G.L. c. 90, §§ 7N, 7N¼, 7N½; G.L. c. 260, § 5A; G.L. c. 93A
The Massachusetts Lemon Law — three sections of chapter 90, and they are not interchangeable
A claim in Massachusetts trial courts · Last verified August 26, 2026
Massachusetts has three vehicle statutes sitting next to each other in chapter 90, and they are routinely mixed up — including in secondary sources. Getting the section right is the first task, because they cover different vehicles and give different remedies.
§ 7N½ — the New Car Lemon Law. New vehicles. Refund or replacement.
§ 7N¼ — the Used Vehicle Warranty Law. A statutory dealer warranty scaled to the vehicle's mileage, which cannot be disclaimed.
§ 7N — voiding a contract of sale. A buyer may void the sale if the vehicle fails inspection within seven days.
What the claim is
You bought a vehicle that keeps failing, and the dealer or manufacturer cannot fix it.
The New Car Lemon Law — § 7N½
The term of protection. "One year or fifteen thousand miles of use from the date of original delivery of a new motor vehicle, whichever comes first." A replacement vehicle gets its own year or 15,000 miles from delivery.
What counts as a defect. A nonconformity — "any specific or generic defect or malfunction, or any concurrent combination of such defects or malfunctions that substantially impairs the use, market value or safety of a motor vehicle."
A reasonable number of attempts is a number. Section 7N½(4) deems it satisfied where:
- the same nonconformity has been subject to repair three or more times within the term of protection and it continues or recurs; or
- the vehicle is out of service for repair for a cumulative total of fifteen or more business days during the term of protection.
The manufacturer gets one additional opportunity, not to exceed seven business days, to cure — even if that opportunity begins after the term of protection ends.
The remedy. The manufacturer must accept return of the vehicle and refund the full contract price, including credits and allowances for a trade-in, less any accepted cash award and a reasonable allowance for use — or offer to replace the vehicle. For a lease, the refund is of the payments made under the lease.
What is excluded. Auto homes, vehicles built primarily for off-road use, and any vehicle used primarily for business purposes.
The Used Vehicle Warranty Law — § 7N¼
This is the distinctive Massachusetts statute, and it protects buyers most states leave to "as is."
A dealer must give a written express warranty, and its duration is set by the mileage at the time of sale:
| Mileage at sale | Warranty |
|---|---|
| Less than 40,000 | 90 days or 3,750 miles, whichever first |
| 40,000 to under 80,000 | 60 days or 2,500 miles, whichever first |
| 80,000 to under 125,000 | 30 days or 1,250 miles, whichever first |
Where the true mileage is unknown, the warranty is set by the vehicle's age instead — three years old or less takes the first tier, more than three and less than six takes the second, and six years or older takes the third. Age is the purchase year minus the model year.
The 90-day warranty is additional. The statute says the under-40,000-mile warranty "is in addition to any right the consumer may have under section seven N1/2" — so a low-mileage used vehicle still inside the new-car term of protection carries both.
The clock is tolled while the vehicle is out of service for repair.
The remedy is repair at no charge, and where the dealer cannot repair the defect after a reasonable number of attempts, repurchase — the purchase price, less an accepted cash award and applicable refunds, plus incidental damages, including towing from the point of breakdown up to thirty miles and rental costs after the second day following each breakdown, subject to the statutory daily limit.
"As is" does not defeat it. The warranty is statutory, and a dealer cannot disclaim it within the covered mileage.
Voiding the sale — § 7N
The narrowest and simplest of the three. Notwithstanding any disclaimer of warranty, a buyer may void the contract of sale if the vehicle fails the periodic inspection within seven days of the sale — provided the defects causing the failure were not the result of the buyer's abusive or negligent operation or of an accident after the sale.
Seven days. That is the whole window, and it is why anyone buying a used car in Massachusetts should have it inspected immediately.
How long you have to file
Four years on the consumer track, under G.L. c. 260, § 5A, which sets a four-year period for consumer-protection actions and names "section seven N of chapter ninety" among the covered statutes. A chapter 93A count on any of the three sections runs on the same four years.
The internal deadlines are much shorter and they are the real constraint. The § 7N½ term of protection is one year or 15,000 miles. The § 7N¼ warranty can be as short as 30 days. Section 7N gives seven days. A consumer who waits four years has no claim left to bring, whatever the limitations period says.
The arbitration filing windows are shorter still. Both lemon law programmes are administered through the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation and have their own filing deadlines; arbitrators dismiss late filings without reaching the merits. Confirm the current window before relying on any of these dates.
What has to happen before you file
Report the nonconformity during the term of protection, and give the manufacturer or dealer the repair attempts the statute contemplates. A consumer who never presented the vehicle has no claim.
Keep every repair order — date, mileage, the complaint as reported, and what was done. These cases are counted, not argued, and a visit recorded as "no problem found" still counts as an attempt.
State-certified arbitration, which is the intended first route and is faster and cheaper than court.
A 93A demand letter, 30 days, for the 93A count.
What the claim pays
Refund or replacement under § 7N½, less a reasonable allowance for use.
Repurchase plus incidental damages under § 7N¼, including the towing and rental allowances the statute specifies.
Rescission of the sale under § 7N.
Chapter 93A relief — double or treble damages for a willful or knowing violation, and mandatory attorney's fees. The vehicle statutes do not shift fees on their own, and this is why the 93A count is always pleaded.
Twelve percent interest.
Which court
District Court or the Boston Municipal Court within the $50,000 threshold, which covers nearly every vehicle claim; Superior Court above it; small claims for the smallest disputes. Arbitration first, in the ordinary case.
Who can be sued
The manufacturer, under § 7N½.
The dealer, under § 7N¼ and § 7N, and for its own conduct.
The other claims worth pleading
Breach of warranty on goods — the UCC implied warranty of merchantability, on a four-year clock that runs from tender of delivery.
Fraud and negligent misrepresentation — the undisclosed accident history, the rolled-back odometer, the salvage title. This is the strongest used-car claim where the facts support it, and it is not limited by any warranty period.
Chapter 93A, which is what makes any of them economic on a $9,000 car.
Common defenses
- Outside the term of protection, the warranty mileage, or the seven days.
- The defect does not substantially impair use, market value or safety.
- Not enough repair attempts — fewer than three for the same nonconformity, and under fifteen business days out of service.
- Abuse, neglect, accident or unauthorised modification caused the defect.
- The vehicle is excluded — business use, off-road, or an auto home.
- The vehicle had 125,000 miles or more at sale, which is outside the § 7N¼ warranty tiers.
- A late arbitration filing.
What people get wrong
The section numbers. Section 7N½ is the new car law; § 7N¼ is the used vehicle warranty; § 7N is the seven-day inspection remedy. Sources reverse these constantly.
Used cars from a dealer carry a statutory warranty, and "as is" does not override it within the mileage tiers.
Three attempts or fifteen business days is the new-car test, and it is arithmetic. Repair orders prove it.
A vehicle over 125,000 miles is outside the used-vehicle warranty tiers entirely.
The four-year limitations period is not the deadline. The term of protection and the warranty period are, and they are measured in days and miles.
Chapter 93A is where the fees come from. None of the three sections shifts them.
Where it came from
Warranty law before these statutes gave a car buyer a promise of repairs and no end point. A manufacturer could keep attempting a repair indefinitely without ever owing a refund, and the consumer's alternative was a UCC revocation claim requiring a lawyer and a lawsuit over a depreciating asset.
The lemon laws converted "we will keep trying" into a count. After three attempts at the same defect or fifteen business days out of service, the manufacturer owes a refund or a replacement, and the argument shifts from the quality of the repair to the arithmetic of the repair orders.
Massachusetts then extended the same logic downmarket, which most states did not. Section 7N¼ gives a used-car buyer a warranty the dealer cannot disclaim, scaled so that an older, higher-mileage vehicle carries a shorter promise — an explicit legislative judgment that the protection should track the vehicle rather than disappear at the words "as is."
Section 7N is older and cruder and still useful: seven days to fail an inspection and undo the sale. It exists because the most common used-car fraud is selling something that cannot legally be driven, and a buyer needs a remedy before the paperwork is dry.
Common questions
What is the Massachusetts lemon law for new cars?
G.L. c. 90 § 7N½. It protects for one year or 15,000 miles from delivery, and entitles you to a refund or replacement after three repair attempts for the same defect or fifteen business days out of service.
Does the lemon law cover used cars?
Yes — § 7N¼ requires a dealer to give a warranty scaled to mileage: 90 days or 3,750 miles under 40,000 miles, 60 days or 2,500 miles up to 80,000, and 30 days or 1,250 miles up to 125,000.
Does "as is" mean I have no claim?
Not on a dealer sale within the § 7N¼ mileage tiers. The statutory warranty cannot be disclaimed.
What if the car fails inspection right after I buy it?
Section 7N lets you void the contract of sale if it fails inspection within seven days, unless you caused the defects.
How many repair attempts do I need?
Three for the same nonconformity, or fifteen business days out of service, within the term of protection — with one further seven-business-day chance for the manufacturer to cure.
Can I recover attorney's fees?
Through chapter 93A, and the award is mandatory once a violation is found. The chapter 90 sections do not shift fees.