Whistleblower reveals car giant Renault's cover-up to Watchdog

I have a R Reg Clio Sport and I was travelling on a very dangerous back lane with lots of corners with my 5 month old daughter in the car with me when my bonnet flew op and smashed into my windowscreen. I know this is'nt a Clio ll but surely there must be a problem with more than this one as it happened to mine too. My parner called Renault and they said It wasnt my series of car that there was a problem with. My parner wasn't very happy with this as it could have been really bad if my windowscreen had of smashed as my daughter travells in the front with me. Can I claim agains Renault for this even though it is not a Clio ll? Thanks, Claire. Doncaster

On Friday 22nd June 2007

My son was driving his Renauly Clio 11 diesel on a busy dual carriageway at approx 55mph and for no reason the bonnet flewup.

He was extremly lucky to come away without a serious accident or possible fatility.

He now has to stand £200 excess and risks losing his no claims bonus.

THERE SHOULD BE A WAY OF CLAIMING COMPENSATION FROM RENAULT.

H Tingle

I was driving on the M6 motorway this afternoon, 3 Aug '07, 70 mph, the bonnet on my Clio opened, hit the windscreen shattering it and also damaging the roof. The bonnet jammed against the 'windscreen' but I had the presence of mind to look through the gap below it. I was luckily able to control the vehicle but had to stop on the central reservation, with the timely help of motorway maintence.

The police were called to the scene as this obviously caused a major problem. I managed to tie down the damaged bonnet to get off the motorway. My passenger and I were obviously very shaken by this incident as we were lucky to get out of it alive. I have now emailed Renault and am awaiting their reply.

I must say that the police control/actions were amazing.

me and my boyfriend were driving on the motorway at 60 mph and the same thing happened to us as above the bonnet flew open hit the window screen which smashed , damaged the roof and the door, we swerved off and were lucky to be alive , we were very very shaken. it is sickening , as we have phoned renault and they don,t want to know. I do not feel I should lose my no claims bonus and have to foot the bill for the excess. What on earth is the next thing for us to do , my car is a write off. . this happened on 4th August 2007. at 8.30am

My clio was taken into a garage with a fuel problem,they took the car for a test drive and the bonnet flew up smashing my windscreen, and denting the roof. they are denying liability saying it is renaults fault, renault was contacted and they are also denying liability. I cant claim on my insurance as i wasnt driving and my insurance dosent cover anyone else to drive my clio. what else can i do?

I feel there should be a way of claiming compension from renault?

I was driving my car with my son in the passenger seat.

We were driving about 45 miles per hour when suddenly the bonnet flew up and shattered the windscreen.

I managed to steer the car onto the hard shoulder and got it stopped.

It was a miracle that my son or myself were not seriously injured, although we were in shock.

The bonnet was stuck fast against the screen and had to be lifted for repair.

When I started talking to people about this it turns out there is a fault with this part of the car.

I have read many stories with people having the same problems.

But when I contacted Renault, they are adamant they have no case to answer.

I am totally appalled by their customer service and believe they should come clean sort this mess out.

Renault are saying the car has no fault although 1000’s of people have had accidents because of a fault bonnet catch.

They actually sent a letter out to customers highlighting this but still not accepting liability.

same problem as every one else, I have also had to pay for a new catch £65.00 and also £200.00 excess and lost 2years no claims bonus.This cant be right surley; is there any way for me to get some sort of recompence,as i dont have the money to take them to court nor the time Thanks Patricia

i was driving my car which i share with my 17 year old daughter who as just passesd her test on the m66 when the bonnet flew up smashed the windscreen and dented the roof,i had my 81 year old mother and 5 year old daughter with me, we are lucky to be alive i have spoken to renault they said they are aware of the fault but are not accepting liability are they waiting until there is a death.thank god i was driving and not my daughter who as yet as hardly any experience.

Oh My God!! i just cannot believe all these stories, we were driving at 75 miles an hour yesterday on the Motorway in her clio when the bonnet flew open and shattered the windscreen... She handled it amazingly but i s**t myself, it was a horrible experience and something has to be done.... she is at this very moment contacting Renault, but judging by the above comments im not sure they will exactly be helpful..... if anyone manages to get a good response, can they post it on here....

This happened to me yesterday whilst travelling on the motorway, at about 75 mph. how i managed to get myself accross 3 lanes only god will know. If someone would have been right at the back of me it could have caused a massive pile up and worse still if the bonnet had actually come off the car, there may have been some very injured people on that motorway. I dread to think what could have happened if the windscreen would have smashed.

Something needs to be done and i am going to instruct my solicitor to proceed further.I am currently waiting for Renault to call me back, but the gentleman i first spoke to has said the accept responsibility! But i will have to wait and see what the supervisor at their headoffice comes back to me with. Im not taking this lying down. This could seriously have led to death!

jeez i have just bought a renault clio 1.2 and reading these comments has made my anatomy start to twich!!!!!, can any one tell me if there are particular models and what if anything i can do to prevent it happening. thanks bob

Happened to me last night. Just entered the motorway when the bonnet flew up totally obscuring my view. Lucky managed to pull onto the hard shoulder without being hit by the vehicles behind. Serious damage to the bonnet and roof.Called Renault, same issue as everyone else. If anyone makes any progress with Renault please post.

11th September 2007 Driving on a busy main road with heavy traffic flow in both directions at 50mph. Bonnet flew open (damaged the roof) I managed to bring the car to a stop safely and am thankful either myself or no other driver was Physically injured in the incident. Contacted Renault and I received same response no doubt as many other drivers have done. Why should I lose my no claims and pay excess on my insurance? It is clear this is a serious safety issue and potentially an Inherent Design/Manufacture De-Fault which needs to be taken seriously by Renault.In addition I was informed that I had been sent a safety re-call to date I have not received any saftey re-call from Renault.

I was driving down the Bedworth bypass on the way to the M6 on Thursday 20th September at 7pm when my bonnet flew open. I was driving about 50mph, the force of the bonnet smashed the windscreen, ruined the bonnet & also dented the roof of the car. The inside interior light was knocked out with the impact. Luckily, I am experienced enough to not have panicked. I drove a while looking through the gap at the bottom of the windscreen & managed to pull over into a layby without causing an accident. My car was then recovered as it was undriveable. I had to pick glass out of my skin. Obviously this is extremely ditressing.

I have had to pay £150 excess & lost over 20 years no claims. The bonnet was closed, Renault should accept responsibility. I finally had a call back from their "customer services manager", who was already primed with the standard responses. He was also extremely ignorant & rude & tried to pass the blame onto me. There will sooner or later be a death with this, and what will happen then!? When I get my repaired Clio back, I am getting rid of it.

This is a disgrace! Why should I lose all this money? It is OBVIOUSLY a design fault. Maybe they think they are too big that no one will challenge them??

I WAS TRAVELLING ALONG THE A2 AT APPROXIMATELY 45MPH AND MY BONNET FLEW UP SMASHING MY WINDSCREEN AND ROOF. I HAVE AN EXCESS OF £900 AND LOST MY NO CLAIMS AND STAND TO NOT OWN A CAR NEXT YEAR AS NOBODY WILL INSURE A YOUNG DRIVER WITH A CLAIM IN HIS FIRST YEAR. MY FRIEND HAS GLASS IN HIS EYE AND HAS A THREE MONTH WAIT TO SEE WHETHER HIS VISION WILL EVER BE RESTORED. HOW ON EARTH DOES RENAULT JUSTIFY THEIR FEEBLE EXCUSE THAT THE BONNET CATCH NEEDS TO BE MAINTAINED BETTER? WHAT OTHER CAR MAKER HAS ANYBODY HEARD OF CORROSION AFETR JUST A FEW YEARS? SOUNDS LIKE SHODDY WORKMANSHIP IS PUTTING ALOT OF PEOPLES LIVES AT RISK. TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILTY RENAULT!!!

same thing as everyone else 70 mph outside lane on way to work bonnet flew open for no reason this is bad im lucky to be alive its lucky i was going to work at midnight

Just happened to me - doing 40mph (if that) on my way to work in the dark, on a dark road - good job there was no traffic either in front or behind!! Will try to get in touch with Renault, does not seem to be an isolated incident - first we had heard about the bonnett problem was by looking on the internet after the fact!!

it happened to me 2 days ago, on a very busy main road in rush hour luckly no other car was involved and no one was hurt. i was doing 70mph in the outside lane. windscreen smashed and damage to the roof. ive called renault and got a reference number and was told to get back in touch with them after the repair garage has told me what the cause was! it has cost me £300 in excess for something that wasnt even my fault!! as for the letter that every clio owner was meant to receive from vosa explaining that the catch should be maintained, i never received this letter!

Hi i am 17 years old, driving my clio s reg at 50 mph on the dual carrigeway and the bonnet jst flew up and smashed my screen luky for me i didnt panic and swerve, the screen smashed and the boneet wht stuck to my screen and i couldnt see anything.im still in soo much shock caus i COULD HAVE LOST MY LIFE traveeling to college 2day at 8:25 on the north circular.

I dont know what to do at the moment but if any one can give me sum suggestions i could appreciate it because right now i cant afford to pay for a new screen and bonnet after all in only 17 and dnt work and saved up for years to buy this car and pay for my insurance.

Thnx

I was driving my renault clio on sunday 17th february,it was a nice afternoon and we we going at abouot 45MPH on a country lane when suddenly the bonnet came up and crashed into the windscreen !

My partner and her daughter were extremely frightened and thankfully the country road was quiet and wasn't going too fast so was able to stop the car in a controlled manner !

Thank god there were no cars on the road at the time or i may not have been here to write this. I contacted renault who said that they would not accept liability for this. Are they going to wait until someone gets killed before they take action !

I think it is an absolute disgrace that there are so many incidents with this type of bonnet yet they still say it is the owners fault. This speaks volumes about the corrupt and pure evil people who are basically covering this up RENUALT YOUR COMPANY IS A DISGRACE !

i was driving on the m8 motorway when the bonnet opened and smashed my wind screen. my self and my parner were lucky. we could have been killed . is there anyway i can claim renault.

this has happened to my son who was driving at 50 miles when the bonnet flew open smashed the windscreen left a dent in the roof he had to swevre of the the road hit a fence which smashed the passenger wing all this on his way with his girlfriend to the cinama we contacted renault but just a total waste of space we had to go through the insurance with a £300 acess and a loss of 25% no claims thank god they were both ok cant renault be sued never have another one of them cars

I cannot believe this has happened to so many people. it happened to me today! doing about 60 on the M55, it shot up, smashed my window, shattered glass is all inside the car. luckily I was in the slow lane and no one was behind me. it ruined my bonnet, destroyed the window and dented the roof! i am going to contact renault to tomorrow. I am shocked and disgusted

The same thing happened to me, i am amazed that so many people have survived without serious injury from this!

I was overtaking someone at 70mph on a dual carriageway when the bonnet came open smashing my windscreen and sticking up so I couldnt see. I was very lucky to be able to pull over without causing an accident to any other traffic on the road.

I will also be contacting renault today but from reading these reviews i do not hold out any hope! I am not covered on my insurance, the car is an S reg and therefore I am insured only for 3rd party fire and theft. I also just paid over £100 to put my car through its MOT last month! Which coincidentally was the last time the bonnet was touched.

How can this not be a fault with the car when it only seems to happen with Renault Clios?

Well, I just had the same problem on the 23/05/2008 driving at 60mph on a motorway with my clio 1.2 S reg (1998), and guess what, the bonnet flew open so quite scary and I need a new windscreen and of course a new bonnet. Has anyone had an answer whether we can get compensation for the damages?

Please let me know if I have a case!

Many thanks

I was taking my future inlaws to Inverness airport when the same thing happened to me today. Driving 60mph the bonnet flew up without warning smashing windscreen and damaging the roof. The force also made the interior light come flying out.

Very very scary!!!

Again looks like i am going to lose my no claims & be £200 out of pocket.

Same thing happened to me, on middle lane of the motorway. Luckily it wasn't busy traffic but awful that i wasn't aware of this problem! I now need new bonnet, windscreen and roof.

Money problems as above - this is not a car driven by people with money to throw away!

Renault - take responsibility!

me and two friends were driving on the dual carriagway and the same happened as all the stories here. we were lucky to come away with scratches from the glass (particularly from the sunroof which showered on top of us) and I am genuinly happy to be alive today. I am about to go through alot of financial struggle but it is basically not relevant anymore as i appreciate myself and my friends are still alive.

My Renault Clio's bonnet flew open this morning whilst on my way to work luckily not far from home on a straight road, at about 45 mph. The bonnet is dented and bent and wipers are ruineds as they were working at the time and there is a dent in the roof as wells as a smashed windscreen. I had not had my bonnet open for at least a week and had been travelling to and from work over that period. There is a plastic catch broken. My local Renault dealer said this was not covered by the cars warrenty which is still operative. I have been in touch with my insurers but don't know until Monday whether they will cover it. Now after looking up on the internet I find thousands of Clios have had a similiar problem. Lucky no injuries or worse. Renault should be ashamed of themselves for not addressing this problem and making an effort to help those affected.

The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) last week banned anyone from taking their test in a Clio that could be affected unless there's proof the bonnet catch has been checked. This is because a bonnet flew up during someone's test.

The DSA has a list of cars subject to a recall that aren't suitable for a practical driving test.

For more information go to the website www.dsa.gov.uk.

Clio Action Group -

You have probably located this website because you feel strongly about the recurring incidents of bonnets flying open on Renault Clio Mark IIs while in transit. If you have personally experienced this, I hope that you have escaped unscathed with only damage to the vehicle.

Clio Action Group Video

I have put a video up of the two parts that are failing on Clios, the bonnet catch mechanism and the safety catch. Please watch, and encourage others to. Refer to it in when contacting your MP - let's get them to see the sub-standard parts Renault are using. Remember to highlight that Renault are STILL putting this corrodable part into new cars, and replacing like for like at their service centres.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHfjteqTSIU

Complete the survey:

If you haven't already, please complete the Clio Action Group survey, and help to add to our analysis of the problem. Take the survey here . Here are some of the trends based on the first respondents:

78% - HAVE NOT received the reassurance letter from Renault…shocking when taken with the view that VOSA and the Department for Transport believe that all Clio owners have been notifed

63mph * - the average speed the Clio was traveling at when the bonnet (and safety) catch failed

£1,400 – the average cost of repairing the vehicle following the damage

http://groups.google.co.uk/group/clio-action-group

if you're experiencing problems with your Renault Clio Mark II, contact the firm on 0800 072 3372.

Every day Watchdog has heard more terrifying stories about Renault Clio Mark II bonnets flying open while the cars are being driven. Since April 2006, we've featured the problem with the Clio three times, and have now had over 1,000 complaints. And it's not just Clio drivers who could be at risk.

Andrea Cox was unfortunate enough to be behind a Clio when its bonnet flew open. She swerved, but her car went through a fence, rolled upside down, and ended up in a ditch. Cox suffered a fractured spine, and her car's a right-off. The police blamed the accident on the Clio bonnet, and say it could have ended with a fatality.

There's now a new version of the Clio on the road: the Clio Mark III. It has a completely different bonnet catch made entirely of metal, fully integrated, and, most importantly, fail safe. Of all the complaints Watchdog's received about Clio bonnet catches, not one concerned the new Clio Mark III. But there are still thousands of Clios on the road with the older bonnet catches. Experts say this is a design fault, and we know it's already caused serious accidents. Just how serious does it have to get before Renault will issue a recall?

Renault says it's continuing to analyse the cases reported to it, but it hasn't found a defect in any of the inspections it's already carried out. Renault has set up a special taskforce that will use its expertise to examine the cause of the accidents. In particular, it will look at whether this is a technical or maintenance issue. Renault says the results of the special taskforce are imminent, and when it gets them it’ll be in touch.

The company reiterates that customer safety is of paramount importance and any customer complaint is taken extremely seriously.

Renault Customer Service: 0800 072 3372. Office hours only.

If you’re experiencing similar problems, contact the Clio Action Group for support.

Yes its happeneded to me too. Driving along on the motorway going 70mph with my husband and I dont know how but we managed to pull onto the hard shoulder safely.

Again, its dented my roof so looks as if as its a write off.

I am the second owner and I have never recieved a letter.

My husband is contacting renault today with our complaint, just feel really lucky to be here today.

My son was driving home sunday morning, doing 30 mph and his bonnet shot up and smashed the windscreen, its dented the roof where the ariel sits, luckyly he was not injured, it has cost us £400 for a new windscreen and we have to find a new bonnet now, he was insured TPFT so I can't claim.

We have spoken to the previous owner and he says renault have never contacted him about the problem. we are going to get a solicitor to contact renault to try and get some compensation for the costs incurred.

We were driving on the M25 yesterday at 70mph in the fast lane when the bonnet flew open smashing the windscreen.We were so lucky an ambulance was behind us and was able to stop the traffic and get to safely to the hard shoulder. We were told by the emergency services that this is a known problem with clios. It is yet again a near miss fatality. Renault needs to take responsibility.