diff --git a/litellm/llms/searxng/search/transformation.py b/litellm/llms/searxng/search/transformation.py
index 4afb8b32e4b..e61f8867605 100644
--- a/litellm/llms/searxng/search/transformation.py
+++ b/litellm/llms/searxng/search/transformation.py
@@ -204,6 +204,17 @@ class SearXNGSearchConfig(BaseSearchConfig):
         Returns:
             SearchResponse with standardized format
         """
+        if not 200 <= raw_response.status_code < 300:
+            # The HTTP handlers for this provider do not call raise_for_status,
+            # so an upstream 429/503 would otherwise be parsed as a successful
+            # response with zero results. The upstream body is deliberately not
+            # echoed, because it can contain the original query.
+            raise self.get_error_class(
+                error_message=(f"SearXNG search provider returned HTTP {raw_response.status_code}"),
+                status_code=raw_response.status_code,
+                headers=dict(raw_response.headers),  # mutable-ok: get_error_class takes a plain dict
+            )
+
         response_json: Final = raw_response.json()
 
         # Transform results to SearchResult objects
diff --git a/tests/test_litellm/llms/searxng/search/test_searxng_transformation.py b/tests/test_litellm/llms/searxng/search/test_searxng_transformation.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d5208f78c0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_litellm/llms/searxng/search/test_searxng_transformation.py
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+"""
+Regression tests for HTTP status handling in ``SearXNGSearchConfig``.
+
+The adapter used to build a ``SearchResponse`` from ``raw_response.json()``
+without inspecting the status code. A 429 or 503 has no ``results`` key, so the
+caller received a successful response with zero results — indistinguishable
+from a query that genuinely matched nothing, which meant fallback between
+configured search tools never fired.
+"""
+
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock
+
+import httpx
+import pytest
+
+from litellm.llms.base_llm.chat.transformation import BaseLLMException
+from litellm.llms.searxng.search.transformation import SearXNGSearchConfig
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def config() -> SearXNGSearchConfig:
+    return SearXNGSearchConfig()
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def logging_obj() -> MagicMock:
+    return MagicMock()
+
+
+def _response(status_code: int, payload: dict) -> httpx.Response:
+    return httpx.Response(
+        status_code=status_code,
+        json=payload,
+        request=httpx.Request("GET", "https://searxng.example.com/search"),
+    )
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("status_code", [429, 503])
+def test_retryable_status_is_raised_not_parsed_as_empty(
+    config: SearXNGSearchConfig, logging_obj: MagicMock, status_code: int
+) -> None:
+    """A rate-limited or unavailable instance must surface as an error."""
+    with pytest.raises(BaseLLMException) as exc_info:
+        config.transform_search_response(
+            raw_response=_response(status_code, {"error": "upstream unavailable"}),
+            logging_obj=logging_obj,
+        )
+
+    assert exc_info.value.status_code == status_code
+    assert str(status_code) in str(exc_info.value)
+
+
+def test_error_message_does_not_echo_upstream_body(config: SearXNGSearchConfig, logging_obj: MagicMock) -> None:
+    """The upstream body can echo the original query; keep it out of the error."""
+    with pytest.raises(BaseLLMException) as exc_info:
+        config.transform_search_response(
+            raw_response=_response(500, {"error": "failed searching for confidential-term"}),
+            logging_obj=logging_obj,
+        )
+
+    assert "confidential-term" not in str(exc_info.value)
+
+
+def test_success_status_still_parses_normally(config: SearXNGSearchConfig, logging_obj: MagicMock) -> None:
+    """2xx behaviour is unchanged."""
+    response = config.transform_search_response(
+        raw_response=_response(200, {"results": [{"title": "Still works", "url": "https://example.com"}]}),
+        logging_obj=logging_obj,
+    )
+
+    assert len(response.results) == 1
+    assert response.results[0].title == "Still works"