HI Lemon Law Statutes

Hawaii Lemon Law Qualifications

The Hawaii "Lemon Law" helps consumers who buy or lease new motor vehicles and have repeated problems in getting their vehicles repaired under the manufacturer's warranty. The Lemon Law can help a consumer get a refund of the vehicle purchase price or a replacement vehicle from the manufacturer. The State Certified Arbitration Program (SCAP) provides the consumer with a self-help arbitration process to resolve a warranty dispute with a manufacturer.

The nonconformity you are alleging must substantially impair your car's use, safety, or value. "Substantially impairs" means to render the car unfit, unreliable, or unsafe for warranted or normal use or to significantly diminish the value of the car. You may be able to prove the car's use is impaired if one of it s major systems is defective or if the defect prevents it from being used in a normal fashion. A car's value may be decreased by conditions that would lead a buyer to pay much less than the market price for a comparable car that does not have the defect. You have the burden of proving to the arbitrator that your car's problem constitutes a substantial impairment of use, safety, or value of the vehicle. You may need the help of a technical expert (licensed mechanic) to prove your case.

Your vehicle may be covered if it is:

  • a new car (includes a motorcycle and demonstrator model). This also includes a car transferred to a second purchaser while the manufacturer's written warranty is still in effect.
  • used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes or
  • individually registered but used for business purposes and for personal, family, or household purposes or
  • owned or leased by a business which has purchased or leased no more than one car per year, used for household, individual, or personal use in addition to business use
  • purchased, leased, or initially registered in Hawaii.

Your vehicle is NOT covered if it is:

  • a moped or motor scooter
  • a vehicle over 10,000 pounds, gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)

How Many Repair Attempts Do I Have To Allow?

One or more of the following presumptions should apply to your car:

Three times presumption: you took your car in for repair for the same nonconformity at least three times within the Lemon Law Rights Period but the nonconformity continued to exist after the third repair.

One time "serious nonconformity" presumption: you took your car in for repair at least once for a serious nonconformity within the Lemon Law Rights Period but the nonconformity continued to exist afte r the first repair and is likely to cause death or serious bodily injury if the car is driven.

30 days presumption: you took your car in for repair for one or more nonconformities within the Lemon Law Rights Period and the total number of business days which the car was subject to examination or repair adds up to 30 or more days.

Hawaii Arbitration Requirements

(a) The department of commerce and consumer affairs shall establish and monitor a state certified arbitration program which is in substantial compliance with title 16, Code of Federal Regulations, part 703, as may be modified by this section, and shall adopt appropriate rules governing its operation.

(b) The director of commerce and consumer affairs may contract with an independent arbitration organization for annual term appointments to screen, hear, and resolve consumer complaints which have been initiated pursuant to section 481I-3. The following criteria shall be considered in evaluating the suitability of independent arbitration mechanisms: capability, objectivity, experience, nonaffiliation with manufacturers of or dealers in new motor vehicles, reliability, financial stability, and fee structure.

(c) If a consumer agrees to participate in and be bound by the operation and decision of the state certified arbitration program, then all parties shall also participate in, and be bound by, the operation and decision of the state certified arbitration program. The prevailing party of an arbitration decision made pursuant to this section may be allowed reasonable attorney's fees.

(d) The submission of any dispute to arbitration in which the consumer elects nonbinding arbitration shall not limit the right of any party to a subsequent trial de novo upon written demand made upon the opposing party to the arbitration within thirty calendar days after service of the arbitration award, and the award shall not be admissible as evidence at that trial. If the party demanding a trial de novo does not improve its position as a result of the trial by at least twenty-five per cent, then the court shall order that all of the reasonable costs of trial, consultation, and attorney's fees be paid for by the party making the demand. If neither party to a nonbinding arbitration demands a trial de novo within thirty days after service of the arbitration award, the arbitrator 's decision shall become binding on both parties upon the expiration of the thirty-day period.

(e) Funding of the state certified arbitration program shall be provided through an initial filing fee of $200 to be paid by the manufacturer and $50 to be paid by the consumer upon initiating a case for arbitration under this section. Every final decision in favor of the consumer issued by the independent arbitration mechanism shall include with in its relief the return of the $50 filing fee to the consumer. The director of commerce and cons umer affairs may establish a trust fund for the purpose of administering fees and costs associated with the state certified arbitration program.

(f) The failure of a manufacturer to timely comply with a binding decision of a state certified arbitration program shall be prima facie evidence of an unfair or deceptive act or practice under chapter 480 unless the manufacturer can prove that it attempted in "good faith" to comply, or that the failure was beyond the manufacturer's control, the result of a written agreement with the consumer, or based on an appeal filed under chapter 658.

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