California warranty law gives buyers of consumer products some of the strongest protections in the country through the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, codified starting at California Civil Code Section 1790.1California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1790 Every retail sale of consumer goods automatically includes an implied warranty that the product will work as expected. When something goes wrong under an express warranty, the manufacturer has 30 days to fix it. If repairs fail after a reasonable number of attempts, you can demand a replacement or a full refund, and a court can award up to twice your actual damages plus attorney’s fees if the manufacturer willfully refused to comply.
What Products Are Covered
The Act applies to “consumer goods,” meaning products bought or used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. Appliances, electronics, furniture, and clothing all qualify. Goods bought primarily for commercial or business use generally fall outside the Act, with a narrow exception for small businesses that have five or fewer vehicles registered in California.2California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1793.22
Some products are only partially covered or not covered at all. Motorcycles and off-highway vehicles that are not registered under the Vehicle Code are excluded. Motor homes are split down the middle: the chassis and drivetrain fall under the Act, but the living-quarters portion does not.
The Warranties You Get Automatically
Every retail sale of consumer goods in California includes an implied warranty of merchantability from both the manufacturer and the retailer.3California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1792 You do not have to ask for it or sign anything. This warranty requires that the product pass without objection in the trade, be fit for its ordinary purposes, be adequately packaged and labeled, and match any promises on the container or label.4Justia Law. California Code CIV – 1791 Through 1791.3 In plain terms, the product has to work the way a reasonable buyer would expect.
Express warranties are separate and voluntary. These are the specific written promises a manufacturer makes about performance, features, or longevity. If the box says the blender motor will last five years, that’s an express warranty, and the Act gives you a remedy if the product falls short.
A seller or manufacturer cannot ask you to waive these protections. Any waiver by the buyer is void as contrary to public policy.5California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1790.1 A retailer cannot bury a warranty disclaimer in fine print and call it a day.
What Manufacturers Must Do When Something Breaks
A manufacturer selling consumer goods with an express warranty in California must maintain or authorize service and repair facilities reasonably close to where its products are sold.6California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1793.2 It must also supply service literature and replacement parts so those facilities can actually finish repairs during the warranty period.
Once you bring a product in for warranty repair, the work must be completed within 30 days unless you agree in writing to a longer time. The only exception is delay caused by circumstances genuinely beyond the manufacturer’s control, and even then the repaired product must be returned as soon as the delay ends. This 30-day clock applies to all consumer goods covered by an express warranty, not just vehicles.
When You Can Demand a Refund or Replacement
If the manufacturer or its authorized facility cannot fix the product after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer must either replace it or refund the purchase price. The choice belongs to you, not the manufacturer. This is the core protection that separates Song-Beverly from weaker warranty laws. You are not stuck in an endless repair loop.
What counts as a “reasonable number of attempts” depends on the circumstances, but for new motor vehicles the Act creates a specific legal presumption. If any of the following happens within the first 18 months of ownership or 18,000 miles on the odometer, whichever comes first, the law presumes the manufacturer has had enough chances:
- The same problem has been brought in for repair at least four times without being fixed, and you notified the manufacturer directly at least once.
- A defect that could cause death or serious injury if you drive the vehicle has been the subject of at least two repair attempts, and you notified the manufacturer directly at least once.
- The vehicle has spent a cumulative total of more than 30 calendar days in the shop for warranty repairs, whether for the same problem or different ones.7CA.gov. California’s Lemon Law Q&A
The presumption is rebuttable, meaning the manufacturer can try to prove the repairs were actually reasonable despite triggering one of these thresholds. In practice, hitting these numbers puts real pressure on manufacturers to settle. The presumption applies in civil court, small claims court, and arbitration alike.
What a Vehicle Refund Includes
Vehicle restitution under Song-Beverly covers more than the sticker price. The manufacturer must reimburse the actual price paid, including transportation charges and manufacturer-installed options, plus collateral charges like sales tax, license fees, and registration fees, plus incidental damages such as towing and rental car costs you actually incurred.8California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1793.2 Aftermarket accessories installed by a dealer or by you are not included.
The Mileage Offset
The refund is reduced by an amount reflecting how much you drove the vehicle before you first reported the problem. Multiply the purchase price by the number of miles on the odometer when you first brought the defect in, then divide by 120,000. On a $40,000 car with 6,000 miles at the first repair attempt, the offset is $40,000 × 6,000 ÷ 120,000 = $2,000. The earlier you report the problem, the smaller the deduction.
Used Goods
Buyers of used consumer goods still get an implied warranty of merchantability, but the duration is shorter: no less than 30 days and no more than three months from the date of sale.9Justia. CACI No. 3212 – Duration of Implied Warranty The product still has to work as expected for at least that period, even without any written warranty.
For used vehicles, California law limits the ability of dealers to sell “as-is.” Even where the federal Used Car Rule allows a Buyers Guide disclosing an as-is sale, state law generally overrides that option, and the implied warranty protections cannot be disclaimed at the point of sale.10eCFR. Part 455 Used Motor Vehicle Trade Regulation Rule
Service Contracts
Service contracts, often sold as “extended warranties,” are regulated separately from manufacturer warranties. A service contract must obligate the provider to supply all services and functional parts needed to keep the product working properly for the contract’s duration, with no additional charges beyond what the contract specifies.11California.Public Law. California Code CIV – 1794.4
The contract itself must identify the covered product, state when coverage begins and how long it lasts, and provide cancellation details. If the contract renews month-to-month, the seller must disclose that it continues until canceled, offer any fixed-term alternatives, and give you multiple easy ways to cancel, including online cancellation if you signed up online.
Double Damages for Willful Violations
When a manufacturer knowingly ignores its warranty obligations, the financial exposure jumps. On a showing that the failure to comply was willful, the court may award a civil penalty of up to two times your actual damages on top of compensatory damages.12California Legislative Information. California Code CIV – 1794 On a $40,000 vehicle refund, that penalty alone could reach $80,000. The multiplier is what gives the Act real enforcement power.
Limits apply. The two-times penalty is not available in class actions and cannot be based solely on breach of the implied warranty, as opposed to an express warranty or the replacement/refund obligation. For claims resting on the lemon law presumption, a separate penalty provision has its own procedural requirement: you must send written notice requesting compliance, and if the manufacturer resolves the matter within 30 days of that notice, no penalty applies. If the manufacturer participates in a qualified third-party arbitration program that substantially complies with the Act, the penalty is also unavailable for those claims.
How to Enforce Your Rights
You have several ways to pursue a warranty claim, and the right choice depends on the dollar amount and complexity of your dispute.
State-Certified Arbitration
For vehicle claims, California’s Department of Consumer Affairs oversees state-certified arbitration programs run by manufacturers. If your vehicle’s manufacturer participates in one, you can file at no cost. Decisions typically come within 40 days, and if you accept the arbitrator’s decision, the manufacturer must comply within 30 days.13CA.gov. State-Certified Arbitration Information Rejecting the decision preserves your right to go to court.
Small Claims and Superior Court
If your claim is worth $12,500 or less, small claims court is faster and you don’t need a lawyer.14California Courts. Deciding Between Small Claims and Limited Civil Larger claims go to California Superior Court. Either way, if you win, the court must award reasonable attorney’s fees and costs based on actual time expended. That fee-shifting provision is why many lemon law attorneys take cases on contingency; their fees come from the manufacturer, not from you.
What You Can Recover
Beyond a replacement or refund, you can recover the cost of repairs you paid for out of pocket, consequential damages from the breach, and incidental expenses like towing and rental cars. If you rightfully rejected the goods or revoked acceptance, the California Commercial Code’s standard buyer remedies also apply, including the right to buy substitute goods and recover the price difference.
How Long You Have to Sue
Under the Uniform Commercial Code, which California has adopted, you generally have four years from the date of the breach to file a breach-of-warranty lawsuit.15Legal Information Institute. U.C.C. 2-725 – Statute of Limitations in Contracts for Sale For most warranty claims, the clock starts when the product is delivered to you, not when you discover the defect. The exception is a warranty that explicitly promises future performance; then the clock starts when the breach is or should have been discovered. Waiting too long is one of the most common and preventable mistakes in warranty disputes.
The Federal Layer: Magnuson-Moss
Song-Beverly does not stand alone. The federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act adds protection on top. At its core, the federal act says a manufacturer offering a written warranty on a consumer product cannot disclaim the implied warranties created by state law.16Federal Trade Commission. Businessperson’s Guide to Federal Warranty Law A “limited” written warranty can restrict the duration of implied warranties to match its own term; a “full” warranty cannot limit implied-warranty duration at all.
Magnuson-Moss also provides its own path to recover attorney’s fees and court costs on a breach. California consumers filing Song-Beverly claims often assert parallel Magnuson-Moss claims, giving them multiple legal theories in one lawsuit. The federal act allows manufacturers to require participation in an informal dispute resolution process before suing if the program meets FTC standards, but a decision from that process is only admissible evidence in a later lawsuit; it does not bar you from going to court.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 2310 – Remedies in Consumer Disputes