§ 34. Compensation when the item damages other things
If the item breaks and damages something else, the seller (selger) may have to pay for that damage. This applies especially where the item damages things with a "close and direct connection" — such as the food in the fridge.
Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська
The text of the law (unofficial translation)
The seller's liability for compensation (erstatning) for loss resulting from a defect (mangel) covers, in addition to damage to the item sold itself, also damage to objects that the item sold is used to produce, or that have a close and direct connection with the intended use of the item sold.
For product damage (produktskade) other than that mentioned in the first paragraph, the consumer (forbruker) may claim compensation unless the seller proves that the loss is not due to error or negligence on the seller's part.
When the seller pays compensation for damage to something other than the item sold itself, the seller takes over any claim the consumer has against the manufacturer (produsent) under the Act of 23 December 1988 No. 104 on product liability.
What does this mean?
The law distinguishes between two types of consequential damage:
Close and direct connection: The washing machine and the clothes inside it. The freezer and the food. The phone and the memory card. Here liability is strict — the seller pays without exception.
Other product damage (such as the floor): The defective washing machine floods the living room floor. Here the seller can avoid liability if they have done nothing wrong. In practice: Call your home contents insurance (innboforsikring). They settle quickly and take up the dispute with the manufacturer themselves.
Example
Håkon buys a photo printer with a fatal hardware fault that sprays ink and eats the paper. He makes a complaint about the defect, but Håkon has also lost photo paper worth NOK 1,000. The paper has a "close and direct connection" with the printer's use. He can claim the NOK 1,000 from the shop.
Common mistakes
- Arguing with the electronics shop for months about a flooded floor — call your home contents insurance instead
- Throwing away spoiled food without taking photos and noting its value
What should you do?
Close and direct damage (food, clothes): Take photos, estimate the value, send a claim to the shop. Damage to the building: Call your insurance company the same evening.