Florida lemon law eligibility checker.

The rule in four numbers

Chapter 681 of the Florida Statutes, titled Motor Vehicle Sales Warranties, is the state’s lemon law. Four figures drive most cases. Section 681.102 defines the Lemon Law rights period as the period ending 24 months after the date of original delivery of a motor vehicle to a consumer. Section 681.104 sets two presumptions that a reasonable number of repair attempts has been made, and both apply only during that rights period. Section 681.109 sets the deadline to ask for state arbitration: no later than 60 days after the rights period ends.

The first presumption: three repairs plus a final attempt

Under 681.104(3)(a), a reasonable number of attempts is presumed if the same problem has been subject to repair at least three times by the manufacturer or its authorized service agent, plus a final attempt by the manufacturer if one is undertaken as the statute provides, and the problem still exists. The final-attempt step is in 681.104(1)(a): after three attempts the consumer gives the manufacturer written notice by registered or express mail. The manufacturer then has 10 days from receipt to respond and offer the vehicle for repair at a reasonably accessible facility, and 10 days (45 for a recreational vehicle) from delivery to the facility to fix it. If the manufacturer fails to respond or to repair within those times, the requirement that it get a final attempt does not apply. That is why the form has a third choice for a notice that went unanswered.

The second presumption: days out of service

Under 681.104(3)(b), the presumption also arises if the vehicle has been out of service for repair of one or more problems for a cumulative total of 30 or more days, or 60 or more for a recreational vehicle, excluding routine maintenance downtime from the owner’s manual. The manufacturer or its agent must have had at least one opportunity to inspect or repair after getting the written notice described in 681.104(1)(b), which applies once the vehicle has been out of service for 15 or more days. The 30-day and 60-day periods can be extended by any time repairs are unavailable because of war, invasion, strike, fire, flood or natural disaster.

What the manufacturer owes if you qualify

Section 681.104(2) says that if the problem cannot be fixed after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer must within 40 days repurchase the vehicle and refund the full purchase price less a reasonable offset for use, or replace it with one acceptable to the consumer. The refund or replacement includes reasonably incurred collateral and incidental charges, and the consumer has an unconditional right to choose a refund over a replacement. For a lease, the lessee receives the lessee cost and the lessor the lease price less that cost.

Defenses the manufacturer can raise

Section 681.104(4) lists affirmative defenses: the problem does not substantially impair the use, value or safety of the vehicle; it results from accident, abuse, neglect or unauthorized modification by someone other than the manufacturer or its agent; or the claim was not filed in good faith. A presumption therefore shifts the question, it does not decide it.

Arbitration before suing

Under 681.1095, before filing a civil action on a matter covered by 681.104, the consumer must first submit the dispute to the Department of Legal Affairs, and to the Florida New Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board if the dispute is found eligible. Under 681.109, a request must be made no later than 60 days after the rights period ends, or within 30 days after the final action of a manufacturer’s certified procedure, whichever is later. The board must hear the dispute within 40 days and decide within 60 days of approval of the request.

A worked example (hypothetical)

A car is delivered on March 1, 2026. The rights period ends March 1, 2028, and the arbitration request deadline is 60 days later, April 30, 2028. The owner has had the same transmission fault repaired three times, sends written notice by registered mail, and the manufacturer neither responds nor repairs within the statutory time. On those answers the repair-attempt presumption is met. If the car instead spent 18 days in the shop in total, no days-based presumption exists, and the owner would keep records of each visit. No real person is described.

What this page does not cover

This tool screens against the statute sections listed under Sources, as published in the 2025 Florida Statutes. It does not apply the definition of a covered motor vehicle in full, test whether you are a “consumer” (the definition turns on primary personal, family or household use), assess whether a problem is a substantial impairment, calculate a refund or offset, or cover used vehicles. The statutes can be amended, so check the current text. It runs in your browser and sends nothing anywhere.

Sources

Read November 2, 2026 on the Florida Senate’s copy of the 2025 Florida Statutes.

• Fla. Stat. 681.102 Definitions: the 24-month Lemon Law rights period and the consumer definition.
• Fla. Stat. 681.104 Nonconformity of motor vehicles: written notice, the 10-day and 45-day periods, the 15-day notice, both presumptions, the 40-day remedy and the defenses.
• Fla. Stat. 681.109 Dispute eligibility: the 60-day and 30-day arbitration request deadlines.
• Fla. Stat. 681.1095 Arbitration Board: submission to the department before suing and the 40-day and 60-day hearing and decision times.