Georgia · Lemon law · Updated Oct 2026
Georgia Lemon Law (O.C.G.A. §§ 10-1-780 to 10-1-798) protects buyers of new vehicles that can't be fixed. Here is what counts as a lemon in Georgia, the notice you must send and what you can get back.
The manufacturer has had a reasonable number of attempts if, within the 2-year/24,000-mile period: a serious safety defect (life-threatening, affects your ability to control the car, or creates a fire or explosion risk) was repaired once and is not fixed; the same defect was repaired 3 times and is not fixed; or the car was out of service for repairs for a total of 30 days. For the safety-defect and 3-attempt routes, you must then give the manufacturer one final repair attempt after written notice. The 30-days route does not require a final repair attempt.
Period: 2 years from original delivery or the first 24,000 miles after delivery, whichever comes first. It is extended if the car is in the shop for repair on the day it would end, and by one day for each day repairs are unavailable due to a strike, disaster or declared emergency.
Required. After the repair attempts above, notify the manufacturer by statutory overnight delivery or certified mail, return receipt requested, at the address in the owner's manual, that it gets a final repair attempt. The manufacturer must name a reasonably accessible repair shop within 7 days, you must deliver the car within 14 days, and the manufacturer has 28 days from receiving your notice to fix it. If it fails (or after 30 days out of service), send a second written notice by the same methods saying whether you want a repurchase or a replacement; the manufacturer then has 20 days to act. The Attorney General's office offers a Final Repair Opportunity Notice (Form A) and a Vehicle Repurchase or Replacement Request (Form B), and asks you to send it a copy.
You must use the Lemon Law's remedies, including state arbitration, before you can bring a lawsuit under it. You file an arbitration application with the Attorney General within 1 year after your Lemon Law rights period ends. The state program is free to you (it is funded by the $3 fee paid when the car was bought or leased), and the Attorney General's office says no manufacturer currently has a Georgia-certified program, so you can go straight to state arbitration.
Georgia State-Operated Lemon Law Arbitration (Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division)
Your choice of repurchase (refund) or replacement. A refund covers the purchase price (cash price including any trade-in allowance) plus collateral charges (such as sales tax, title charges, dealer-installed options and earned finance charges) and incidental costs (such as towing, rental cars and repair charges), minus a reasonable offset for use: purchase price times the miles you drove before you first took the car in for that defect, divided by 120,000 (90,000 for a motor home). A replacement has no offset for use, and the manufacturer also pays your incidental costs and the costs of the replacement deal. Lessees who choose a refund get back all lease payments plus incidental costs, minus the offset.
Attorney fees: Sometimes. Arbitrators may award attorney's fees and expert witness fees to a consumer who wins, and if the manufacturer appeals and you win again, you recover your attorney's fees and court costs.
Deadline: File your state arbitration application with the Attorney General within 1 year after the Lemon Law rights period ends, or within 60 days after a certified manufacturer program's proceeding ends, whichever is later (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-786(a)). Either side may appeal the arbitration decision to superior court within 30 days (§ 10-1-787(a)).
Georgia's Lemon Law covers only new vehicles; vehicles titled as used, or previously titled to anyone other than a new-car dealer, are not covered. There is no separate used-car lemon law.
Most states require you to tell the manufacturer in writing and give it a last chance to fix the car. Required. After the repair attempts above, notify the manufacturer by statutory overnight delivery or certified mail, return receipt requested, at the address in the owner's manual, that it gets a final repair attempt. The manufacturer must name a reasonably accessible repair shop within 7 days, you must deliver the car within 14 days, and the manufacturer has 28 days from receiving your notice to fix it. If it fails (or after 30 days out of service), send a second written notice by the same methods saying whether you want a repurchase or a replacement; the manufacturer then has 20 days to act. The Attorney General's office offers a Final Repair Opportunity Notice (Form A) and a Vehicle Repurchase or Replacement Request (Form B), and asks you to send it a copy. Fill this in, copy the letter, sign it and send it by certified mail with return receipt. Keep a copy. Nothing you type here is sent to us; the letter is made in your browser.
Official page · Official lemon law guide
The manufacturer has had a reasonable number of attempts if, within the 2-year/24,000-mile period: a serious safety defect (life-threatening, affects your ability to control the car, or creates a fire or explosion risk) was repaired once and is not fixed; the same defect was repaired 3 times and is not fixed; or the car was out of service for repairs for a total of 30 days. For the safety-defect and 3-attempt routes, you must then give the manufacturer one final repair attempt after written notice. The 30-days route does not require a final repair attempt.
2 years from original delivery or the first 24,000 miles after delivery, whichever comes first. It is extended if the car is in the shop for repair on the day it would end, and by one day for each day repairs are unavailable due to a strike, disaster or declared emergency.
Required. After the repair attempts above, notify the manufacturer by statutory overnight delivery or certified mail, return receipt requested, at the address in the owner's manual, that it gets a final repair attempt. The manufacturer must name a reasonably accessible repair shop within 7 days, you must deliver the car within 14 days, and the manufacturer has 28 days from receiving your notice to fix it. If it fails (or after 30 days out of service), send a second written notice by the same methods saying whether you want a repurchase or a replacement; the manufacturer then has 20 days to act. The Attorney General's office offers a Final Repair Opportunity Notice (Form A) and a Vehicle Repurchase or Replacement Request (Form B), and asks you to send it a copy.
You must use the Lemon Law's remedies, including state arbitration, before you can bring a lawsuit under it. You file an arbitration application with the Attorney General within 1 year after your Lemon Law rights period ends. The state program is free to you (it is funded by the $3 fee paid when the car was bought or leased), and the Attorney General's office says no manufacturer currently has a Georgia-certified program, so you can go straight to state arbitration.
Your choice of repurchase (refund) or replacement. A refund covers the purchase price (cash price including any trade-in allowance) plus collateral charges (such as sales tax, title charges, dealer-installed options and earned finance charges) and incidental costs (such as towing, rental cars and repair charges), minus a reasonable offset for use: purchase price times the miles you drove before you first took the car in for that defect, divided by 120,000 (90,000 for a motor home). A replacement has no offset for use, and the manufacturer also pays your incidental costs and the costs of the replacement deal. Lessees who choose a refund get back all lease payments plus incidental costs, minus the offset.
File your state arbitration application with the Attorney General within 1 year after the Lemon Law rights period ends, or within 60 days after a certified manufacturer program's proceeding ends, whichever is later (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-786(a)). Either side may appeal the arbitration decision to superior court within 30 days (§ 10-1-787(a)).
Georgia's Lemon Law covers only new vehicles; vehicles titled as used, or previously titled to anyone other than a new-car dealer, are not covered. There is no separate used-car lemon law.
Car not covered, or the period has passed? Federal warranty law may still help, and small claims court can handle smaller repair bills.
Federal warranty lawLast checked: Oct 2026.