— A Subaru cracked windshield lawsuit has received preliminary approval from the judge regarding four vehicle models.
The Subaru windshield class action has been in court the past five years, with the first lawsuit filed in October 2019.
A second amended windshield lawsuit was filed in November 2019, then three Subaru windshield class actions were consolidated into one.
The settlement includes the following models:
- 2019-2022 Subaru Ascent
- 2019-2022 Subaru Forester
- 2020-2022 Subaru Legacy
- 2020-2022 Subaru Outback
The Subaru windshield settlement includes:
"All natural persons who are residents of the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii, currently or previously owning or leasing a Settlement Class Vehicle originally purchased or leased in the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii."
There are terms and conditions of the windshield settlement, but please understand nothing is official and complete because the federal judge must grant final approval to the settlement agreement.
The Subaru cracked and chipped windshield lawsuit final fairness hearing is scheduled for April 21, 2025.
Subaru Windshield Lawsuit Settlement Information
There are certain conditions that must be met in certain situations. This page will provide an overall look at the windshield settlement, but we advise affected Subaru customers to also read a second page (below) that goes into more detail about the terms.
Subaru denies the windshields are defective and denies all allegations in the class action lawsuit. But having spent five years in court already, Subaru says it decided to settle to put an end to the ongoing and expensive litigation.
The settlement which was granted preliminary approval says qualifying Subaru customers are eligible to recover 100% or more of their out-of-pocket expenses as a result of repairing or replacing their windshields, "depending on the proof they can produce to accompany their claims."
According to the windshield lawsuit settlement, there are two groups of Subaru customers:
"(1) those who can produce proof that they incurred a qualifying repair cost prior to the close of the claims period and contemporaneous photographs confirming the damage (Tier 1); and (2) those can produce proof of costs prior to the notice date but do not have contemporaneous photographs of the damage (Tier 2)."
Those who can who can satisfy the requirements of Tier 1 claims are eligible to recover at least 125% of their costs. And those who fall under Tier 2 will recover up to 100% of their costs, "subject to a conditional $2 million limit, upon completion of a photo questionnaire designed to verify their claim."
The windshield lawsuit settlement says the sum of Tier 2 claims is not expected to exceed $2 million, but in the event it does, each claim will be reduced according to the number of qualifying claims that were filed.
"Absent clear evidence of fraud, no successful Tier 2 claimant will receive less than 25% of their approved claim."
Subaru Cracked Windshield Extended Warranty
According to the agreement, there is an extended warranty for a period of eight years or 100,000 miles, whichever occurs first.
This will cover all parts and costs associated with a one-time replacement of a windshield with the alleged defect (what the settlement calls a “pre-counter-measure windshield”) with a windshield without the alleged defect (a “post-counter-measure windshield”).
The one-time windshield replacement must be performed by a Subaru dealership, and the extended warranty will become effective three business days following the deadline for Settlement Class Members to submit claims for reimbursement.
All affected Subaru customers are eligible for the cracked windshield extended warranty even if they do not qualify for reimbursement.
According to the windshield settlement, the four Subaru owners who filed the class action lawsuit—Jeffrey Barr, Arnold Milstein, Allan Zaback and Brittany Funk—will receive $5,000 each.
And the attorneys representing those plaintiffs expect to receive $7.2 million.
The above information is only an overview of the Subaru cracked windshield lawsuit settlement.
The settlement and details were reached months ago, and CarComplaints.com highly recommends that you read the details of the settlement here.
Take note of the settlement terms regarding "qualifying cracks" and how photos will need to be provided in some cases.
The Subaru cracked windshield lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey: Powell, et al., v. Subaru of America, Inc.
The plaintiffs are represented by Muhic Law LLC, Berger Montague PC, and Wade Kilpela Slade LLP.