NY Times on State Lemon Law Rankings

The New York Times ran a story on ranking every state’s lemon law:

All 50 states and the District of Columbia have “something that is arguably a lemon law,” but too many fail consumers, said Jason Levine, the executive director of the center, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization founded by Ralph Nader.

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The states differ on what constitutes a lemon. But in general, a lemon car or truck has a single, serious defect impairing its safety, use or value. A vehicle could also be a lemon if it had a series of problems and could not be used for a long period — often set at 30 days — because it was at the dealership.

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New Jersey claimed the top spot in part because it pushes the automaker to fix a problem quickly. The automaker gets only one chance to fix “a serious safety defect likely to cause death or serious bodily injury” and three chances to fix a less-severe problem. It also provides state-run arbitration, which the center contends can be “fairer to consumers than the manufacturer arbitration programs.” And a vehicle can’t be out of service for more than 20 days.

The study found that the lemon law in Texas had a “B” rating and a score of 58.  The study also found that the lemon law in Alabama had a “D” rating and a score of 26.