Lawmaker sees Lemon bill becoming law next yr

DAVAO CITY, Philippines   – Compostela Valley Rep. Maria Carmen Zamora-Apsay said she expects her Lemon Bill to become law by 2012 after the House of Representative approved House Bill No. 4841 on third and final reading last Aug. 15.

Apsay filed the Lemon Bill on July 1, 2010. After the filing, 54 other lawmakers joined as co-authors. The bill went through the House committee on trade and industry. After committee approval, it was approved on second reading on Aug. 8, 2011, and finally, approved on third reading as House Bill No. 4841 on Aug. 15, with 234 out of 285 Representatives registering their approval.

In the Senate, Apsay said the Lemon bill has three versions as filed by Senators Jinggoy P. Estrada, Manny B. Villar and Miriam Defensor-Santiago. She said the Senate versions are presently being taken up jointly in the committee on trade and industry chaired by Villar.

“The bill has been the subject of much discussion and input, and with that, we hope that the Senate will arrive at a version most acceptable to all concerned to facilitate the passage of the Lemon Law. However, as our present focus right now is to prioritize the 2012 national budget, the earliest we may expect the measure to be approved by the Senate is in the first quarter of 2012,” Apsay said.

In the United States, the so called lemon laws of the various states of the Union were enacted for the express purpose of protecting consumers from buying new, but faulty, motor vehicles. These laws ensure that the manufacturer of the vehicle fixes the problems or defects that were originally covered under the manufacturer’s warranty and were reported by the owner within the so called lemon law rights period or certain mileage as reflected by the odometer of the vehicle.

In extreme cases where the factory defects of the car are extensive, the laws also warrant the refund of the consumer’s money or the delivery of a new car replacing the lemon vehicle.

Apsay said that Republic Act No. 7394 or the Consumer Protection Law in the Philippines provides for the protection of consumers from scheming manufacturers and defective products. The Department of Trade and Industry has sole jurisdiction over complaints regarding lemon vehicles.

Hence, the need for this proposal to bolster the Consumer Protection Act by specifically focusing on lemon cars, said Apsay.

It was learned that the Lemon Bill was originally filed during the 13th Congress no less than by Apsay’s father, former congressman Manuel “Way Kurat” Zamora.

As provided in the bill, the buyer of a defective new motor vehicle may, at any time within the lemon law rights period, and after at least four separate repair attempts by the same dealer manufacturer for the same complaint, may invoke his/her “lemon law rights.”

If the case is resolved in his/her favor, the following remedies may be taken: 1) replacement of the motor vehicle with a similar or comparable vehicle in terms of specifications and values, subject to availability; or 2) the return of the vehicle to the dealer-manufacturer and the payment of purchase price plus collateral charges to the consumer.