer's authorized dealer within the first twenty-four thousand miles of operation or within two years following the date of the original delivery of the motor vehicle to the consumer, whichever occurs earlier, but the safety-based nonconformity continues to exist.
   2. For the purposes of this subsection (2), the term of a warranty, the two-year period, and the twenty-four-day period are extended by any period of time during which repair services are not available to the consumer because of war, invasion, strike, or fire, flood, or other natural disaster.
   3. A presumption under subsection (2)(a) of this section does not apply against a manufacturer unless the manufacturer has received prior written notification by certified mail from or on behalf of the consumer stating that one or more attempts to repair the same nonconformity have been made pursuant to section 42-10-102 and the alleged nonconformity remains, and the manufacturer has been provided ten business days to cure the alleged defect after receipt of the notification. the defect counts as one nonconformity subject to repair under subsections (2)(a)(I) and (2)(a)(III) of this section.
   4. Every authorized motor vehicle dealer shall include a form, containing the manufacturer's name and business address, with each motor vehicle owner's manual on which the consumer may give written notification of any defect, as such notification is required by paragraph (c) of this subsection (2), and the form shall clearly and conspicuously disclose that written notification by certified mail of the nonconformity is required, in order for the consumer to obtain remedies under this article.
3. The court shall award reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing side in any action brought to enforce the provisions of this article.
4. A reasonable allowance for use, as described in subsection (1) of this section, must be obtained by multiplying the total contract price or lessee cost of the motor vehicle by a fraction having as its denominator one hundred thousand and having as the fraction's numerator the sum of:
   1. The number of miles that the motor vehicle traveled before the consumer's first presentation of the vehicle to the manufacturer, the manufacturer's agent, or the manufacturer's dealer or lessor for repair of the nonconformity; and
   2. The number of miles that the motor vehicle traveled during any subsequent period when the motor vehicle was not out of service by reason of repair.

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1. It is an affirmative defense to any claim under this article 10 that:
   1. An alleged nonconformity does not substantially impair the safety of or use and market value of a motor vehicle, as applicable; or
   2. A nonconformity is the result of abuse, neglect, or unauthorized modifications or alterations of the motor vehicle by a consumer.

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Nothing in this article shall in any way limit the rights or remedies which are otherwise available to a consumer under any other state law or any federal law. Nothing in this article shall affect the other rights and duties between the consumer and a seller, lessor, or lienholder of a motor vehicle or the rights between any of them. Nothing in this article shall be construed as imposing a liability on any authorized dealer with respect to a manufacturer or creating a cause of action by a manufacturer against its authorized dealer; except that failure by an authorized dealer to properly prepare a motor vehicle for sale, to properly install options on a motor vehicle, or to properly make repairs on a motor vehicle, when such preparation, installation, or repairs would have prevented or cured a nonconformity, shall be actionable by the manufacturer.

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If a manufacturer has established or participates in an informal dispute settlement procedure which substantially complies with the provisions of part 703 of title 16 of the code of federal regulations, as from time to time amended, the provisions of section 42-10-103(1) concerning refunds or replacement shall not apply to any consumer who has not first resorted to such procedure.

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Any action brought to enforce this article 10 must be commenced within thirty months following the date of the original delivery of a motor vehicle to a consumer; except that the statute of limitations is tolled during the period the consumer has submitted to arbitration under section 42-10-106 or while the motor vehicle is not available for use by reason of repair.

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