Georgia Lemon Law Refund Calculator

How the Georgia buyback is calculated

Under the Georgia Lemon Law.

• If a manufacturer cannot correct a nonconformity during its final repair attempt, or the vehicle was out of service 30 days during the rights period, the manufacturer must, at your option, repurchase or replace the vehicle. You tell it your choice in writing, and it has 20 days from receiving your notice.
• A repurchase pays the purchase price plus all collateral charges and incidental costs, less a reasonable offset for use. The purchase price is the cash price in the sales agreement, including any trade-in allowance. Collateral charges include factory or dealer installed options, sales tax and title charges, and earned finance charges. Incidental costs include payments to dealers for attempted repairs, towing and alternative transportation.
• The offset is the purchase price multiplied by the miles directly attributable to your use as of the date you first delivered the vehicle for repair of a nonconformity, divided by 120,000. For a motor home the divisor is 90,000. Options are collateral charges: the calculator refunds them but does not multiply them. Miles on the vehicle at delivery are not your miles.
• For example, on a $35,000 purchase price with 12,000 miles attributable to you when you first delivered the vehicle for repair, the offset is $35,000 x 12,000 / 120,000 = $3,500.
• The statute gives no multiplier or penalty to the consumer. A manufacturer that does not appeal an arbitration decision for you and does not comply within 40 days can face a civil penalty of up to $1,000 a day, but that is ordered by the Attorney General.

Georgia lemon law: frequently asked questions

How is the Georgia lemon law offset calculated?

Georgia defines a "reasonable offset for use" as the purchase price times the miles directly attributable to your use as of the date you first delivered the vehicle to the manufacturer, its authorized agent or the dealer for repair of a nonconformity, divided by 120,000 (90,000 for a motor home). The offset is deducted from a lessee’s repurchase payment as well. The calculator uses the odometer reading at your first repair, less the odometer reading at delivery and any other miles you enter that are not yours.

What is included in a Georgia repurchase?

The purchase price plus all collateral charges and incidental costs, less the offset. Collateral charges include options, sales tax and title charges, and earned finance charges. Incidental costs include payments to dealers for attempted repairs, towing charges and the cost of alternative transportation. The payment goes to you and the lienholder of record, as your interests appear.

Can I choose a replacement instead of a refund?

Yes. In Georgia the option is yours: repurchase or replace. A replacement vehicle must be a new vehicle identical or at least equivalent to the one replaced. If you are not a lessee, the manufacturer also pays all incidental costs you incurred plus all charges you will incur as a result of the replacement transaction.

How does the refund work if I lease?

The manufacturer pays you all payments made under the lease, including the lessee cost, plus incidental costs, less the reasonable offset for use. It pays the lessor 110 percent of the adjusted capitalized cost. For a lease, the "purchase price" in the offset formula is the agreed upon value of the vehicle shown in the lease; the calculator takes the offset on that value when you enter it (if you leave it blank it falls back to the amounts you paid, which understates it). The lessor’s 110 percent of the adjusted capitalized cost is not part of the estimate.

Can I recover attorney fees or extra damages in Georgia?

The arbitrators may award attorney’s fees and technical or expert witness fees to a consumer who prevails, and if the manufacturer appeals and you prevail, your recovery includes your charges during the appeal, including attorney’s fees and court costs. The act gives no damages multiplier, and a private action under the Fair Business Practices Act is not available except for the resale-disclosure rule.