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I have the same engine in my Focus, and yes it's a thing. I don't know whether its still a problem on new engines. The same engine is in BMWs, Minis, Fords, Volvos, Peugeots and Citroens, and probably more besides.
The weak point is the gauze filter in the turbo oil feed pipe, but the actual root cause is failure of the seals under the fuel injectors. If one or more of the seals stop sealing you get carbon build up around the injector which gets sucked into the engine, and makes its way into the oilways. This grot then finds its way into the turbo oil feed pipe where it blocks up the little gauze filter more and more until not enough oil gets through. The turbo then gets starved of oil and seizes. New turbo time, that'll be £1500 for parts and labour please.
Once you have your new injector seals (and injectors if they are ruined) new turbo, oil feed pipe and filter all fitted, then you need to pull the oil feed pipe and filter after 30 miles and clean out the filter of any crud that got missed the first time round, or you are back to square one.
So, keep an eye on your injectors and at the first sign of carbon build up, replace the seals.
There are YouTube videos which illustrate all this in a really clear way.
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bq
CYOA
Retired mechanic friend of my dads whispering into his ear about my automatic Berlingo/Partner chat saying the 1.6 HDI is renowned for turbo failure and even with careful and regular servicing can still fall foul.
My reading suggests that this only affects the 1.6 HDIs released in the first gen Berlingos from 2009 and earlier. i.e. not the 'Blue' or 'e-HDI' models?
After he mentioned it I read a few forums and it did seem to be a big issue but I can't categorically confirm if it affects newer models.
Was about to pull the plug on a Partner at the weekend but have cold feet.