Arizona's lemon law and your rights as a buyer

What the lemon law protects, what it doesn't, and what rights you keep when you buy used. With the state's exact deadlines.

This guide summarizes the recorded scope for Arizona (A.R.S. Título 44, chapter 9, artículo 5 (§§ 44-1261 a 44-1267)). Eligibility, deadlines and notice requirements depend on the law and applicable coverage; read the state conditions below, including used-vehicle conditions where relevant.

What it covers

New cars bought or leased for personal use, with defects that breach the express warranty and substantially impair use and value. It also covers anyone the car is transferred to while the express warranty is still in force.

Rights period: Whichever ends first: the express warranty, or 2 years / 24,000 miles from original delivery (§ 44-1262). A lawsuit must be filed within 6 months after that period ends (§ 44-1265).

When it is presumed a lemon

Four or more unsuccessful repair attempts for the same defect, or 30 or more cumulative days out of service, within the period. It applies only if you first notified the manufacturer in writing and gave it a chance to fix it (§ 44-1264).

The presumption does not replace the other requirements. Check the official conditions and procedure for your situation.

The process

If the manufacturer has an informal dispute program that complies with 16 CFR 703, you must use it first. The Attorney General points new-car owners to BBB AUTO LINE (bbbautoline.org). Arizona has no state arbitration board: you then go to court, and if you win you are awarded costs and attorney fees (§ 44-1265). The Attorney General takes consumer complaints but does not decide lemon law cases.

Who handles it: Arizona Attorney General — Consumer Information and Complaints (la ley se hace valer en corte; no hay junta estatal de arbitraje).

Hotline: 602-542-5763 (Phoenix) · 520-628-6648 (Tucson).

What you get if you win

A new replacement car or a refund of the full price with collateral charges, minus a reasonable allowance for use before your first written report (§ 44-1263). The manufacturer also refunds the tax paid.

What it does not cover

Defects that do not substantially impair use and market value, and damage from abuse, neglect or unauthorized modifications (affirmative defenses, § 44-1263(B)); cars bought for resale for profit; vehicles with a declared gross weight over 10,000 lb; cars sold at public auction; and, in a motor home, the portion designed or used as a dwelling, office or commercial space (the article does cover the chassis and the self-propelled vehicle) — § 44-1261(B) and (C). Important: the statute excludes no motorcycles or mopeds by name. Its only definition is "motor vehicle" = "a self-propelled vehicle designated primarily for the transportation of persons or property over the public highways" (§ 44-1261(A)(2)). The text neither excludes nor expressly includes motorcycles; if your case is a motorcycle, talk to a lawyer before relying on the lemon law.

I bought used: what do I have left

More than it seems, even if it isn't the lemon law:

• The Buyers Guide (FTC). The guide states the dealer warranty. "As Is" describes that warranty; it does not by itself resolve other state-law rights or remaining manufacturer coverage. The federal rule applies in 48 states (Maine and Wisconsin have their own equivalent rules). If the sale is conducted in Spanish, the dealer must post a Spanish-language Buyers Guide.
• Remaining manufacturer warranty. Check the warranty contract and its duration and transfer conditions; vehicle age does not guarantee coverage.
• In Arizona: Arizona does protect used-car buyers: a used-car dealer cannot disclaim the implied warranty of merchantability for 15 days or 500 miles, whichever comes first, and the contract must say so in bold-faced ten point or larger type (§ 44-1267(B) and (G)). Before you can ask for a refund you must give the dealer two opportunities to repair; you pay half the cost of each of those first two repairs, capped at $25 per repair (§ 44-1267(E)), and your claim cannot exceed the price you paid (§ 44-1267(F)). Key point: the words "as is" do not cancel that warranty. Section 28-4412(B) itself says that section "does not negate any implied warranties otherwise applicable to the sale of a used motor vehicle, including the implied warranty of merchantability described in section 44-1267". But the warranty only binds a "used motor vehicle dealer" as § 44-1261(A)(4) defines one: a person or business that has sold or offered four or more used vehicles in the previous twelve months. That definition leaves out banks and financial institutions, insurance companies, a business selling to its own employee, a lessor selling the leased vehicle, and classic cars (§ 28-2483) and historic vehicles (§ 28-2484). From a private seller you have no such warranty. The Attorney General's page says the implied warranty "applies to every used car sale", which is broader than the statute's text; the statute controls. The seller must hold the title in their own name before offering the car (§ 44-1267(A)). The Consumer Fraud Act bars deception and hiding material facts (§ 44-1522). There is no cooling-off period or 3-day right to cancel.