Dallas Lemon Law

Dallas residents file with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles Enforcement Division, not in Dallas County district court. The complaint is submitted online through the TxDMV Motor Vehicle Dealer Online Complaint System, the filing fee is $35 (refundable if you prevail), and a TxDMV hearings examiner conducts mediation and any contested hearing. Hearings are most often held by videoconference, sometimes in person in Austin, and occasionally in a Dallas regional location when scheduling allows. Either side can appeal a final TxDMV order to a Texas district court within 30 days of issuance.

Hail damage itself is excluded — the Texas Lemon Law targets defects in materials or workmanship, not weather damage. However, manufacturing defects in factory paint, glass adhesion, or sunroof seals that become evident after a hailstorm repair can still qualify if they recur after the original 24-month or 24,000-mile warranty period and have been the subject of repeated repair attempts. TxDMV examiners distinguish carefully between weather-caused damage (not covered) and a latent defect that a hail repair simply revealed. Keep all repair orders and refinish records when documenting a paint-related claim.

From the date TxDMV accepts a Dallas-area complaint, mediation typically opens within 30 to 60 days, and a contested hearing before a TxDMV examiner is usually scheduled within roughly 120 to 150 days of filing. The examiner issues a written order, generally within 60 days after the hearing closes. Either party can request reconsideration within 25 days and may appeal a final order to a Texas district court — often in Travis County — within 30 days. Manufacturers routinely settle before the hearing because TxDMV can order repurchase or replacement if the consumer prevails.

Yes. The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (Tex. Bus. & Com. Code Chapter 17) lets Dallas residents sue a dealership or manufacturer in Dallas County district court for unfair or deceptive practices, breach of warranty, or misrepresentation, with potential treble damages and attorneys' fees. The DTPA does not require you to exhaust the TxDMV Lemon Law process first. Many lawyers file both — a TxDMV Lemon Law complaint targeting the manufacturer's repurchase or replacement duty, and a parallel DTPA case in Dallas County addressing dealer-level conduct and punitive exposure.

A Texas Lemon Law complaint must be filed with TxDMV within six months following the earliest of (a) expiration of the manufacturer's express warranty, (b) 24 months from the vehicle's delivery date, or (c) the date the odometer reaches 24,000 miles. This six-month window applies the same way in Dallas as elsewhere in Texas. If the deadline has passed, claims under the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (generally four years) or the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (two years from discovery) remain available, but those are filed in court rather than at TxDMV.

Yes. Leased vehicles are covered to the same extent as purchased vehicles, and Dallas-area lessees can file Lemon Law complaints with TxDMV directly. If TxDMV orders a repurchase, it can terminate the lease and apportion the refund — including the reasonable allowance for use — between the lessee, the lessor (often a captive finance arm like BMW Financial or Mercedes-Benz Financial), and any lienholder. You must still meet one of the three repair tests, give the manufacturer written notice and a final repair opportunity, and file within the six-month deadline.

Yes. The Texas Lemon Law covers any new motor vehicle sold or leased in Texas with a manufacturer's written warranty, including battery-electric vehicles. Common Dallas-area EV complaints involve drive-unit replacements, high-voltage battery faults, charge-port issues, persistent driver-assistance malfunctions, and infotainment screen failures. The same statutory tests apply: four or more repair attempts on the same defect, two attempts on a serious safety hazard, or 30 cumulative days out of service, all within the first 24 months or 24,000 miles. Tesla's direct-sales and service model in Texas means the manufacturer and service provider are the same entity, which simplifies proof at the TxDMV hearing.