The case in summary: • Marthe Skjæret Nilsen and Hamar Arbeiderblad are being sued by Norsk Robotklippersenter AS for defamation after Nilsen expressed dissatisfaction with the company’s service in the newspaper. • Nilsen believes that a robotic lawnmower she bought was destroyed after the company took it in for winter storage. Norsk Robotklippersenter AS does not agree with this. • The firm claims that they agreed with the customer that the damage should be covered by Nilsen’s contents insurance. • Norsk Robotklippersenter AS demands a total of NOK 1,083,000 in compensation, as well as NOK 800,000 in compensation from Hamar Arbeiderblad, up to NOK 400,000 in compensation from editor Katrine Strøm, and NOK 300,000 from Nilsen. • Strøm expresses surprise that the case was not reported to the Press’ Professional Committee first, and looks forward to getting the case before the court. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. The question the court must decide is whether the mention of the case in Hamar Arbeiderblad is defamatory or just a completely normal consumer case with a dissatisfied customer. – I had not imagined that this case would lead to a lawsuit, says editor-in-chief of HA, Katrine Strøm. She does not think the case stands out from other similar cases that the newspaper covers many times a year. Hamar Arbeiderblad, and editor-in-chief Katrine Strøm, are being sued by a local company that believes a newspaper article they printed is defamatory. Photo: Frode Meskau / news Marthe Skjæret Nilsen is the customer and newspaper source who is being sued. – It feels strange. It is a completely normal matter – that a consumer is dissatisfied with the service they receive. And as a company you have to put up with standing in some cases, she says. Argument over damage The background to it all is that Marthe Skjæret Nilsen bought a robotic lawnmower which the seller was to take in for storage and service in the winter. The second winter, she received a call in February saying that her mower was broken, but that she could get a new one on the contents insurance. Nilsen believes the mower must have been destroyed after the seller picked it up. – It seemed like owls in the bog. Because I used the mower until it was delivered for winter storage. I would like it back. After all, I have paid tens of thousands of kroner for it and paid for winter service and winter storage. And then suddenly it has become their property, she says. The heart of the dispute is a robotic lawnmower. Now the lawnmower company has sued its customer and Hamar Arbeiderblad after the newspaper wrote about the case. This is an illustration picture taken on another occasion. Photo: Lars Erik Skrefsrud / news After much back and forth, she did not feel that she was getting anywhere and chose to tell the story to the newspaper. It is Norsk Robotklippersenter AS and Robomoweksperten AS that are formally behind the lawsuit against the customer and the newspaper. The robot mower was bought from Mortens Hage in Stange. The company believes that incorrect and defamatory statements have been made and demands compensation and restitution in connection with the article in Hamar Arbeiderblad and on Facebook. According to the plaintiff, they agreed with the customer that the mower had damage that the customer’s contents insurance should cover. The company believes that the customer broke that agreement and wanted the robotic lawnmower handed over free of charge, at the same time that the customer took advantage of using the contents insurance and had the robotic lawnmower replaced by the insurance company. The companies go to court because they believe that their reputation has been damaged and that not all the facts had been put on the table. They believe this has led to sales failure due to the negative publicity. – The newspaper case reproduces very serious accusations against my clients, including criminal embezzlement. The newspaper cannot reproduce such accusations without further ado. This is what lawyer Linneá Tereza Karlberg of the law firm Danielsen & Co writes in an e-mail to news. She represents Norsk Robotklippersenter AS and Robomoweksperten AS. The newspaper story is said to have also been shared on social media, which gave the lawnmower company more negative publicity. Demanding millions Hamar Arbeiderblad, editor-in-chief Katrine Strøm and Marthe Skjæret Nilsen, who was the source of the article in the newspaper, are demanding a total of compensation of NOK 1,083,000. The plaintiffs believe that HA must also be ordered to pay NOK 800,000 in compensation, that editor Katrine Strøm must personally pay up to NOK 400,000 in compensation and the customer NOK 300,000. – The plaintiffs demand compensation for their losses as a result of the defamatory mention, as well as restitution for the same, says lawyer Karlberg. Marthe S. Nilsen is excited about the trial. – I hope that there is some common sense here, because the financial demand is completely outrageous. I’m starting to feel it a bit on my body, that you get a bit stressed, she says. Nilsen’s lawyer in the case, Espen Henrik Johansen, has not responded to news’s inquiry. – I’m starting to feel it a bit on my body, that you get a bit stressed, says Marthe Skjæret Nilsen about the lawsuit. Photo: Frode Meskau / news Fundamentally important The editor of Hamar Arbeiderblad, Katrine Strøm, thinks it is surprising that the lawnmower company did not report the case to Pressens Faglige Utvalg (PFU) first, but rather went directly to a lawsuit. She says the company had the opportunity to respond to the accusations and allegations from the customer before the newspaper article was published. Now she is looking forward to taking the case to court. It can become fundamentally important. – If the press is not going to be able to carry out these types of jobs, then it will push the limits of what we as a local newspaper can do. So, first of all, I’m looking forward to having it discussed in public and getting the court’s view on where the border should go, says Strøm. The editor-in-chief of Hamar Arbeiderblad, Katrine Strøm, looks forward to the court’s assessment of the case. Photo: Frode Meskau / news The lawyer for the lawnmower company believes it is important to crack down on this type of publicity. – There is basically no doubt that accusations of criminal activity cannot be published, but it is important to have an active focus on this type of publicity, says Linnéa Tereza Karlberg. The trial will take place in the Østre Innlandet District Court on 25 and 26 June. Published 25.06.2024, at 09.45 Updated 25.06.2024, at 10.04
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Dissatisfied customer and Hamar Arbeiderblad are sued by Norwegian Robotklippersenter – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
