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Generator warranty: repair, deadlines and getting your money back

Last reviewed: August 23, 2026 — VerifiedDACO

In short

After María, the Legislature wrote for generators the law that did not exist. Act 107-2019 requires every provider — manufacturer, authorized representative, factory distributor, authorized distributor, independent distributor, seller or dealer and authorized service agent — to make effective a minimum warranty on new electric generators imported or sold in Puerto Rico, and creates a special breach-of-warranty action that can end with the contract resolved and your money back. Four concrete things: they must give you a factory warranty certificate at the time of sale, written in Spanish or English; every time you hand the generator in for warranty repair they must give you, free of charge, a legible repair order with the date, physical condition and reported defects, and an updated one when it is returned; you may request a copy of the entire service file — invoices, diagnostics, technicians’ notes, service and recall bulletins — free of charge within a period never exceeding five (5) days; and if the generator is permanently installed and cannot feasibly be moved, the service agent must come to the site and begin work within a term not exceeding five (5) days. The law is interpreted liberally in the consumer’s favour, and the liability of every provider in the sale and distribution chain is joint and several toward you.

External link

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What is it?

The law covers the "electric generator", defined broadly: any equipment or machine dedicated to generating electricity by any means, including but not limited to those powered by wind, solar or internal combustion — the last being the familiar house generators. A "new electric generator" is any represented as new by the seller, that is with no previous use, whose factory warranty is fully in force, or that has been repaired or reconditioned and sold with a new-equipment warranty. And "defects" does not mean the unit will not start: they are conditions or faults exceeding the minor imperfections normally to be expected, without needing to make use impossible, provided they notably diminish its value, affect its ordinary or proper use or operation, or represent a safety risk. Excluded are conditions not covered by the warranty certificate and those resulting from accidents, abuse, negligence or third-party alterations. One detail that saves expert reports: the consumer is not required to prove the cause of the defect claimed.

Who can do it?

The "consumer" under this law is the acquirer of a new electric generator, for their use and for purposes other than resale, commercial exploitation or leasing. The term to bring the special breach-of-warranty action begins when the new generator is delivered to you and ends when the warranty provided with the sale or lease expires; in addition, you may bring it up to six (6) months after the warranty expires, for defects claimed within the warranty period that were not repaired, or not satisfactorily repaired. On your side there is a duty: to comply with the terms and conditions of the warranty certificate and the owner’s manual, although routine maintenance recommended by the manufacturer and not covered by the warranty need not be done through the manufacturer’s authorized service agents.

Requirements

Documents you need

Cost

Check the current cost with the official agency.

Step by step

  1. Step 1: Keep the certificate and the repair orders

    Every provider, excluding the authorized service agent, must give you a factory warranty certificate at the time of sale. And every time the generator goes in for warranty repair, the provider or its agent must give you free of charge a legible statement or repair order with the intake date, the unit’s physical condition, the defects you reported, the generator’s identification by make, model and serial number if any, and the service agent’s name and mailing address. When it is returned, another updated and fully detailed order, also free of charge.

  2. Step 2: Ask for the full file: they have five days

    This is the tool that wins cases. Article 7.4 gives you the right to request and receive from the provider copies of every document related to your generator’s service or repair, including but not limited to repair invoices, mechanical diagnostic reports, technicians’ notes during repairs and repair attempts, service bulletins for the model, and safety campaign or recall bulletins. All free of charge and within a reasonable period never exceeding five (5) days. Failing this is sufficient grounds for a fine, and DACO or the court may order the documents produced at your request.

  3. Step 3: Do not authorize out-of-warranty work without a written estimate

    Article 8.1 protects you from the surprise charge: you must approve in advance, in writing or by email — your choice — any repair or maintenance service not covered by the warranty or subject to a deductible or onerous condition. You approve or reject the estimate with your signature no later than the next business day after receiving it, and you are not responsible for service, repair or maintenance charges made without your written approval. And if warranty coverage is denied, the entity must immediately justify it and give you the specific reasons in writing.

  4. Step 4: Demand on-site service if it is installed

    When a generator under warranty is not working properly, or when defects make its use impossible or represent a potential safety risk, the authorized service agent must receive it for repair during business hours whenever you request it. And when the generator’s design requires it to be permanently installed or otherwise makes moving it unfeasible, the service agent shall provide the repair at the site where it is installed, beginning work within a term not exceeding five (5) days.

  5. Step 5: If they do not fix it, bring the special action

    You have the right to bring the special breach-of-warranty action when you believe that, within the warranty’s terms, the provider had a reasonable opportunity to repair one or more defects but would not or could not correct them. It is filed with DACO or with the Court of First Instance where you live, at your choice. Having given at least one (1) repair opportunity is enough, and once a reasonable opportunity has been given you may refuse to keep giving more. What counts as a "reasonable opportunity" is determined by the nature and extent of the defects, the number of repair attempts, how many days you were deprived of the generator’s use, and the particular circumstances of the case. Hours of use may be considered, but cannot be the only or the main factor.

  6. Step 6: If you win, everything is refunded

    When DACO or the court grants the action and decrees resolution of the contract, those who must answer to you shall refund every amount you paid: the price, the financing loan instalments, the deposit or down payment, insurance, and all collateral and incidental charges. If there is a financing or lease contract, they also pay the finance company so you receive clean title. And Article 11.2 expressly prohibits withholding any sum for depreciation or reasonable compensation for use — with one narrow exception: if the generator shows conditions beyond normal wear attributable to you, such as unrepaired accidents or removed parts, the forum may order withholding the amount corresponding to those damages, at a party’s request.

Where to do it

The Department of Consumer Affairs or the Court of First Instance where you live, at your choice, for the special breach-of-warranty action. DACO may also conduct a technical investigation or inspection to determine the nature, seriousness, extent and merit of the defects; if it does, it must write a report and notify the parties, and the parties have fifteen (15) days from notification to object in writing. If no objection is filed, the report is admitted and relieves the investigator from appearing at the hearing. DACO’s services and offices are at daco.pr.gov, and online filing at serviciosenlinea.daco.pr.gov.

How long it takes

Check the current processing time with the official agency.

What to do if something goes wrong

Two gaps we prefer to name. First: how long the minimum warranty must last and which parts it covers is not in the law. Article 6.2 gives DACO the power to set it by regulation, and 6.3 clarifies that period will be in months or years and/or hours of use, whichever comes first, with the consumer not limited to a specific monthly or annual usage. We did not read that regulation, so we publish no numbers. Second, and it is a real discrepancy in the document itself: the law’s purpose clause announces that a "Registry of Manufacturers, Distributors and Sellers of Electric Generators" is ordered created at DACO and that the Department is authorized to require a bond from sellers and distributors; in the articles of the compilation we read — Articles 1 through 19 — no article establishes that registry or that bond, beyond Article 17’s general rulemaking power. We say so rather than describing a registry we could not find. A useful note on who answers: the liability of every provider in the sale and distribution chain is joint and several toward the consumer, so you do not have to chase only one. And if you bought from someone who began selling generators for the first time after a price-freeze order, the law calls them an "incidental seller", treats them as a provider, requires a written invoice and a warranty certificate, and subjects them to a five thousand (5,000) dollar fine per infraction.

Common mistakes

  • Not demanding the warranty certificate at the time of purchase, which every provider must hand over.
  • Leaving the shop without the repair order: one is given at intake and an updated one on return, both free of charge.
  • Not requesting the complete service file, which must be delivered free of charge within a period never exceeding five days.
  • Verbally authorizing out-of-warranty work: without your written approval you are not liable for those charges.
  • Believing the generator must fail to start: the law also defines a defect by notable loss of value or safety risk.
  • Accepting a deduction for use or depreciation in a contract resolution: Article 11.2 prohibits it.
  • Letting the term lapse: the action runs until the warranty expires, plus six months only for defects already claimed within it.

Frequently asked questions

How many times must I take it in before claiming?

At least one (1). The law requires giving at least one opportunity to repair the defect behind the action, and clarifies that once a reasonable opportunity has been given you may refuse to keep giving more. How many are "reasonable" is decided by the nature and extent of the defects, the number of attempts, the days you were without the unit and the case’s circumstances.

Do I have to prove what caused the failure?

No. The law says it twice: in the definition of defects and again when discussing expert evidence, "the consumer shall not have to prove the cause of the defect claimed".

Can they deduct for use if I get a refund?

Article 11.2 prohibits it: withholding any sum for depreciation or reasonable compensation for use, or on any other basis, is prohibited when contract resolution is decreed. The only exception is if the generator shows conditions beyond normal wear attributable to you — unrepaired accidents, removed parts — and the forum orders, at a party’s request, withholding the amount corresponding to those damages.

How long is the minimum warranty?

The law sets no number. It gives DACO the power to establish by regulation the duration of the minimum warranties and which minimum parts and mechanical components are covered, and clarifies that the period will be in months or years and/or hours of use, whichever comes first, with the consumer not limited to a specific monthly or annual usage. We did not read that regulation, so the concrete duration must be checked with the Department.

Who do I claim against: the seller or the manufacturer?

Any of them in the chain. Article 10.9 establishes that the liability of every provider that formed part of the generator’s sale and distribution chain is joint and several toward the consumer.

Official sources

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

Last verified

August 23, 2026

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