A German court has signaled that an EV buyer caught up in a battery recall could return the car, not only to the dealer but possibly to the manufacturer. The Offenburg Regional Court gave the preliminary view on Oct. 16 in a case over a Cupra Born (case 2 O 356/25).
The recall
- The car is covered by recall campaign 93S4, announced in March 2026. Some high-voltage modules can lose range and turn on a warning light, and there is a fire risk.
- Electrive says the recall covers 19,452 Cupra Born cars and 74,579 Volkswagen ID models worldwide. Ladebilanz says 5,976 of the Borns are in Germany.
- The fix is a software update and a module check, with faulty modules replaced.
What the court said
The buyer is suing the dealer and Seat, Cupra's parent. According to the consumer law firm Dr. Stoll & Sauer, which represents the buyer, the court sees possible claims against the dealer under sales law and against Seat under German product safety law. The court specifically named Article 37 of EU Regulation 2023/988. That article requires a company running a safety recall to offer a free, effective and timely remedy, usually a choice of repair, replacement or refund, and a refund if repair or replacement cannot be done in reasonable time. Ladebilanz notes that the text of the court's note is not public.
Limits
This is not a judgment, and the defendants can respond until Nov. 6. The regulation has applied only since Dec. 13, 2024, and whether it covers older cars is still unsettled. Both outlets stress that a recall does not automatically entitle an owner to return the car. If the court rules this way, it would matter for any carmaker running battery recalls in the EU, Tesla included.