Louisiana Lemon Law Statute (§ 51:1941)

La. R.S. § 51:1941 et seq. — the Louisiana New Motor Vehicle Warranty Act — is the core Louisiana Lemon Law. It provides refund or replacement for vehicles that don’t conform to express manufacturer warranties despite a reasonable number of repair attempts, plus mandatory attorney fees under § 51:1947.

Core eligibility

Under § 51:1942, the statute covers:

• New motor vehicles purchased or leased in Louisiana.
• Purpose: personal, family, or household use (not commercial-only).
• GVWR: under 10,000 lbs.
• Vehicle types: passenger cars, light trucks.
• Excluded: motorcycles, motor homes (except chassis/drive train of a personal-use motor home), commercial-only vehicles, vehicles above 10,000 lbs.

The 1-year Rights Period — short

§ 51:1943 establishes the eligibility window:

• 1 year from original delivery, OR
• End of express written warranty, whichever first.

Louisiana’s 1-year window is among the shortest combined Rights Periods in the country (joins TN/IL/MI/WI/CO/MA/MO/NV).

Repair-attempt thresholds

Under § 51:1943, the “reasonable number of attempts” presumption applies when:

• Four or more repair attempts for the same nonconformity within the Rights Period, OR
• 45 or more cumulative calendar days out of service.

See our repair-attempt presumption article.

Deadline to file suit

Under § 51:1944(E), the consumer has no more than three years from the date of purchase, or one year from the end of the warranty period, whichever is longer, in which to file suit. See our statute of limitations article.

Mandatory § 51:1947 attorney fees

§ 51:1947 provides for attorney fees to the prevailing consumer. Louisiana courts treat this as mandatory for prevailing consumers.

Remedies

The statute requires manufacturer to either:

• Refund: full purchase price + sales tax + registration + finance charges + incidental + minus reasonable use offset, OR
• Replacement: comparable new vehicle.

Under § 51:1944, the manufacturer elects — “at its option” — between refund and replacement. The consumer does not choose the remedy.

Manufacturer IDS required first

Under § 51:1944, if the manufacturer has a certified IDS procedure (16 C.F.R. Part 703 compliant), the consumer must first complete that procedure before court action. Most major manufacturers’ IDS in Louisiana is BBB Auto Line.

Louisiana does NOT have a state-administered Lemon Law arbitration board.

Relationship to Redhibition

Importantly, Redhibition under La. Civ. Code art. 2520 is a separate and additional remedy. The Lemon Law statute does not preempt Redhibition. A defect may give rise to claims under both statutes.

Bottom line

Louisiana’s § 51:1941 provides a tight 1-year Rights Period, 4-attempt / 45-calendar-day OOS thresholds, and mandatory § 51:1947 fees. Combined with LUTPA, REDHIBITION, and Magnuson-Moss, Louisiana offers a uniquely robust four-statute framework.

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Louisiana's Repair-Attempt Presumption (4 Attempts / 45 Days OOS)

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Louisiana Vehicle-Defect Statutes of Limitations

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