Virginia lemon law and warranty dispute resources
Status: Official page read; key points summarized. Last checked 2026-10-18.
What the official page says
Source: Lemon Law (Virginia Office of the Attorney General) (read 2026-10-18). This is a summary of that page, not the statute. Exact tests, exclusions and deadlines are on the official page and in the statute, and may have changed.
- The Attorney General's page says Virginia's lemon law is the Virginia Motor Vehicle Warranty Enforcement Act, with a 'lemon law' rights period ending 18 months after the date of the vehicle's original delivery to the consumer, enforceable by private action brought by the consumer and not by a governmental agency, and that under certain conditions it may apply to used vehicles.
- The Attorney General's page says BBB AUTO LINE, administered by BBB National Programs, handles lemon-law disputes against most manufacturers, and that the Attorney General's office handles lemon-law complaints against several manufacturers that do not participate in the BBB program in Virginia.
- The statute text (Va. Code 59.1-207.13) says a reasonable number of attempts and significant impairment are presumed if, during the lemon law rights period, the same nonconformity was repaired three or more times and continues to exist; a serious safety defect was repaired one or more times and continues to exist; or the vehicle was out of service due to repair for a cumulative total of 30 calendar days.
- The statute text says the manufacturer must replace the vehicle or refund the full contract price including collateral charges and incidental damages less a reasonable allowance for use, that the consumer has the unconditional right to choose a refund rather than a replacement, and that the manufacturer must disclose in the warranty or owner's manual that written notification of the nonconformity is required before the consumer may be eligible.
Numbers the page states
| Item | As stated on the official page |
|---|---|
| Lemon law rights period | Ends 18 months after original delivery |
| Repair attempts (presumption) | Three or more for the same nonconformity; one or more for a serious safety defect |
| Days out of service | 30 cumulative calendar days |
Counting rules differ (calendar days vs. business days, what counts as a repair attempt). Use the repair log tool to organize dates, then confirm how your state counts.
Not covered or not confirmed in this summary
- The Attorney General's page also lists a lawyer referral service. This site does not recommend lawyers, so it is not repeated here.
Other official pages used
Industry arbitration program summary (not a government source)
BBB National Programs, which runs the BBB AUTO LINE dispute program, publishes a state summary: BBB AUTO LINE: Virginia lemon law summary (link checked 2026-10-18). It is published by an industry-linked program, so treat it as a starting point and confirm against the state's own page or statute.
What to do first
- Keep every repair order and receipt. See the records checklist.
- Write down dates and mileage for each repair visit with the repair log tool (nothing is saved or sent).
- Read the federal warranty basics and arbitration pages.
- Consider speaking with a licensed attorney in your state about deadlines. Many have free consultations, but we do not recommend any specific one.