Remedies: What You Can Recover Under Indiana Lemon Law

Indiana’s Lemon Law (§ 24-5-13) and the IDCSA overlay (§ 24-5-0.5) produce a strong remedy package: refund or replacement, IDCSA treble damages or $500 minimum (provided cure notice given), and mandatory attorney fees under two statutes.

The five primary remedies

1. Refund (buyback) — Full purchase price, sales tax, registration, finance charges, incidental costs, minus reasonable use deduction under § 24-5-13-14.
2. Replacement vehicle — Comparable new vehicle (consumer chooses between refund and replacement under § 24-5-13-13).
3. Cash and keep (settlement) — Diminished-value settlement common in pre-IDS negotiations.
4. IDCSA damages — Actual damages + treble or $500 minimum under § 24-5-0.5-4(a) (uncured incurable acts) + mandatory § 24-5-0.5-4(d) attorney fees.
5. Attorney fees — Mandatory § 24-5-13-22 Lemon Law fees + mandatory IDCSA § 24-5-0.5-4(d) fees + Magnuson-Moss § 2310(d)(2) fees.

Refund / replacement math

Under § 24-5-13-14, the refund must include:

• Full purchase price (or lease payments + residual)
• Sales tax + registration / title fees
• Finance charges + interest paid
• Incidental damages (rental, towing, diagnostic fees)
• LESS: reasonable use offset

Indiana courts typically use a 120,000-mile life-expectancy denominator (consistent with peer states).

IDCSA — the multiplier layer

IDCSA adds:

• Actual damages for deceptive practices.
• Treble damages or $500 minimum under § 24-5-0.5-4(a) — discretionary, requires uncured incurable deceptive act.
• Mandatory attorney fees under § 24-5-0.5-4(d).
• 2-year SOL under § 24-5-0.5-5(b).
• Pre-suit cure notice under § 24-5-0.5-5(a)(2) — required for treble damages.

The cure-notice requirement is the procedural key. Get the notice right, and IDCSA treble damages attach to manufacturers who refuse to cure.

Attorney fees — dual mandatory basis

Statute	Standard	Trigger
§ 24-5-13-22	Mandatory	Prevailing on Lemon Law
IDCSA § 24-5-0.5-4(d)	Mandatory	Prevailing on IDCSA
Magnuson-Moss § 2310(d)(2)	Mandatory	Prevailing under MMWA

This makes Indiana a strong fee-shifting jurisdiction — three independent mandatory bases.

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