The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act Explained: Your Warranty Rights in Plain English

The Act applies to consumer products: tangible personal property normally used for personal, family, or household purposes, including things installed in a home, like a water heater or HVAC system. Cars, appliances, electronics, furniture, and tools all qualify. It does not cover services alone or products bought only for business use.

It governs three kinds of promises:

• Written warranties: the manufacturer's or seller's written promise that a product is free of defects or will be repaired or replaced if it fails.
• Implied warranties: promises that state law reads into every sale, such as the warranty of merchantability (the product works for its ordinary purpose).
• Service contracts: extended warranties and protection plans you pay extra for.

The Act does not require any company to offer a written warranty; it sets the rules only once a company chooses to give one. The Federal Trade Commission enforces it and wrote rules requiring warranty terms to be disclosed in one document and made available before purchase for products costing more than $15.

Under Section 102 of the Act, every written warranty on a consumer product costing more than $10 must carry a title saying it is either "full" or "limited." The label tells you, at a glance, how strong the promise is.

Feature	Full warranty	Limited warranty
Repair defects free within a reasonable time	Required	Only as written
Refund or replacement after repeated failed repairs	Your choice	Only as written
Limit on implied warranty length	Not allowed	Allowed if reasonable
Covers later owners during the term	Yes	Only as written

Under 15 U.S.C. 2304, a full warranty must fix a defect within a reasonable time and without charge, and if the product still has a defect after a reasonable number of repair attempts, you get to choose a refund or a free replacement. The only duty a full warranty can impose on you is to notify the company, unless it can show a further step is reasonable.

Most warranties on cars and appliances are limited. That is legal, but a limited warranty still cannot disclaim implied warranties entirely. Under 15 U.S.C. 2308, a company that gives a written warranty or sells a service contract within 90 days of the sale may not disclaim implied warranties, though it may limit them to the length of the written warranty if that is reasonable and clearly disclosed.

Generally, no. Section 2302(c) bars a warrantor from conditioning a warranty on your use of any product or service identified by brand name, unless the company provides that part or service free under the warranty or gets a waiver from the FTC. A carmaker cannot void your powertrain warranty just because an independent shop changed your oil, and a device maker cannot void coverage because you opened the case.

A company can still deny a specific repair if it shows that the third-party part or repair actually caused the damage. What it cannot do is cancel coverage across the board.

On July 3, 2024, FTC staff sent warning letters to eight companies over warranty terms that tied coverage to branded parts and over "warranty void if removed" stickers, following similar letters to six major companies on April 10, 2018. In June 2022, the FTC charged Harley-Davidson and Westinghouse generator maker MWE Investments with using warranty terms that suggested coverage was void if customers used independent repairers or parts, and ordered both to fix their warranties.

Under 15 U.S.C. 2310(d), a consumer harmed by a company's failure to honor a written warranty, implied warranty, service contract, or the Act itself can sue for damages and other relief. The key features:

• Attorney fees. If you win, the court may order the company to pay your costs and attorney fees based on actual time spent. That fee-shifting rule in 15 U.S.C. 2310(d)(2) is why lawyers can take a warranty case over a $2,000 appliance.
• State or federal court. You can sue in state court for any amount. To sue in federal court, each individual claim must be at least $25 and all claims together must total at least $50,000.
• Chance to fix first. The company must be given a reasonable opportunity to cure the problem before a lawsuit can proceed, including a class action (15 U.S.C. 2310(e)).
• Informal dispute programs. If the warranty requires you to use a dispute program that meets the FTC's rule (16 C.F.R. Part 703), you may have to try it before suing.

The Act has no deadline of its own. Courts usually borrow the state's limit for breach of warranty; under the Uniform Commercial Code adopted in most states that is 4 years, often measured from delivery, not from when you found the defect. Check your state's rule early.

A class action under the Act can be filed in federal court only if it has at least 100 named plaintiffs and $50,000 in total claims (15 U.S.C. 2310(d)(3)). Most product defect class actions do not have 100 named plaintiffs, so they reach federal court through the Class Action Fairness Act instead and plead Magnuson-Moss alongside state warranty and consumer protection claims.

You will see the Act cited in many defect cases we track, including the LG refrigerator lawsuit and the Ashley furniture protection plan case. Car cases like the Volkswagen oil consumption lawsuit typically pair warranty claims with evidence from a technical service bulletin showing the maker knew about a defect. Warranty settlements often pay for past repairs and extend coverage, as in the Lennox evaporator coil settlement.

For vehicles, the federal Act works alongside your state's lemon law, which usually gives a clearer path to a buyback. Many buyers plead both, because Magnuson-Moss can cover used cars sold with a written warranty or service contract even when a state lemon law covers only new cars. See our lemon law guide for how the two fit.

Many warranties and service contracts also include an arbitration clause. Whether it can block a court case depends on the wording and your state, so read yours before assuming you can join a class.

1. Find the warranty. Check the manual, the box, or the maker's website. Note whether it is full or limited, how long it lasts, and what it excludes.
2. Report the problem in writing while the warranty is still in effect, and keep copies. Dated emails and repair orders prove you gave notice.
3. Give the company its chance to repair, and keep every work order, even when the shop says it found nothing.
4. Escalate. Ask for a written denial with the reason. If the warranty names a dispute program, use it.
5. Report it. You can file a complaint with the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and with your state attorney general.
6. Consider small claims or a lawyer. Because the Act allows fee-shifting, attorneys often take strong warranty cases without charging upfront. Our guide on how to sue a company compares the options.

If many owners report the same failure, an attorney may be investigating a class action already; check our lawsuits to join. If your product keeps failing and the company will not honor its warranty, a free case review can connect you with independent attorneys who handle warranty and defect claims.