The Lemon Law in Mississippi

Mississippi's Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act covers motor vehicles sold in Mississippi for use on public roads, including demonstrators; motorcycles, mopeds, off-road vehicles, golf carts, low-speed vehicles and certain motor home parts are excluded. A reasonable number of repair attempts is presumed if, within the warranty term or one year from delivery (whichever ends earlier), the same defect was repaired three or more times and still exists, or the vehicle was out of service a total of 15 or more working days. The consumer must give the manufacturer written notice, and the manufacturer then has 10 working days after delivery to its repair facility to fix the problem. If it cannot, the consumer may choose a comparable replacement or a refund of the full purchase price plus collateral charges, minus 20 cents per mile driven. A lawsuit generally must be filed within one year after the warranty expires or 18 months after delivery, whichever is earlier (or within 90 days after an informal dispute panel's final action). A consumer who prevails may be awarded costs and attorney fees.

1) Written notice: before using the lemon law, the consumer (or a representative) must give the manufacturer written notice of the need to repair the defect so it has an opportunity to fix it. The manufacturer must list its zone or regional service office addresses in the owner's manual. 2) Final repair attempt: the manufacturer must immediately tell the consumer of a reasonably accessible repair facility, and then has 10 working days after the vehicle is delivered there to fix it. If the consumer then reports that the vehicle still is not fixed, the manufacturer must say whether it has an informal dispute program and give the consumer a copy of the lemon law (unless it already gave notice of the program). 3) Arbitration: Mississippi has no state-run lemon law arbitration program. If the manufacturer has an informal dispute program that fully complies with federal rules (16 C.F.R. Part 703), the refund/replacement remedy does not apply to a consumer who has not first used it; but if the manufacturer failed to tell the consumer about the program, that requirement does not apply. 4) Deadline: a lawsuit must be started within one year after the express warranty expires or within 18 months after original delivery, whichever is earlier; if the consumer used the manufacturer's program, within 90 days after the panel's final action. A consumer who finally prevails may be awarded costs and attorney's fees.