Arizona Lemon Law Buyback Calculator

How the Arizona buyback is calculated

Under the Arizona Lemon Law.

• Your refund starts from the full purchase price and then subtracts a "reasonable allowance for the consumer's use." The Arizona statute fixes no mileage formula at all, so we estimate the deduction using a common practice convention: the miles you drove before your first written report of the defect, divided by a roughly 100,000-mile figure, times the price.
• Because the statute only says "reasonable," that mileage figure is negotiable. Pushing the divisor higher (for example to 120,000 miles) shrinks the deduction and grows your refund, which is the single biggest lever in an Arizona buyback. Treat our number as a starting estimate, not a fixed result.
• The Arizona statute counts only the miles you drove before your first written defect report, and it leaves out the miles racked up while the car sat at the shop for repairs. Reporting a defect in writing early generally protects more of your refund.
• The refund base includes the purchase price plus the sales and use tax, which is the one collateral charge the statute names. Other charges (registration, title, documentation, finance interest, and factory or dealer options) are commonly folded in as "collateral charges" by practice rather than by an itemized statutory list.
• There is no civil penalty or damages multiplier in the Arizona Lemon Law. The remedy is a make-whole buyback, not multiplied damages. Attorney fees are mandatory and paid by the manufacturer when you prevail, so they do not reduce your recovery and the calculator never nets them out.

Arizona lemon law: frequently asked questions

How much can I recover under the Arizona Lemon Law?

Your estimated recovery is the full purchase price plus sales tax (and, by practice, other collateral charges) minus a reasonable allowance for the miles you put on the car before you first reported the defect. On a $35,000 vehicle with low miles, that can be most of the price back; the more miles before your first written report, the larger the deduction. The calculator gives an estimate, not a guaranteed figure.

Why is the mileage deduction negotiable in Arizona?

Arizona's statute only requires a "reasonable allowance for use" and never sets a mileage formula or a useful-life number. That means the divisor everyone plugs in (commonly around 100,000 miles) is a practice convention, not the law. Because "reasonable" is the only standard, you can argue for a larger divisor like 120,000, which lowers the deduction and raises your refund. Our estimate uses a common convention so you have a realistic starting point.

Do I have to pay the lawyer out of pocket?

Often no. The Arizona Lemon Law says the court "shall award" reasonable costs and attorney fees to a consumer who prevails, so those fees are mandatory and paid by the manufacturer, not deducted from your recovery. Many Arizona consumers are also represented under a parallel federal Magnuson-Moss posture that shifts fees the same way. Confirm the specifics with any attorney before you sign.

How long does an Arizona lemon law case take?

It varies by case. Most Arizona claims settle rather than go to trial, and manufacturer-paid attorney fees tend to encourage settlement once the repair history is reviewed. Contested cases with a disputed defect or high mileage take longer. The calculator estimates the money, not the schedule.

What counts as a lemon in Arizona?

Generally, a new vehicle with a defect that substantially impairs its use and value and that the manufacturer cannot fix after a reasonable number of tries. Arizona presumes a reasonable number of attempts if, within the shorter of the warranty term or 2 years / 24,000 miles, the same defect was repaired four or more times and still exists, or the vehicle was out of service for repair for a cumulative 30 or more days. Whether your situation qualifies is fact-specific, so treat this as general information, not legal advice.