The Lemon Law Is Coming; In The Meantime Here’s How You Can Protect Yourself

Imagine you just bought yourself a new car, but your car is not performing up to the promised standards even after multiple repair attempts. What can you do?

Well in Malaysia, not much due to the fact that we don’t have Lemon Laws. The Lemon Law is a set of laws that allows vehicle buyers to seek recompense such as repairs, replacement, price reductions, or refunds for vehicles and other consumer goods that fail to meet performance standards after repeated repair attempts.

Fortunately, Malaysian lawmakers are currently working towards establishing our own lemon laws. And while the law is being finalised, the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Costs of Living (KPDN)  has announced that they are introducing two strategies to help vehicle buyers protect themselves.

The two strategies being introduced are;

Letter of consent

KPDN has announced that from 2nd of September 2024, Bank Negara Malaysia has mandated all banking institutions in Malaysia to create a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to process letters of consent from vehicle buyers.

This letter of consent will then allow vehicle buyers to file their claim at the Tribunal For Consumer Claims.

The establishment of a special task force

The second interim strategy is the establishment of the Pasukan Rundingan Khas Berkaitan Aduan Kenderaan Bermotor at KPDN. This special negotiation team will allow vehicle buyers to file complaints straight to KPDN if their vehicle is not performing to the promised standards.

According to KPDN’s press release, to date there has already been 16 complaints filed towards these special team.

With these two strategies, KPDN is hoping that the rights of vehicle buyers will be protected while waiting for the Lemon Law to be finalised.

The press release also stated that the establishment of the Lemon Law is now in its final stages, with considerations to be made if the law will be an amendment to the existing law or an entirely new law.