Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (CSPA)

The Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (Ohio Rev. Code § 1345.01 et seq.), known as CSPA, is the consumer-protection statute most often paired with the Ohio Lemon Law.

What CSPA recovers

CSPA provides:

• Actual damages.
• Treble damages for “knowing” violations.
• Statutory damages of $200 per violation or treble actual damages, whichever greater.
• Mandatory attorney fees under Ohio Rev. Code § 1345.09(F).
• Court costs.

For Ohio lemon-law cases with strong willfulness facts, CSPA materially amplifies recovery.

What CSPA covers

CSPA prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices” in connection with a “consumer transaction.” For vehicle-warranty disputes, key CSPA theories include:

• Misrepresentation about vehicle condition, history, or warranty.
• Failure to disclose material defects known to the manufacturer.
• Unfair refusal to honor warranty.
• Concealment of TSB-acknowledged defects.

CSPA’s damages framework

Ohio Rev. Code § 1345.09 provides:

• Rescission of the transaction OR three times actual damages.
• $200 statutory damages OR treble actual damages, whichever greater.
• Mandatory attorney fees.

What “knowing” means

Ohio CSPA’s “knowing” standard means the manufacturer:

• Was aware of the practice’s deceptive nature, OR
• Should have been aware under the circumstances.

For Ohio lemon-law context, willfulness evidence comes from TSBs, internal warranty-claim records, customer-relations notes, and misrepresentations.

Mandatory attorney fees

Ohio Rev. Code § 1345.09(F) provides mandatory attorney fees in CSPA actions, additive to the Ohio Lemon Law’s § 1345.75 attorney fees. This creates dual fee-shifting hooks.

Why pair CSPA with the Lemon Law

Statute	What it provides	Where it’s pursued
Ohio Lemon Law	Refund or replacement + § 1345.75 fees	Court of Common Pleas
CSPA	Damages + statutory damages + mandatory fees + treble	Court

CSPA’s limitations period

CSPA has a 2-year statute of limitations from accrual under § 1345.10(C). This is shorter than Pennsylvania’s UTPCPL 6-year limit but similar to many states’ consumer-protection acts.

When CSPA isn’t the right tool

• Pure express-warranty breaches with no misrepresentation.
• Cases where the manufacturer genuinely believed the vehicle was repaired.
• Cases past the 2-year limitations period.

Bottom line

CSPA is what amplifies Ohio’s strong Lemon Law. Statutory § 1345.75 fees + CSPA treble damages + § 1345.09 fees + statutory $200 minimum + Magnuson-Moss = comprehensive recovery framework.

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