Lemon law in Montana

At a glance

Who qualifies

Which vehicles

Passenger vehicles bought or leased for personal, family or household use and sold or registered in Montana, including the vehicle part of a motor home. Trucks rated at 15,000 pounds or more are excluded.

“"Consumer" means the purchaser or lessee, other than for purposes of resale or lease, of a passenger motor vehicle used for personal, family, or household purposes”

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Repair attempts

The car is presumed a lemon if the same defect has been repaired 4 or more times during the protection period and still exists.

“the same nonconformity has been subject to repair four or more times by the manufacturer or its agent or authorized dealer during the warranty period but the nonconformity continues to exist”

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Serious safety defects

The law does not say.

Days out of service

The car is presumed a lemon if it is out of service for the defect a total of 30 or more business days during the protection period, counted after the manufacturer, agent or dealer was notified.

“the motor vehicle is out of service because of nonconformity for a cumulative total of 30 or more business days during the warranty period after notification of the manufacturer, agent, or dealer”

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Used vehicles

Only partly. Someone the vehicle is transferred to during the manufacturer's express warranty is covered. Montana has no separate used car lemon law in this part.

“The term includes any person to whom the passenger motor vehicle is transferred for the same purposes during the duration of an express warranty applicable to the passenger motor vehicle”

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Leased vehicles

Yes. People who lease a passenger vehicle for personal, family or household use are covered.

“"Consumer" means the purchaser or lessee, other than for purposes of resale or lease”

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Deadlines

Protection period

2 years after delivery or the first 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.

“"Warranty period" means the period ending 2 years after the date of the original delivery to the consumer of a new motor vehicle or during the first 18,000 miles of operation, whichever is earlier.”

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Time limit to file

The law does not say.

Steps

1. Keep every repair order. Each visit to the dealer should give you a work order with the date, the mileage, what you reported and what they did. Ask for one every time, even when they find nothing. These papers are your case.
2. Check the dates. 2 years after delivery or the first 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.
3. Tell the manufacturer in writing. The law asks for written notice. See written notice below.
4. Use the dispute program if one is required. See arbitration below for whether you must go there before court.
5. Ask for a refund or a replacement, or file. Send the letter, then file before the time limit if the manufacturer will not buy the vehicle back or replace it.

Written notice

Yes. The owner must notify the manufacturer in writing and give it a chance to fix the defect, or the lemon presumption does not apply. The address for the notice must be in the warranty or owner's manual.

“The presumption provided herein may not apply against a manufacturer who has not received prior written notification from or on behalf of the consumer and has not had an opportunity to cure the alleged defect.”

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Arbitration

If the manufacturer has a dispute program certified by the state, the owner must use it first. If not, the Montana Department of Justice offers state arbitration for a $100 filing fee, with a decision within 60 days. An owner hurt by a program that breaks the rules can ask for state arbitration afresh.

“The department shall provide an independent forum and arbitration procedure for the settlement of disputes between consumers and manufacturers of motor vehicles that do not conform to all applicable warranties under the provisions of this part.”

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What you get

The manufacturer must replace the car with a new one of the same model and equal value, or take it back and refund the full purchase price plus collateral charges and incidental damages, minus a use deduction.

“the manufacturer may accept return of the new motor vehicle from the consumer upon refund to the consumer of the full purchase price, plus reasonable collateral charges and incidental damages, less a reasonable allowance for the consumer's use of the motor vehicle”

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Do it yourself

You can bring a lemon law claim without a lawyer. It takes letters, records and patience. The usual route:

1. Put your repair orders in date order and count the attempts and the days out of service.
2. Send the manufacturer the letter below, by a tracked method, to the address in your owner's manual or warranty booklet.
3. If it offers a final repair, let it try within the time the law gives it.
4. If it refuses or does not answer, file with the manufacturer's dispute program or the state program (Montana Department of Justice, Office of Consumer Protection), then court if you need to.
5. Do not sell or trade in the vehicle while the claim is open.

[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]

[Manufacturer name]
[Address from your owner's manual or warranty booklet]

Re: Lemon law claim, [year make model], VIN [VIN]

I bought (or leased) this vehicle on [date] from [dealer], in Montana. It has a defect that the dealer has not been able to fix: [describe it in one or two sentences].

It has been in for repair of this defect [number] times, on [dates], and out of service for a total of [number] days. Copies of the repair orders are enclosed.

Under New Motor Vehicle Warranties -- Remedies (Mont. Code Ann. §§ 61-4-501 to 61-4-533), I ask you to repurchase or replace the vehicle. Please reply in writing within 15 days. I can bring the vehicle in for a final repair attempt if the law gives you one.

[Your name]
[Phone and email]

What a buyback pays in Montana

The law asks for a reasonable allowance for your use without a fixed formula. Makers and courts often use the one several states write into law: the price times the miles driven before the first repair visit for the defect, divided by 120,000. For a $40,000 car with 6,000 miles at the first repair and 15,000 now, that is about $2,000.

Estimate your buyback

Questions people ask about Montana's lemon law

Find a Montana lemon law lawyer

This part has no general attorney fee rule for owners. A state arbitration decision can award expenses and costs to the winner, and a court may award attorney fees against a side that appeals an award without good cause.

“If the court determines that the appellant has acted without good cause in bringing an appeal of an award, the court, in its discretion, may grant to the respondent costs and reasonable attorney fees.”

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Because the manufacturer usually pays the lawyer's fees when you win, most lemon law lawyers charge you nothing up front. A lawyer also knows what the manufacturer offers in cases like yours and what the use deduction should be.

Send the free case check below and we find a lemon law firm that takes Montana cases like yours. The firm contacts you, and you decide whether to hire them.

Sources

• Mont. Code Ann. §§ 61-4-501 to 61-4-533, New Motor Vehicle Warranties -- Remedies
• Montana Department of Justice, Office of Consumer Protection
• Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2310, the federal warranty law that also lets owners recover attorney fees.

Each quote above is copied from the page it links to, checked 2026-10-26. If a page has moved, the citation still finds the law.