Land Rover Defender Defective Windshields Class Action

This class action alleges that certain Land Rover Defender vehicles, made by Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC, have defective windshields that the windshields can crack, chip, or fracture with little or no provocation. The complaint alleges that either the windshields are made with deficient materials or they have a deficiency in their structure that makes them prone to damage.

A nationwide class and two alternative state classes have been defined for this action:

• The Nationwide Class is all persons or entities who bought or leased a 2020-2022 Land Rover Defender vehicle in the US.
• The New Jersey Class is all persons or entities who bought or leased a 2020-2022 Land Rover Defender vehicle in New Jersey.
• The Utah Class is all persons or entities who bought or leased a 2020-2022 Land Rover Defender vehicle in Utah.

The complaint alleges that the windshields can crack or fracture under conditions that would normally not cause any damage or even for no reason at all. But the complaint claims that Land Rover has declined to replace them under its warranties, even when the vehicle in question is relatively new. The cracks may extend for as much as several feet over the windshield, the complaint says.

Windshield replacements for the vehicles are expensive, the complaint says, sometimes costing more than $2,000. Unfortunately, even when the vehicle owner replaces the windshield, the complaint claims, the replacement is the same kind of windshield and may crack again in a short time.

The complaint contends, “The Windshield Defect poses an extreme safety hazard to drivers, passengers, and pedestrians because a spontaneously shattering or cracking windshield can impair the driver’s view, distract the driver, and result in dislodged glass that can injure drivers, passengers and pedestrians.” In many states, the complaint alleges, it is illegal to drive a vehicle with windshield damage that is bad enough to impair the driver’s vision.

Also, when a vehicle is involved in a collision, the complaint claims, “an intact windshield assists in transferring the force of a front-end impact down to the chassis, which reduces the effect of the impact felt inside the vehicle and helps protect the passengers.” If a windshield is already cracked and fractures easily, the complaint says, it cannot provide this protection to those inside the car.

Also, according to the complaint, “the windshield provides support that a passenger-side airbag needs to deploy properly” and provides roof support during rollovers.

The company knew that the windshields were defective and not fit for their intended purpose when it sold the vehicles, the complaint alleges, from its own preproduction testing, reports to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, online complaints, and dealer repair orders. But it alleges that it concealed the problem from consumers.

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Automobile
Tags: Defective Automobile, Windshield