German Lawsuit Backed By 470,000 VW Owners Filed Over Dieselgate

A huge legal case against Volkswagen has kicked off in Germany over the company’s diesel emissions scandal.

The declaratory model action, a new form of German legal instrument similar to a class-action lawsuit in the United States, has been brought by the Federation of German Consumer Organisations on behalf of 470,000 owners of diesel-powered cars sold after 1 November 2008 by the Volkswagen Group.

Germany introduced this new legal instrument in the wake of dieselgate to provide collective redress for consumers impacted by the wrongs of large companies.

Also Read: Former VW CEO Martin Winterkorn Charged With Fraud, Could Face 10 Years In Prison For Dieselgate

The Guardian suggests that the huge scale of the case could mean it lasts for as long as four years and if the court is to rule against Volkswagen, each individual plaintiff in the case would be required to make an individual application for compensation on a case-by-case basis.

In the years since the dieselgate scandal broke in September 2015, Volkswagen has paid out more than $32 billion in fines, compensation, and legal costs around the world. The Braunschweig state court, where the legal case has been filed, declared the suit as admissible as proceedings opened on Monday this week and said plaintiffs had a lot of work to do to prove their case.

Judge Michael Neef suggested that the two sides could consider a settlement, although a Volkswagen spokesman said the automaker will defend against the claims vigorously and believes they are unfounded.