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After Years of Dispute, Subaru Agrees to Compensate Owners of Vehicles with Cracked Windshields, but Consumers Must Meet Complex Requirements to Obtain Refund
After more than five years of legal disputes, Subaru reached a settlement in the United States to resolve accusations that its vehicles had defective windshields. The automaker has committed to refund affected owners and compensate the four plaintiffs in the case. However, the biggest beneficiaries were the lawyers, who will receive millions.
Understand The Process
The lawsuit was initiated in 2019. Customers claimed that Subaru installed defective windshields in the Forester and Outback models manufactured between 2017 and 2019.
According to the complaints, the glass cracked spontaneously, without any impact being necessary. In addition, they accused the company of having concealed the problem from consumers.
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In April 2025, the parties reached a settlement that expanded the number of models included. Now, owners of the Ascent (2019-2022), Forester (2019-2022), Legacy (2020-2022), and Outback (2020-2022) models are also covered.
Settlement Amounts
Each of the four claimants will receive an individual compensation of $5,000. The attorneys handling the case will receive $7.25 million. This million-dollar amount shows how lawsuits of this kind can be highly profitable for law firms.
For the owners of the affected vehicles, obtaining the refund will not be an easy task. It will be necessary to prove that the damage to the windshield meets specific criteria established by the automaker.
How to Request a Refund
The defect needs to be classified as a “qualified crack”. This means that the crack must originate from a discernible point of impact, with a maximum diameter of 5 mm, and proceed toward the edge of the glass.
If the authorized dealer fails to clearly identify the point of impact, but the crack exhibits the required characteristics, the repair may still be accepted for reimbursement.
The customer must provide proof of the repair and at least one photo of the crack. Those who meet the conditions may receive 125% of the repair cost. If two repairs were made, the refund increases to 150%. For three or more, the compensation reaches 200% of the total cost.
Alternative for Those Without Photos
For those who did not take photos of the damage, Subaru created a curious alternative. The customer can access a website from the automaker and choose, among six images, the one that most resembles their crack. If the choice is deemed correct, they will be entitled to a refund. If they select incorrectly, they will receive nothing.
Close of The Case
The settlement ends a long process, but it also shows how the rules for compensation can be complicated. While consumers face various requirements to recover their expenses, lawyers and the automaker themselves benefit, without officially admitting any wrongdoing.
With information from Automotive News.
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