Lemon Law

[boat1010]

Is there a lemon law in Co.? A friend bought a 1994 boat in Co. He ran it for about 2 hours and checked the oil and it had water in it. Found out it had a cracked block. He put muffs on it and ran it for about 20 min. before he bought it and there wasn't any water in the oil then. Took it to the lake and ran it about 2 hours and found water in the oil.

 

[ziggy]

Re: Lemon Law

i don't know about any laws. but i sure do read a lot of comments about when buying a used boat. never buy it with out a sea trial... that would've been the heads up.

 

[boat1010]

Re: Lemon Law

Smiling... He didn't really didn't want to hear that. I told him that too. He said that there wasn't a lake close by.

 

[ziggy]

Re: Lemon Law

He didn't really didn't want to hear that.

i know he didn't. i didn't want to say it either. i just read to many similar story's over on the i/o page about how hosed folks are after they get the new boat. the test drive is most important. now he knows. it's worth the drive.. could be worse... http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=314550

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Lemon Law

lemon laws rarely apply to boats, and used 15 year old boats? not a chance! sounds like the engine wasn't checked out close enough before buying. Even without a lake you can do a fair number of tests to ensure you aren't buying a lemon.

 

[45Auto]

Re: Lemon Law

Has your friend never heard of the old Roman saying "Caveat Emptor"????

I thought everyone knew that. Means "Buyer Beware", been around for thousands of years .....

Most used vehicles come with a bill of sale that says "As Is". I don't know of ANY "lemon laws" in any states that apply to used vehicles. Unless your friend has some kind of written warranty or guarantee from the seller, seems to me his only option is to take it to court and try to prove fraud by the seller. Good luck with that!

Lots of ways your friend could have screwed up the boat in 2 hours on the water and ended up with water in the oil. It's easily possible that it DIDN'T have a cracked block when he bought it ......

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Lemon Law

Country_Bumkin might have a different story http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=207127

 

[allinmygarage]

Re: Lemon Law

Ha Ha......I am still pretty new to the forums and I immediately thought of Country_Bumkin too. Might want to have your friend read the link ezmobee put up. Some really good reading about your topic.

 

[David Greer]

Re: Lemon Law

no lemon law on used stuff; I doubt any states have them for new boats. "As is" is the same as "for better or worse" in your wedding vows. You know what that means!
As for court, unless the seller gave a warranty or a specific false representation ("that's a brand new block I put in last week") you have no case. Even a general "it's in great condition" won't work.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Lemon Law

The problem David is that's just not the case. That's how it SHOULD be probably but it isn't. The link I posted earlier is to a thread about an iboats member who sold his boat in running condition to a kid who most likely beat on it and blew the motor. The kid successfully took Country_Bumkin to court and won a judgment against him. Country_Bumkin appealed but only won because the kid didn't show up. Would he have won the appeal anyway? Who knows. My point is that it's not cut and dry buyer beware anymore. I think if the original poster's friend decided to try to take legal action against his seller there is at least a change he'd have a case. I AM NOT necessarily RECOMMENDING HE DO THIS, just stating that it would technically be possible and citing a precedent.

 

[45Auto]

Re: Lemon Law

There's definitely a chance he could take it to court and win. There's also a definite chance you will get hit by a meteor and die. Very SMALL chance in both situations. I doubt if you worry enough about the meteors to carry a steel umbrella. You probably have a better chance of getting hit by a meteor than winning a case like the one against Country_Bumpkin in court. Like getting hit by a meteor, it does happen, but not very often! But hey, somebody's got to support those lawyers!

 

[QC]

Re: Lemon Law

I'm actually in the process of suing a steel umbrella manufacturer. I bought one, and then I was hit by a meteor(ite) and it still hurt . . .

 

[David Greer]

Re: Lemon Law

EZ the judge was wrong in Bumpkin's case, at least as far as we see the facts, and at least under Virginia law (each state has its own laws but in these things they are usually similar). However, judges can be wrong, or sometimes they reach a compromise that they think is fair. So on this you and I would agree: if your case is a 95% winner there is a 5% chance you'll lose. We have a saying around the courthouse: there isn't a case that can't be won and there isn't a case that can't be lost, either.
I don't like to talk about my non-boating life on forums like these and I never give professional advice in these situations, but let me say I have some experience in legal matters like these. As for the OP's case, first, lemon laws are specific and the black and white answer is in the state code. Second, a fraud/warranty/breach of contract suit, governed by the UCC and common law, is won or lost on specific statements and other conditions at the time of sale.

 

[Shizzy]

Re: Lemon Law

#1 why did he run it for two hours BEFORE checking the oil?

#2 the water was in the oil the day he purchased it

#3 no lemon law on something used and that old.

I once sold a 25 year old car to a guy for $500. a month later he calls me up to tell me the car is a piece of ____ and he is going to sue me under the lemon law unless I buy it back from him. I told him "I sold you a 25 year old rusty car with 200k miles on it for $500, go a head and try to sue me"

I never heard back from him.

Unless your friend can prove that the P.O. stated inwriting that the engine was 100% fine, he is probably SOL.

 

[jkust]

Re: Lemon Law

I would say any boat that old is a gamble. Some probably really well maintained and some not. I would expect something to break very soon after I bought it so I would have negotiated the price to almost nothing without a sea trial. This site should be mandatory reading prior to buying any boat. Now that said my 40 hour old boat was purchased without a sea trial however I did get a verbal that if everything wasn't perfect, he would have paid for any problem...for whatever that is worth. It would have been an akward call to make but I actually believed this guy. Luckily everythig was perfect and I had the local dealer records to back up the claims.