Court Radio With MyPhillyLawyer Discusses Pennsylvania Lemon Law and Contributory Negligence in Car Accidents
Nov 23, 2018
Dean Weitzman, Esq.
Philadelphia, PA (Law Firm Newswire) November 23, 2018 – Recently on Court Radio, Dean Weitzman, managing partner of MyPhillyLawyer, discussed how Pennsylvania determines negligence in a car accidents and the state Lemon Law relating to vehicles.
Being involved in a car accident is one of the worst feelings in the world. “And if you were injured, you’re likely going to want to seek compensation for your medical expenses and so forth,” said Weitzman. “Of course, negligence plays a huge part in motor vehicle accident lawsuits as well.”
When a driver does not drive safely, with due care and attention to the rules of the road, and there is an accident, that driver is negligent. Pennsylvania negligence laws require that damages in a car accident be reduced in proportion to the claimant’s own level of fault, also referred to as contributory negligence.
A caller, to the morning Court Radio, who posed a question about claiming personal injury damages as a result of being hit at an intersection by another driver was surprised to find out that one driver is never 100 percent at fault. This is because Pennsylvania follows the comparative negligence rule. “In all cases, if you have been hurt in a car accident, we strongly encourage you to reach out and contact our office,” added Weitzman. “You’ll want to know your legal rights and how to move forward with a lawsuit if you choose to pursue that course of action.”
Another caller wanted to talk about a car that should not have passed inspection and cost her out-of-pocket money a mere 45 days after buying it. She asserted she had bought a “lemon” and wanted to know what legal recourse she had to get money back. As it turned out, the Pennsylvania Automobile Lemon Law only applies to a new vehicle defined as being less than 12 months old or having less than 12,000 miles when bought and legally registered in Pennsylvania for personal use. “In general, the lemon law is a law designed to protect buyers from defective vehicles — but that only applies to newer vehicles,” said Weitzman.
In this caller’s case, the vehicle she bought was seven years old and there was nothing that she could do to trigger the Lemon Law. Weitzman also talked about the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act — the federal version of the lemon law — that applies to implied warranties, express warranties and service contracts. And while this may have been an avenue to pursue, many car dealers get around this by selling vehicles “as is.”
Weitzman went on to add that anyone contemplating buying a used vehicle really needs to have it inspected by a mechanic and make themselves aware of all existing and potential issues that may affect the vehicle. “If there is no inspection and no warranty or a very limited warranty, then its buyer beware,” Weitzman added.
Court Radio is a weekly call in legal talk show. Attorney Dean Weitzman answers legal questions, at no charge to the listener, every Sunday morning and also talks about sidebar topics and his own experiences with various cases he has handled.
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