Replacing the headlight glass of a car that is more than five years old

Glass breakage:

The Consumer Complaints Commission decided that Møller would cover the cost of replacing cracked lamp lenses.

Many car owners are frustrated by headlights that crack and crack very quickly. The frustration is not diminished by the fact that many workshops and importers refuse to repair under warranty and right of complaint. They require the customers themselves to pay.

But now the Consumer Complaints Commission has concluded that headlight lenses should last much longer than many in the car industry think.

Idar Jørgensen in Oslo complained to the Consumer Complaints Commission when Audi dealer Møller Bil Oslo Vest refused to cover the replacement of the taillights on his Audi A4 Allroad.

The lanterns were cracked in several places, but Müller believes that Jørgensen himself should cover the replacement of the lantern glass for NOK 8,820.

– Abnormal

For the commission’s consideration, Jørgensen brought the expert opinion of technical advisor Audun Bergerud at the NAF, who studied photographs of lantern lenses.

– From the attached pictures, you can notice cracks and fissures in the rear lamp glass. Assuming normal use and maintenance, this seems abnormal for the car’s age and mileage, Bergerud wrote.

The car was just over five years and six months old and had driven 58,000 kilometers when Jorgensen complained.

He had bought the car used three years ago, and noted that he had treated the car very well and had used the washing products that the car was supposed to handle.

He also pointed to other cars of the same brand suffering from the same headlight problems.

– Shortage

Mueller rejected the complaint and pointed out that it had not been complained about during the warranty period. Furthermore, Mueller believes that glass cracking is caused by external influences, not a manufacturing defect or a weak component.

However, the Consumer Complaints Commission fully endorsed Jorgensen.

– Car taillights are not expected to crack during normal use. The decision stated that the committee concluded that the relationship constituted a deficiency under the Sales Law.

– External influence

Mueller accepted the decision, and Jorgensen got his money.

Motor asked Mueller why he accepted the decision and did not take the case to district court, where they had the opportunity to do so.

Cracked headlight lenses are something that can happen in many car brands. We believe that these are deviations due to external influences. But we have as a general rule that we want to come up with friendly solution proposals with our customers, writes Rune Pekin-Richborn, head of customer service at Møller Bil Oslo Vest.

Beat Tesla

And Mueller is not the only one who refuses free repair of cracked headlight lenses. The same goes for Tesla, the largest car sales company in Norway, which has He denied the allegations of Moss woman Maria Ngo, among others.

But Idar Jørgensen is not the only one who won.

Wilhelm Hyten of Moss also succeeded in his case at the Consumer Complaints Commission, when his taillight went out, according to what was reported by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK). It cracked a few months after he bought his car in 2021.

The Consumer Complaints Commission concluded that Tesla must cover repair costs worth NOK 9,400, in a decision that Tesla Norge did not take to the district court.