New spotlight on the Dieselgate affair. The European Commission has called on Volkswagen to compensate all customers in the European Union who are victims of rigged engines. The EU asks the firm not to “play the clock”. 900,000 French customers are potentially affected.
Something new in the Dieselgate affair. While many appeals have been filed in Europe, European Commission asks German manufacturer to compensate injured customers by the scandal of rigged engines between 2009 and 2015.
“The company’s position has not changed despite recent decisions by European and national courts, which is why the Commission and European consumer protection authorities are stepping up the pressure, the Commission said in a statement.“
Not ” play for time ” and ” close this chapter “
European Commissioner Didier Reynders, in charge of consumer protection, underlined the ” ill will “From the German group, asking him to” act as determinedly outside Germany as it does in Germany “. To date, Volkswagen has found “ an agreement with a large part of consumers who were resident in Germany at the time of purchase Of their car, details the network of consumer protection authorities in the 27 EU countries. He therefore believes that the company must ” get in touch with consumers in all Member States who are still seeking compensation to find appropriate solutions and close this chapter avoiding years of litigation “. For Didier Reynders, it is important that the manufacturer stops ” to play the watch ” and avoids compensating customers “ as the sentences fall one after the other “.
900,000 customers affected in France
Across the Rhine, the firm has reached an agreement with the consumer association VZBV. The 235,000 owners of rigged diesel cars received between 1,350 and 6,250 euros in compensation depending on the type and age of the vehicle. In an opinion delivered to the Commission, the manufacturer from Wolfsburg considered that the compensation for European consumers outside Germany was not justified since the cars concerned have been modified to correspond to the standards.
While the European Commission’s announcement should put some balm on the hearts of the 900,000 French customers affected by the affair (150,000 consumers concerned in the Netherlands and 400,000 in Belgium), it is not binding on the consumer. builder. It is ” political pressure »Assures the elected European which asks the German group to ” set a compensation rule applicable to all Europeans on the basis of the average compensation decided in the sentences already handed down against the manufacturer, in Germany, the Netherlands and Italy “.
“According to the Belgian commissioner, the amount of compensation could be around 3,000 euros per vehicle. “
30 billion already disbursed by Volkswagen
The manufacturer has spent at least 750 million euros in Germany and more than 30 billion euros worldwide, much of it in the United States. Didier Reynders did not give the estimate of the overall amount that the firm will have to pay in Europe. What is certain is that some 8.5 million diesel vehicles in Europe (out of 11 million overall) have been fitted with a cookie capable of fooling the controls on nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions.
Sources: AFP, Reuters
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