I've had the same experience but with my mums Renault Scenic. During the last cold snap, the passenger door handle stopped working, the only way to shut the door was to lean on it & lock it with the central locking fob.
I took a look at the handle & saw it was all floppy & declared it buggered, so mum booked the car into a garage & the mechanic took one look at & said "Oh that's a common problem with Renaults there's ice in the door handle mechanism."
Not saying it's the same thing, but it could be.
