Your Business Received a CLRA Demand Letter: What the 30 Days Mean

Last updated: November 2026. Reviewed by Pavel Kolmogorov, California business litigation attorney (State Bar No. 321018).

A CLRA demand letter is the written notice a consumer must send at least 30 days before suing for damages under California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act. Ignore it and nothing happens automatically, but the consumer can then sue for damages. Under Civil Code section 1782, a business that gives an appropriate correction within 30 days of receipt, or agrees to give one within a reasonable time, can generally bar that damages action. Kolmogorov Law, P.C. defends businesses in Orange County, Los Angeles, and across California that receive these notices.

Call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online to discuss a CLRA notice before the 30 days run.

What a CLRA demand letter is

The Consumers Legal Remedies Act lists unfair or deceptive practices that are unlawful in a transaction intended to result, or that results, in the sale or lease of goods or services to a consumer. The list includes representing that goods have characteristics they do not have, advertising goods with intent not to sell them as advertised, and making false or misleading statements about price reductions. (Civ. Code, § 1770, subd. (a)(5), (9), (13).)

A consumer who wants damages under the Act cannot simply file. Thirty days or more before suing, the consumer must notify the business of the particular violations claimed and demand that it correct, repair, replace, or otherwise rectify the goods or services. The notice must be in writing and sent by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, to the place where the transaction occurred or to the business's principal place of business in California. (Civ. Code, § 1782, subd. (a).)

Two patterns account for many of the notices I see. An online store promotes a feature the product does not have. A retailer shows a discount from a "regular" price it rarely charged, the subject of our fake sale pricing page.

The Act protects a consumer, defined as an individual who seeks or acquires goods or services, by purchase or lease, for personal, family, or household purposes. (Civ. Code, § 1761, subd. (d).) A letter from another company about a commercial purchase is usually a different kind of dispute.

What the 30-day deadline means

The 30 days run from receipt, so keep the envelope and the return receipt.

No court set this deadline. Nothing is filed against you when it passes, and no default is entered. What expires is an opportunity. If the business gives an appropriate correction, repair, replacement, or other remedy within 30 days after receiving the notice, or agrees to give one within a reasonable time, the consumer generally may not maintain an action for damages. (Civ. Code, § 1782, subd. (b).)

Ignore the letter and you give up a defense the statute offers before any lawsuit is filed.

A suit for an injunction alone needs no notice, and the consumer may add a damages request by amendment 30 days or more after filing, once the 30-day notice requirement has also been met. (Civ. Code, § 1782, subd. (d).) Some letters therefore arrive with a complaint already on file.

When the letter speaks for a class

Many notices are sent "on behalf of all others similarly situated." Refunding the one customer who wrote does not end that kind of claim.

To bar class damages, the business must show four things. Similarly situated consumers have been identified, or a reasonable effort was made to identify them. Those consumers were notified that the business will provide a remedy on request. The remedy has been given or will be given within a reasonable time. And the practice has stopped or, where stopping immediately is impossible or unreasonably expensive, will stop within a reasonable time. (Civ. Code, § 1782, subd. (c).)

That program costs real money. It can still be cheaper than defending the case described on our page about a business named in a class action.

What a response should do, and what it should not

The work starts before any reply goes out. Preserve the advertisement, label, web page, or contract the notice attacks, exactly as it existed, along with the sales records behind it, as our litigation hold page explains. Send the notice to your insurance broker the same week, because some policies respond to advertising claims; see our page on whether business insurance covers a lawsuit.

If a correction is warranted, offer it in writing inside the 30 days and make it concrete: what the customer will receive, when, and what will change. Attempts to comply are treated as an offer to compromise, are inadmissible under Evidence Code section 1152, and are not an admission of an unlawful practice. The business may still offer them itself to show good faith or compliance. (Civ. Code, § 1782, subd. (e).)

A response should not argue the whole case or promise a fix the business cannot deliver.

What is at stake if the claim goes forward

A consumer who suffers damage as a result of a violation may recover actual damages, an injunction, restitution of property, punitive damages, and other relief the court considers proper. In a class action, the total damages award may not be less than $1,000. (Civ. Code, § 1780, subd. (a).)

Fees drive many of these cases. The court must award costs and attorney fees to a prevailing plaintiff, while a prevailing business may recover fees only if the court finds the plaintiff did not prosecute the action in good faith. (Civ. Code, § 1780, subd. (e).) That one-way rule explains why a small refund dispute can carry a large settlement demand.

An action must be commenced not more than three years from the date the challenged practice was committed. (Civ. Code, § 1783.) Courts have held that the discovery rule can postpone the start of that period. CLRA counts also rarely travel alone, and the complaint usually adds a claim under the Unfair Competition Law.

How we handle these notices, and where the cases are filed

We read the notice against the statute first. Was it mailed the way section 1782 requires, and is the sender a consumer at all? Then we test the facts and draft the response inside the 30 days.

A CLRA action may be filed in the county where the defendant resides, has its principal place of business, or is doing business, or where the transaction or a substantial part of it occurred. The plaintiff must file an affidavit with the complaint showing the county is proper, and the court must dismiss a case filed without one, without prejudice. (Civ. Code, § 1780, subd. (d).) For our clients that usually means the Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana or the Los Angeles Superior Court. Our business litigation practice page describes the wider defense work.

What to bring to the first meeting

The letter, the envelope, and the certified mail receipt.
The advertisement, label, web page, or contract the letter attacks, saved as it appeared at the time.
Sales and refund records for the product or service.
Your terms of sale and your business insurance policies.

Frequently asked questions

My company got a CLRA demand letter giving us 30 days to fix a problem with our advertising. What happens if we ignore it?

No default is entered, because the 30 days are not a court deadline. What you lose is the correction offer: California Civil Code section 1782 lets a timely, appropriate remedy cut off the consumer's damages claim, and silence forfeits that. After the 30 days, the consumer is free to file for damages and attorney fees.

The customer who sent the CLRA letter has already filed a lawsuit asking only for an injunction. Can damages be added later?

Yes. California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act lets a consumer sue for injunctive relief without sending notice first. Once the 30-day notice requirement has been met and at least 30 days have passed since the suit was filed, the consumer may amend the complaint to request damages without the court's permission.

What is a CLRA demand letter?

It is the pre-suit notice required by California Civil Code section 1782. Before suing for damages under the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, a consumer must describe the particular violations in writing, demand a correction, and mail the notice by certified or registered mail at least 30 days before filing.

Does the CLRA apply to business-to-business sales?

Usually not. California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act covers sales and leases to a consumer, and Civil Code section 1761 limits that word to an individual seeking or acquiring goods or services for personal, family, or household use. A company that bought equipment or services for its own operations generally falls outside that definition and must rely on contract, warranty, or fraud theories instead.

Can a business recover attorney fees if it wins a CLRA case?

Only in narrow circumstances. Under California Civil Code section 1780, a prevailing plaintiff is entitled to costs and attorney fees, but a prevailing defendant may recover reasonable fees only when the court finds the case was not prosecuted in good faith. Most successful defendants bear their own fees.

Talk to a California business litigation attorney

If your business has received a CLRA notice, call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online before the 30 days expire. Kolmogorov Law, P.C. is located at 327 Magnet, Irvine, CA 92618, and defends businesses in Orange County, Los Angeles, and throughout California.

This page provides general information about California law and is not legal advice. Outcomes depend on the notice, the facts, and the court.