Thailand is moving closer to adopting a dedicated legal framework for defective goods. On 16 June 2026, the Cabinet approved the draft Liability for Defective Goods Act, commonly referred to as Thailand’s “Lemon Law”, as proposed by the Office of the Consumer Protection Board (OCPB). The draft law is now pending further consideration by Parliament and has not yet come into force.
On 25 June 2026, the House of Representatives approved the bill in principle by 420 votes with no opposition or abstentions and appointed a 24-member special committee to scrutinise the legislation. The bill is the first piece of legislation submitted to Parliament by the government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.
While the draft law is often discussed as a consumer-protection measure, its impact will not be limited to consumers. If enacted, it may significantly affect manufacturers, importers, distributors, dealers, retailers, service centres, e-commerce operators, and companies involved in hire-purchase or product financing arrangements.
For businesses dealing with vehicles, motorcycles, electrical appliances, electronic devices, IT products, machinery, or other high-value goods, the draft Lemon Law should be viewed as an early compliance signal. It may change how companies manage product defects, customer complaints, warranty claims, repair timelines, replacement requests, and liability across the supply chain.
A Shift in the Burden of Proof
The key feature of the draft Lemon Law is the proposed presumption that, if goods are found defective within a prescribed period, the defect may be deemed to have existed at the time of delivery unless the seller can prove otherwise.
Based on publicly available information, the presumption period is expected to be 6 months for general goods, electrical appliances, electronic devices, and motorcycles, and 1 year for motor vehicles. This is important because, in practice, consumers often face difficulty proving that a defect existed when the goods were delivered, particularly where the defect is technical, latent, or requires specialist knowledge. As Minister Supamas Isarabhakdi noted, modern products incorporate complex technologies, making defects difficult for consumers to detect at the time of purchase.
For businesses, however, this means that the focus may shift from simply responding to customer complaints to maintaining sufficient evidence to defend the condition of the goods at the time of delivery. General statements that a product “passed quality control” may not be enough. Companies may need clear delivery records, inspection checklists, service reports, repair histories, diagnostic records, photographs, and internal procedures to show that the goods were not defective when delivered or that the defect was caused by another factor outside the seller’s responsibility.
Repair, Replacement and Termination Risks
The draft law is also expected to provide consumers with clearer remedies, including repair, replacement, price reduction, termination of contract, refund, or damages, depending on the nature and seriousness of the defect.
Publicly available information also indicates that repair timelines may be introduced. General goods and motorcycles may need to be repaired within 60 days, while motor vehicles may need to be repaired within 90 days from the date the seller receives the goods for repair. If the repair cannot be completed within the prescribed period, the seller may face further remedies, including price reduction, contract termination, or damages.
For severe defects, the draft provides for immediate replacement rights. General products may be replaced within 7 days of delivery, while electrical appliances and electronic devices may be replaced within 14 days. For automobiles with safety-related defects that cannot be repaired, sellers will be required to replace the vehicle with a new one of the same model.
For businesses, this may have a direct impact on after-sales operations. Service centres, dealers and customer service teams will need to manage repair timelines carefully. Repeated repairs, delayed repairs, inconsistent service records, or unclear communication with customers may create legal and reputational risks.
This is particularly relevant for the automotive, motorcycle, electronics, appliance and technology sectors, where defects are often technical and may involve multiple parties, including manufacturers, importers, distributors, dealers, authorized repair centres, logistics providers and finance companies.
Why Large Businesses Should Pay Attention
Large companies often operate through complex commercial structures. A product may be manufactured overseas, imported into Thailand, sold through a distributor, delivered by a dealer, repaired by an authorized service centre, and financed through a hire-purchase or instalment arrangement. When a defect occurs, the customer may only see one brand, but the legal and financial responsibility may involve several entities.
The draft law is drafted to apply to contracts made before it takes effect, meaning that existing arrangements may be caught by the new regime. It would apply to business-to-consumer transactions, business-to-business sales, hire-purchase agreements, credit-financed sales, and exchange contracts. However, it would exclude second-hand goods, live animals, and peer-to-peer consumer sales.
This raises important questions for businesses. Who is responsible for receiving and assessing defect claims? Who decides whether the customer is entitled to repair, replacement, refund or termination? Who bears the cost if the product must be replaced? What happens if the dealer refuses a claim, but the brand owner or distributor takes a different position? How will the company prove that the defect did not exist at the time of delivery? How should repeated repairs be recorded?
These questions should be addressed before the law comes into force, not after a dispute arises.
Contracts and Policies That May Need Review
If the draft Lemon Law is enacted, businesses should consider reviewing their legal documents and internal procedures, including warranty terms, sales terms and conditions, dealer agreements, distributor agreements, service centre policies, delivery records, repair procedures, return and refund policies, and complaint-handling processes.
For importers and distributors, it will also be important to review whether their agreements with overseas manufacturers provide adequate protection. If the Thai seller or distributor faces a claim from a customer, it should be clear whether the company can recover costs from the manufacturer, supplier, dealer or service centre responsible for the defect.
For companies involved in hire-purchase, leasing or product financing, the issue may be even more complex. If the financed goods are alleged to be defective, the parties will need to consider how the defect claim affects payment obligations, contract termination, refund arrangements, and recourse against the seller or supplier. As noted by Asst Prof Aimpaga Techa-Apikun of Thammasat University’s Faculty of Law, the law extends legal rights to financial institutions in cases involving product leasing, such as cars and electric vehicles.
Evidence Will Be the Key
The practical effect of the draft Lemon Law is that evidence will become central to risk management.
Businesses should be able to show the condition of goods at delivery, the steps taken during inspection, how customer complaints were handled, what repairs were performed, when the goods were received for repair, when they were returned, and whether the same defect recurred.
For high-value or technical products, companies should also have clear protocols for determining whether a defect is manufacturing-related, installation-related, software-related, caused by customer misuse, caused by lack of maintenance, or caused by unauthorised modification.
A company with strong documentation and consistent procedures will be in a better position to defend claims, resolve legitimate complaints efficiently, reduce unnecessary disputes, and protect its brand reputation.
Preparing Before the Law Takes Effect
Although the draft Lemon Law has not yet come into force, businesses should not wait until the final stage of the legislative process before preparing. Once the law is enacted, there may be limited time to update contracts, train staff, align dealer and service centre procedures, and implement evidence-retention systems.
For businesses in the automotive, electronics, appliance, technology, retail, distribution and financing sectors, early preparation may help reduce legal exposure and operational disruption. More importantly, it may allow companies to handle product-defect claims in a consistent, legally defensible and commercially practical manner.
The Practical Impact of Thailand’s Draft Lemon Law
Thailand’s draft Lemon Law is more than an extension of consumer-protection rights. It is a business compliance issue about how companies manage product quality, warranties, after-sales service, dealer responsibility, customer complaints and supply-chain liability.
For consumers, the law will create clearer and more practical remedies when newly purchased goods are defective. For businesses, it may create a higher evidentiary burden and require stronger internal systems to prove product condition, manage claims and allocate liability.
Manufacturers, importers, distributors, dealers, retailers, service centres and financing companies should use this interim period to review their contracts, policies and operational procedures. Businesses that prepare now will be better positioned to reduce disputes, control costs, protect brand reputation and demonstrate compliance when the new legal framework comes into force.
Formichella & Sritawat can assist businesses in reviewing contracts, warranty policies, governance procedures and product-defect risk management to help ensure they are prepared for the introduction of Thailand’s proposed Lemon Law, get in touch using the form below or via [email protected] to find out more.
