Fort Lauderdale Lemon Law

All Florida lemon law arbitration cases are filed with the Florida New Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board, administered statewide by the Office of the Attorney General. South Florida hearings are typically conducted by a regional panel in Broward or Miami-Dade County, so you do not have to travel to Tallahassee. Before filing, you must send the manufacturer written notice by certified mail of a final repair attempt. If your manufacturer participates in a state-certified informal dispute settlement program such as BBB AUTO LINE, you must use that program first. Civil suits in Broward County Circuit Court are generally limited to appeals from arbitration or claims outside the lemon law statute.

Manufacturers sometimes try to deny coverage by labeling water-intrusion damage as environmental rather than a manufacturing defect, but Florida's lemon law focuses on whether the nonconformity substantially impairs use, value, or safety and arose within the 24-month rights period. If the vehicle was driven through ordinary street flooding within the manufacturer's wading-depth specifications and a control module subsequently fails, it can still qualify. The key is documenting the symptom history with the dealer and showing repeat repair attempts rather than a single catastrophic event. Comprehensive insurance, not the lemon law, handles full submersion.

Yes, as long as the vehicle is a motor vehicle weighing 10,000 pounds GVWR or less, sold or leased in Florida, and used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. Exotic share is unusually high in Fort Lauderdale, and high-end electronics and drivetrain defects in low-volume production vehicles routinely surface in arbitration. Refunds calculated on a $300,000 Ferrari purchase still follow the standard formula: full purchase price plus collateral charges, reduced by a mileage offset of miles driven multiplied by base price divided by 120,000. Attorney's fees are recoverable from the manufacturer regardless of vehicle price.

Florida's lemon law applies statewide, so it does not matter where in Broward, Miami-Dade, or Palm Beach County you purchased. You file once with the Florida New Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board regardless of dealership location. Repair attempts at any authorized franchised dealer in the manufacturer's network count toward the three-attempt or 30-day-out-of-service threshold. Keep written repair orders from every location because the Board considers the total pattern across all visits, not just visits to your selling dealer. Many Fort Lauderdale buyers shop throughout the tri-county area for selection, creating no jurisdictional issues.

Once the New Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board accepts your case, Florida law requires a hearing within 40 days and a written decision within 60 days. Broward hearings are typically scheduled in the county to avoid Tallahassee travel. If your manufacturer's certified informal program such as BBB AUTO LINE handles your case first, expect roughly 40 additional days before escalation. Realistic total timeline from initial filing to a Board decision is three to five months, plus a 30-day window for either side to appeal to Broward County Circuit Court for a trial de novo. Pre-arbitration certified-mail notice and document gathering may add another month.

Florida's lemon law covers consumers who lease motor vehicles for at least one year under a written lease where the lessee bears repair responsibility, or under a lease-purchase arrangement. The statute requires the vehicle to be sold or leased in Florida. Snowbird residents who lease from a Fort Lauderdale dealer for at least one year and use the vehicle for personal purposes typically qualify even if they spend summers elsewhere. If you leased the vehicle in your northern home state, you generally must use that state's lemon law instead. Keep proof of Florida lease execution and registration.

Successful Fort Lauderdale claimants receive either a comparable replacement vehicle or a full refund of the purchase price including sales tax, title, registration, dealer documentary fees, and finance charges, reduced by a mileage offset calculated as miles driven multiplied by the base sale price divided by 120,000. Attorney's fees and costs are recoverable from the manufacturer separately under the statute, so most qualifying consumers pay nothing out of pocket. The Florida Department of Legal Affairs can also assess civil penalties up to $1,000 per violation against manufacturers, but those penalties fund the state Motor Vehicle Warranty Trust Fund rather than the consumer.