Wisconsin Lemon Law Refund Calculator

How the Wisconsin buyback is calculated

Under the Wisconsin Lemon Law.

• Under Wis. Stat. § 218.0171(2)(b)2., once you give the manufacturer the WisDOT claim form, a purchaser, a later owner who got the vehicle before an express warranty expired, or a person who may enforce the warranty can direct the manufacturer to replace the vehicle with a comparable new one (plus collateral costs) or to refund the purchase price.
• A refund is the full purchase price plus any sales tax, finance charge, amount paid at the point of sale and collateral costs, less a reasonable allowance for use, paid to you and to any holder of a perfected security interest as their interests appear. Collateral costs are expenses you incurred in connection with repairing the problem, including the cost of alternative transportation. The calculator also counts registration, title and documentation fees as paid at the point of sale; that is a reading, because the statute does not list them.
• The allowance for use may not exceed the full purchase price multiplied by miles driven before you first reported the problem to the dealer, divided by 100,000. For a motorcycle the divisor is 20,000. Only miles before your first report count, not the miles on the odometer today. The statute sets that ceiling and calls the allowance "reasonable", so the manufacturer may deduct less; the high figure deducts none.
• On a $35,000 vehicle with 10,000 miles before the first report, the most that can be deducted is $35,000 x 10,000 / 100,000 = $3,500. The calculator deducts that whole ceiling at its low and expected figures, so its low figure is the lowest refund the cap permits.
• A lessee has a separate lease refund (§ 218.0171(2)(b)3.): the amount paid under the lease plus any sales tax and collateral costs, less an allowance capped at the total the lease obligates the lessee to pay times miles before the first report, divided by 100,000, with no motorcycle variant. The calculator applies the 100,000 fraction to the total you enter (if you leave it blank it falls back to the amounts you paid, which understates the cap), with no motorcycle variant. The lessor’s refund of the current value of the lease is not part of the estimate.
• If the manufacturer agrees to replace the vehicle but a comparable new one does not exist or cannot be delivered in time, it may provide the refund instead. Wisconsin's lemon law does not double or triple damages: in court, a winning consumer recovers the amount of any pecuniary loss plus costs, disbursements and reasonable attorney fees.

Wisconsin lemon law: frequently asked questions

How much can I recover under the Wisconsin lemon law?

A refund is the full purchase price plus sales tax, finance charge, the amount you paid at the point of sale and collateral costs such as alternative transportation, less a reasonable allowance for use. The allowance cannot be more than the purchase price multiplied by the miles you drove before first reporting the problem to the dealer and divided by 100,000. Run your numbers through our calculator for a personalized estimate.

How is the allowance for use calculated?

The statute says it "may not exceed" the full purchase price multiplied by a fraction. The bottom of the fraction is 100,000 (20,000 for a motorcycle) and the top is the number of miles the vehicle was driven before you first reported the problem to the dealer. The calculator deducts that whole amount at its low and expected figures and none at its high figure. For a lease, the statute applies a 100,000 fraction (no motorcycle variant) to the total amount the lease obligates you to pay; the calculator applies it to the total you enter, or to the amounts you paid if you leave it blank, which understates it.

Do I pay a lawyer out of my recovery?

The statute says a court shall award a prevailing consumer the amount of any pecuniary loss together with costs, disbursements and reasonable attorney fees. The fees are awarded together with the loss, though a court may reduce damages, fees or costs if a party failed to reasonably cooperate.

Does Wisconsin double or triple my damages?

Not under the lemon law, section 218.0171. A different section, 218.0172, about motor vehicle adjustment programs, awards twice the amount of any pecuniary loss, but that is not the lemon-law refund.

Do I get the sales tax back?

In a refund, yes: the manufacturer's refund includes sales tax, and the Department of Revenue refunds that tax to the manufacturer on its written request. A replacement comes with a refund of collateral costs only. If you received a refund of the purchase price but not the corresponding sales tax, you may ask the Department of Revenue for it, if you bought the vehicle after November 2, 1983, the department has not already refunded the manufacturer for the same vehicle, and you give it a written request with evidence of the refund and the tax paid.

Is there an allowance for use if the manufacturer swaps my replacement for a refund?

The text of the replacement provisions, section 218.0171(2)(cg)1. and 2., states a refund of the full purchase price plus sales tax, finance charge, the amount paid at the point of sale and collateral costs, and states no allowance for use there. WisDOT's guide says there is no reasonable allowance deduction for use in that case. The calculator models the refund you elect under (2)(b)2.b., which has the allowance. Ask an attorney how this applies to your facts.

What about my trade-in?

When the manufacturer pays a refund it must give you a written statement of the trade-in amount previously applied toward the sales price and the date it provided the refund (§ 218.0171(2)(cq)). The provisions we hold do not say how the trade-in changes the refund; ask an attorney.