All about bicycles, electric-assisted bikes, technology and safety in the press

The most common safety risks that we come across in our daily work around bicycle safety, technology and operating instructions are also published by us in articles in the leading German special-interest magazines TOUR (Europe's road bike magazine no. 1), BIKE (Europe's mountain bike magazine no. 1), MYBIKE and EMTB in order to make this information, which is important for the industry, available to a wider public.

For many years now, the Eurobike Show Daily, trade fair magazine of the annual Eurobike Show, has also given us the opportunity to publish our view of major developments in the cycle industry in full-page articles.

We also speak regularly in independent expert presentations about all areas of bicycle technology and the bicycle market. In addition, we are quoted by further special-interest magazines of the industry and the trade as well as increasingly by radio and television in their media reports, which shows us that we are spot on with our advice. The section "News" informs you about the latest news from our specialist areas. The reports and publications of this section are listed chronologically or according to areas of interest.

TOUR 05/2022
Reading time 1:00 minute

“Cheap pads would cause problems in court”

Graduate engineer Dirk Zedler, loss adjustor and expert for bicycle safety
 
Brake manufacturers warn that using pads or discs from third-party manufacturers voids all guarantee and warranty claims. What does this mean if you face a problem with the brake?
One must distinguish precisely between the guarantee and the liability for material defects, i.e. the statutory guarantee. The brake manufacturer can refuse the guarantee in any case, because it is a voluntary additional service. However, he cannot free himself so easily from the liability for material defects. There must be a causal relationship between the brake defect and the modification. The problem therefore has to be attributed directly to the third-party pads or discs, then they can reject liability.
 
Can I refer to the manufacturer of the pads or discs who recommends the parts for a particular brake?
In case of problems, you should involve the manufacturer of the third-party parts in any case. In case of doubt, reputable suppliers can prove that their products are compatible with the respective brake. I would therefore advise against using cheap no-name parts that do not even have a manufacturer's name on them. They would certainly cause problems in court.
 
How common are problems with third-party pads?
Using parts originating from renowned accessory brands is not a problem.
Currently, many dealers are also switching to third-party manufacturers, and we are not hearing any complaints. However, these are mostly well-known brands that control their production well. We know from the automotive sector that cheap pads from dubious sources can have large tolerances, i.e. one pad may work well, but not the next.
 
The interview was held by Jens Kloetzer

 

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