States

Kentucky lemon law: when a new car is a lemon

What Ky. Rev. Stat. §§ 367.840 to 367.846 asks before a manufacturer must repurchase or replace a car, the steps on the way and the last day to act.

Does your car meet the Kentucky lemon law tests?

Defect that could cause death or serious injury?
Written notice already sent to the manufacturer?
Your warranty (default 3 years or 36,000 miles)

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Kentucky, November 5, 2026 read in the statute

Not yet: one more repair attempt

Protection period1 year or 12,000 miles, whichever comes first: until January 5, 2027 or 12,000 miles. You are inside it.
Repair attempts, same defectNot met: needs 4, you have 3
Days out of serviceNot met: needs 30 calendar days, you have 12
NoticeWritten report of the defect to the manufacturer within 12 months / 12,000 miles.
Dispute stepIf a dispute system under KRS 367.860 to 367.870 or a procedure under 16 CFR Part 703 exists, it comes before a lawsuit.
File a lawsuit by January 5, 2028 (426 days left)Lawsuit within 2 years of the original delivery (KRS 367.842).

Tests as written in the law; a court or arbitrator decides. Ky. Rev. Stat. §§ 367.840 to 367.846

The Kentucky lemon law in detail

Kentucky’s lemon law, sections 367.840 to 367.846 of the Kentucky Revised Statutes, protects a Kentucky resident who buys or leases a new motor vehicle for 12 months or 12,000 miles from delivery, whichever comes first. Section 367.842 presumes a reasonable number of attempts after four repairs of the same defect, or after 30 calendar days out of service for that defect, and the owner must report the defect in writing to the manufacturer within the same limits. A dispute system set up under sections 367.860 to 367.870, or a procedure that follows 16 CFR Part 703, comes before a lawsuit, which must be filed within two years of delivery. Kentucky has no lemon law for used cars, a point the Attorney General makes plainly. We read sections 367.841 and 367.842 on the legislature’s site on November 1, 2026, and the Attorney General’s page in an archived copy of September 16, 2026.

When is the last day to act?

File a lawsuit, Kentucky

September 5, 2027

Days from today304 left
Rule: Lawsuit within 2 years of the original delivery (KRS 367.842).
Open the deadline calculator →

State laws read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources

Write within the year in Kentucky

The written report to the manufacturer is a step of its own. A dealer’s repair order is not a letter to the manufacturer. Sending one, with copies of the orders, before the twelfth month or the 12,000th mile keeps the claim alive.

The law leaves out motor homes, motorcycles, mopeds, vehicles with more than two axles, altered vehicles and tractors. It allows a reasonable deduction for use, with no formula in the sections read.

For a used car, Kentucky owners fall back on the warranty itself, enforceable under the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, and on the Buyers Guide that the FTC requires dealers to post on every used car. A car sold “as is” on that guide carries no dealer warranty.

The Kentucky lemon law at a glance

Checked in early November 2026. Dates of any archived copy are given in the last row.
LawKy. Rev. Stat. §§ 367.840 to 367.846
Protection period1 year or 12,000 miles, whichever comes first
Repair attempts4 attempts on the same defect
Serious safety defectno separate test
Days out of service30 calendar days
Written noticeWritten report of the defect to the manufacturer within 12 months / 12,000 miles.
Dispute stepManufacturer program first. If a dispute system under KRS 367.860 to 367.870 or a procedure under 16 CFR Part 703 exists, it comes before a lawsuit.
DeadlineLawsuit within 2 years of the original delivery (KRS 367.842).
Use offset in a buybackA reasonable allowance for use, with no formula in the sections read.
Vehicles coveredKentucky residents who buy or lease a new vehicle. Not motor homes, motorcycles, mopeds, vehicles with more than 2 axles, altered vehicles or tractors.
Used carsNo used-car lemon law (Kentucky Attorney General).
State pageno agency page
Level of readingread in the statute
What we readKRS 367.841 and 367.842 on the legislature’s site, read on November 1, 2026, and the Attorney General’s used car page in an archived copy of September 16, 2026.

From written notice to a decision

Certified mail, return receipt requested.

Earliest decisionbetween Oct 16, 2026 and Nov 25, 2026

3Today

  1. 1. Done · milestone

    Written notice reaches the manufacturer

    Oct 16, 2026

    Written report of the defect to the manufacturer within 12 months / 12,000 miles.

    Ky. Rev. Stat. §§ 367.840 to 367.846

  2. 2. Done · milestone

    Final repair attempt

    Oct 16, 2026

    No fixed number of days for this step in the Kentucky text we read.

  3. 3. In progress · 0 day – 6 weeks

    Dispute program decides

    Oct 16, 2026 – Nov 25, 2026

    A program that follows 16 CFR Part 703 must decide within 40 days of receiving your dispute. If a dispute system under KRS 367.860 to 367.870 or a procedure under 16 CFR Part 703 exists, it comes before a lawsuit.

    16 CFR 703.5(d)

  4. 4. Upcoming · milestone

    Accept, refuse or go further

    Oct 16, 2026 – Nov 25, 2026

    Lawsuit within 2 years of the original delivery (KRS 367.842).

Kentucky: each bar is proportional to the time the text gives for the step; a step with no time in the law is a milestone.

Questions people ask

How many repair attempts make a car a lemon in Kentucky?

The Kentucky presumption starts at 4 attempts on the same defect, or 30 calendar days out of service in total, within 1 year or 12,000 miles, whichever comes first. Meeting a test creates a presumption, which the manufacturer can still contest before the program or the court. Count each visit with its repair order, and keep every order with its dates.

Does the Kentucky lemon law cover used or leased cars?

Kentucky residents who buy or lease a new vehicle. Not motor homes, motorcycles, mopeds, vehicles with more than 2 axles, altered vehicles or tractors. Used cars: No used-car lemon law (Kentucky Attorney General). A used car sold with the rest of the manufacturer’s warranty still carries that warranty, which federal law enforces even where the state lemon law stops. Leases are covered where the text names lessees.

Must I go through arbitration before suing under the Kentucky lemon law?

If a dispute system under KRS 367.860 to 367.870 or a procedure under 16 CFR Part 703 exists, it comes before a lawsuit. Time limit: Lawsuit within 2 years of the original delivery (KRS 367.842). Under the federal rule, 16 CFR Part 703, a manufacturer program that a warranty requires you to use first must decide within 40 days, and its decision does not bind you if you go to court afterwards. The warranty booklet names any program the manufacturer offers.

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Deadline calculator

The last day to file a lemon law claim in your state, counted from delivery, the protection period or the warranty.

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State lemon laws 2026, read in each state code and on state consumer pages, last checked on