Guide
'You have to arbitrate first' means four different things depending on the state, and mixing them up wastes months. (1) State-run boards: Maine (Attorney General, free, 45-day decisions), Hawaii (SCAP, $50), Connecticut (DCP), New Hampshire (Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board, $50), Vermont (free), DC (Board of Consumer Claims Arbitration). (2) Agency exhaustion: Texas requires the TxDMV complaint before suit. (3) Florida's state arbitration board, requested within 60 days after the rights period. (4) Manufacturer Part 703 programs: federal rules (16 CFR Part 703) let a compliant manufacturer program be made a mandatory first step — Oregon, Arizona, Minnesota, Montana and others do this by statute.
Two protections travel with almost every program: the decision binds the manufacturer, not you — an unhappy consumer can usually still sue; and several filing clocks pause or have their own deadlines while arbitration runs (Washington's AG arbitration request, for example, must arrive within 30 months of delivery). Your state page prints your route, your cost, and your clock.
What to bring is the same everywhere: the dated repair log, every repair order, the notice letter and its mailing receipt, and your buyback math on the state's own formula. The kit's arbitration-first map lays out each forum with costs and a bring-list.
The repair-log tracker, your state's notice letter, the buyback worksheet, and your deadline calendar.
Information, not legal advice. Checked October 23, 2026.