California Lemon Law News + Info

What is a typical lemon law settlement?

If you’ve purchased a defective vehicle and want to pursue a lemon law claim, you might wonder what kind of settlement you can expect. Under the California Lemon Law, it is possible for a lemon owner to be awarded a cash and keep settlement, a vehicle repurchase or a lemon law buyback. Those are the typical forms of lemon law compensation.

There are a number of monetary amounts that go into a typical lemon law settlement. Should you win your case and opt for a lemon law buyback, you may receive the purchase price of your vehicle (minus a mileage offset), plus compensation for other expenses you incurred due to your vehicle defect. These expenses may also be included if you opt for a vehicle repurchase.

If the auto manufacturer’s failure to comply was considered “willful,” the manufacturer may be on the hook for a civil penalty that can go up to twice the amount of actual damages.

The outcomes we write about below do not determine any future outcomes for clients we may take on. That being said, here are a few examples of lemon law settlement amounts:

  • $64,000 award for a Ford Focus owner experiencing problems with the DPS6 transmission
  • $227,715 award for owners of a Ford Super Duty truck with Power Stroke engine problems

Settlement amounts vary widely, and the outcome of a lemon law claim will depend on the facts of your case. Settlement amounts can vary depending on the value of the vehicle, how early the defect appeared, the severity of the defect, the manufacturer’s response and the expenses that the owner had to incur due to the defect.

No lemon law firm can guarantee a settlement amount for your lemon. However, an experienced lemon law attorney can evaluate your case, advise you on your options and, should you go through with a lemon law claim, get the best possible settlement for your lemon.

Do not fight the auto manufacturer alone. Call our lemon law attorneys for a free consultation at 877-217-7676.


Lemon Law Help by Knight Law Group is an automotive lemon law firm that exclusively practices in California. If you are a California resident who purchased or leased a defective vehicle from a licensed dealership in California, we may be able to help you get rid of your potential lemon and recover significant cash compensation. Model year restrictions apply: 2017–Present vehicle models only.

However, we cannot help those who reside outside of California or purchased their vehicle outside of California unless they are active duty members of the Armed Forces, nor will we be able to refer those to a lemon law firm in their states.

To learn more about the California Lemon Law and your legal rights, visit our guides on the California Lemon Law and Used Car Lemon Law for more information.

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