Emissions scandal how diesel drivers get compensation for damages

Many car manufacturers have illegally tricked. Audi, daimler, fiat, porsche and VW must compensate buyers of affected cars. Here you will find all the information.

1. Overview

• What’s new in the emissions scandal??

• What is actually the scandal?
• Who is affected by the emissions scandal?

• As the owner of a car with illegal engine management, can I claim compensation from the manufacturer??
• Assuming that I am entitled to compensation as the owner of a scandal car, what can I claim from the manufacturer??
• How is the compensation for use calculated, which VW is allowed to deduct from the purchase price to be refunded??
• Is compensation for the kilometers driven with the car also to be taken into account in the "small damages"??
• How much interest must the manufacturer of a car with illegal engine management pay me if he is ordered to compensate me??
• Can manufacturers be held liable for the unacceptably high emissions of their cars??
• What can I do as a victim of an emissions scandal if I am entitled to compensation for damages according to the Federal Court of Justice??
• What can I do as the owner of a mercedes GLK or GLC for which the Federal Motor Transport Authority has forced mercedes to retrofit a new engine management system because of illegal engine management??
• What can i do as the owner of an audi, porsche or VW with 3.0 to 4.2 liter V6 TDI from audi company to get compensation for damages?
• When does my right to compensation for damages due to the emissions scandal expire??
• Can I still sue for damages despite the expiration of the three-year statute of limitations??

• Do I have any rights at all against the seller of a scandal car??
• Can I withdraw from the contract if I have received a car with an illegal engine management system??
• If I complain, do I have to give my dealer the chance to fix the problem??
• I want to withdraw from the purchase and claim the purchase price back. I have to take into account an amount for my driven kilometers. How is it calculated?
• When do my rights against the dealer become time-barred??
• How can I stop the statute of limitations??
• As a buyer of a used car with illegal engine management, do I have the same rights as the first owner??

• What do I have to bear in mind if I have leased a scandal car??

• What changes if I paid for my scandal car with a car loan arranged by the dealer??

• How did the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) rule on the VW scandal??
• How do the federal judges justify their decisions??
• What about interest paid by scandal car owners when financing their car??
• What has the Federal Supreme Court (BGH) decided about the statute of limitations??
• Do the previous BGH rulings also apply to other scandal car owners??
• How the european court of justice (eugh) views the emissions scandal?

• I own a car with an EA189 engine, but have not done anything about it yet. Can I still stop the statute of limitations for possible claims for damages against VW, or is it too late??
• What applies if i had registered my rights at the time to the vzbv’s sample complaint against VW?
• What risk do I run if I take legal action against the manufacturer without legal protection insurance??
• What can I do if I cannot afford the advance for lawyer’s fees and court costs??
• As the owner of a scandalous car, can I expect support from the authorities??

• What happens with the scandal cars?
• What are politicians doing about the emissions scandal??
• How do I find out what emission class my car has??
• Car manufacturers offer "environmental bonuses" if you return your old diesel. Is it worth it?

• What exactly did volkswagen do in terms of retrofitting?
• Why retrofit? Wouldn’t it have been enough if the cars always drove in clean test bench mode??
• How do pollutant emissions and fuel consumption change when cars are retrofitted??
• Does the durability of the engines deteriorate as a result of the retrofit??

• Can I still drive cars with manipulation software on board??
• Can the authorities revoke the registration of my car??
• Can I defend myself against the withdrawal of registration and immobilization??
• Do I get a new tuv for a scandalous car without retrofitting??
• Do I have to expect driving bans?
• Do i have to pay car tax if VW has underreported the carbon dioxide emissions of my car??
• Am i liable for unacceptably high emissions from my car??

• As a VW shareholder, am I entitled to compensation for share price losses??
• Is there a model procedure that I can follow as an investor??
• What do I have to consider as a VW shareholder if I want to claim damages??

Current

What’s new in the emissions scandal?

Small compensation. New announcement from the Federal Court of Justice: the so-called "small damages", i.e. compensation for the reduced value associated with the scandalous and illegal engine management system without returning the car, is only reduced if the car achieves more kilometers than were actually expected of it. Further details in our chronicle on the emissions scandal.

Further important dates at the Federal Court of Justice. In the next few weeks, the Federal Court of Justice will clarify further important legal issues relating to the emissions scandal. First and foremost, on monday, 21. February 2022, deal with whether and under what conditions VW is liable to buyers of scandal cars even beyond the normal statute of limitations.

Registrations for the class action lawsuit against daimler. Owners of mercedes GLC and GLK models with originally illegal engine management systems can register their rights with the verbraucherzentrale bundesverband (vzbv) for a sample declaratory action. All details in the special sample declaratory action. The prospects for success are good. the competent senate of the stuttgart higher regional court has just let it be known: it currently assumes that daimler is liable on the grounds of intentional immoral damage. Only if the Group can convincingly explain that and why the engine developers within the Group were allowed to consider the exhaust gas cleaning strategy objected to by the Federal Motor Transport Authority to be legal can the conviction still be prevented. Further details in our chronicle of the emissions scandal.

New class action against audi. The major berlin law firm gansel rechtsanwalte is launching a new class action lawsuit on behalf of owners of large audi, porsche and VW m with V6 TDI engines from audi with 3.0 to 4.2 liter displacement and illegal engine control. Unlike other process financing offers otherwise often no economic disadvantages can arise. More details in our emissions scandal chronicle.

emissions scandal – what is it about??

What does the scandal actually consist of??

Technical problem. It was initially difficult for manufacturers to comply with the increasingly strict emissions limits, especially for efficient and powerful turbodiesel engines. The high temperature and pressure in the combustion chamber lead to a high proportion of toxic nitrogen oxide in the exhaust gas. Emissions could be reduced, but performance, efficiency and/or durability regularly suffered as a result.

test cheating. For the approval of newly developed cars, it was crucial that the pollutant limits were complied with in a test bench trial under precisely defined conditions that are very rarely encountered in normal driving conditions. Apparently, engineers in engine development throughout the industry soon began to control the machines in such a way that the limit values for the pollutant content in the exhaust gas are complied with on the test bench, but on the other hand, performance and efficiency are maintained in everyday life. In the end, cars with diesel engines were actually only clean in test bench trials and otherwise emitted much more toxic nitrogen oxide than permitted.

Violation of EU law. According to EU type approval regulations, exhaust gas purification may only be reduced or switched off in exceptional cases if this is necessary to prevent accidents or engine damage. Consequence of illegal engine management: car owners must expect the authorities to immobilize their vehicle.

Who is affected by the emissions scandal?

This has still not been conclusively clarified. There is a lot to be said for the fact that hardly any car with a diesel engine certified according to euro 4, euro 5 and euro 6 standards is really legal. Cars only certified to euro 6d and more recent standards are considered reliably clean. Authorities and courts find it difficult to deal with the scandal.

To date, the Federal Motor Transport Authority in flensburg has judged the engine control system in the following cars to be illegal and ordered the development of new software:

BMW: 11 700 cars from the 5 and 7 series with diesel engines. According to BMW, an incorrect engine control system was installed in these cars by mistake.

Daimler AG: 820,000 Mercedes A, B, C, E, G and S class cars with CDI engines registered to the euro 5 emissions standard

Opel: just under 100,000 cars in the cascada, insignia and zafira model series with euro 6 diesel engines.

VW group: nearly 2.8 million audi, porsche, seat, skoda and VW cars with 1.2, 1.6, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 and 4.2-liter turbodiesel engines.

Rights vis-à-vis the manufacturer

As the owner of a car with illegal engine management, can i claim compensation from the manufacturer??

If the company’s management has deliberately gained a competitive advantage through illegal tricks in engine control, car manufacturers must pay damages to buyers of such scandalous cars on the grounds of intentional and immoral harm.

Liability sure. That VW is responsible for the already in september 2015 uncovered machinations in the development of the engine control for 1.3-, 1.6-, 2.0-liter TDI engines of the type EA189 is liable, it is finally certain that. Also the delivery of most cars with mainly from group subsidiary audi developed 2.5-, 3.0-, 3.6- and 4.2-liter TDI engines appears to be intentional and immoral harm to buyers.

Probable liability. For other cars, intentional and immoral damage to buyers is likely if the german Federal Motor Transport Authority has judged the engine control system to be illegal and ordered a recall. The decisive factor is whether the car manufacturer behaved in an immoral manner. This is what the courts assume if the car manufacturers were aware that the engine management system was illegal and used it anyway in order to offer the cars at a lower price and thus increase sales.

In the case of the scandal cars from VW was the engine control system programmed to detect test bench tests to determine the level of pollutants in the exhaust gas for type approval. They then control the engine so that it operates cleanly. In normal driving operation, it switched to performance, economy and durability. Emissions of toxic nitrogen oxide rose far above the limit values. announcement of the courts: this is clearly illegal and because of the danger of immobilization of such cars an immoral damage of the buyers.

The strategy of the fiat. The engine management system of many diesel engines from the fiat-chrysler group (now called stellantis) keeps emissions below the limits for 22 minutes after startup, so that the cars pass the 20-minute dynamometer test for type approval. After that, performance and consumption are optimized and pollutant emissions increase.

Also highly suspicious: for many engines with adblue injection in order to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions, the engine control system reduced the injection when the ad-blue supply ran out before the next inspection was scheduled. Apparently, the manufacturers wanted to spare their customers having to refuel with the sticky and unpleasant-smelling adblue themselves.

Liability unclear. It becomes difficult with engines in which exhaust gas cleaning depends on numerous different factors such as air temperature and pressure, coolant temperature, speed and transmission setting. Suspicion of many consumer advocates: ultimately, the aim was to avoid, as far as possible, performance- and efficiency-reducing operation with pollutant emissions below the limits. Exactly which strategies appear to be immoral will depend on what experts find on behalf of the courts.

Test.De deems safe: as far as the manufacturers have disclosed their engine control to the federal motor vehicle authority or another type approval authority, there is no intentional immoral damage, even if it turns out in retrospect that the engine control approved by the competent authority was not in conformity with the strict requirements of the eugh on the interpretation of the eu directives (see question "what has the european court of justice (eugh) decided??") was illegal after all. However, the car manufacturers have not usually provided the Kraftfahrtbundesamt with any details of the engine control system. In each case, the only important thing was that the car complied with the pollutant limits in the test bench trial.

Assuming that I, as the owner of a scandalous car, am entitled to compensation for damages, what can I claim from the manufacturer??

Then they could make a small or a large claim for damages, as they choose.

Small damage compensation. Includes the inferior value of the delivered car compared to a car as it should have been.
Benefit: you can keep your car if you want to.
Disadvantage: how much euros the diminished value actually amounts to is difficult to clarify. Some judges simply estimate, others demand an expensive expert opinion, which drives up the risk of litigation costs and makes them difficult to calculate.
Large damages. covers the entire conclusion of the contract and gives them a right to rescind the purchase contract. That means: you get the purchase price back. In exchange, you must return the car and pay compensation for the kilometers driven with the car.

In each case, interest on arrears or at least litigation interest is added. details about this and the calculation below in the answer to the question: "how much interest must the manufacturer of a car with illegal engine management pay me if he is ordered to compensate me?".

Advantage: the large damage compensation can be easily determined.
Disadvantage: you can’t keep your car.

How is the compensation for use calculated, which VW may deduct from the purchase price to be refunded??

The courts calculate the compensation for the miles driven with the car like this: first, the judges estimate how many miles the car will typically do before it is taken out of service. For cars with diesel engines, the judges usually assume a total mileage of 250,000 kilometers; for large cars, they sometimes apply 300,000 or even more kilometers.

On the calculation of compensation for use in the case of NEW CAR multiply the purchase price by the number of kilometers driven so far and divide the result by the total kilometers.

Calculation example: at the latest on 22. September 2015 for 30 000 euro a VW passat 2.0 TDI bought new. Now the speedometer shows 100 000 kilometers. The total mileage is estimated by the competent judge at 300 000 kilometers. The use allowance is:
30 000 euro * 100 000 km / 300 000 km = 10 000 euro
at as a used car you calculate accordingly: purchase price times (kilometers now minus kilometers at purchase) divided by (total kilometers minus kilometers at purchase) = compensation for use.

Calculation example: they have to fill the tank at the latest on 22. September 2015 for 15,000 euros a VW golf 1.6 TDI bought with 50 000 kilometers on the speedometer. Now the speedometer shows 150 000 kilometers. The judge in charge estimates the total mileage at 250,000 kilometers. The compensation for use is:
15 000 euro * (150 000 km – 50 000 km) / (250 000 km – 50 000 km) = 7 500 euro

Use our VW compensation calculator if you want to determine the approximate amount of compensation for your case.

Is compensation for the kilometers driven with the car also to be taken into account in "minor damages"??

how much interest must the manufacturer of a car with illegal engine control pay me if he is ordered to compensate me??

The respective manufacturer must pay interest at a rate of five percentage points above the respective prime rate on the amount owed in each case. If the claim is correct, interest will start to accrue from the expiry of the deadline set for the manufacturer to pay the compensation, but no later than the date on which the statement of claim is served on the Group.

For large-scale damages, i.e. reimbursement of the purchase price less compensation for use when the car is returned, the interest rate is complicated to calculate. The amount owed by the manufacturer depends on the mileage of the car and must be determined separately for each day. the courts are allowed to estimate it from the initial value of the speedometer at the time of purchase up to the value on the day of the last hearing of the case, if the respective plaintiff is unable to provide more precise information. To do this, you will determine the average daily mileage and use this to calculate the amount owed in each case. Considerable amounts are involved.

Example: a mid-range car, purchased new on 1.1.2015 for 30,000 euros, the deadline for reimbursement of the purchase price less the compensation for use calculated with a total mileage of 250,000 kilometers against the return of the car ended on 1.1.2017, the last hearing of the lawsuit by all instances was on 1.8.2020 with a mileage of the car of 125 000 kilometers: the interest on arrears will be the same if the car is used evenly and if the compensation is paid on 1.1.2021 to a total of almost 3,200 euros.

Can manufacturers be held liable for the unacceptably high pollutant emissions of their cars??

Unlike in the USA, this will probably not be possible in this country. However, high fines are due. As the first authority in the EU, officials at the Dutch autoriteit consument& market a fine of 450,000 euros against VW – for unfair competition. the car company faked clean emissions and misrepresented itself as an environmentally conscious and "green" company.

In the meantime, the public prosecutor’s office in braunschweig has ordered VW to pay one billion euros in fines. Daimler paid a fine of 870 million euros, audi 800 million euros, porsche 535 million euros and bosch 90 million euros.

In addition, prosecutors are investigating 17 VW employees, including the former chairman of the board martin winterkorn. ex-audi boss rupert stadler was even held in custody for three and a half months and was only released on bail. Employees of the supplier bosch are also suspected of having committed criminal offences.

What can I do as a victim of the emissions scandal if I’m entitled to damages according to the Federal Court of Justice’s announcements??

You should first claim compensation for damages yourself. This is where the

What can i do as the owner of a mercedes GLK or GLC for which the german federal motor transport authority has forced mercedes to retrofit a new engine management system because of illegal engine control??

You can register your rights to the sample declaratory action brought by the verbraucherzentrale bundesverband (vzbv) against Daimler. The judgment in the proceedings then also applies to you. If the vzbv prevails, it is certain that they will receive compensation for damages. It only needs to be clarified in each individual case how much money you are entitled to. details of the daimler lawsuit in our special sample declaratory judgment actions.

What can I do as the owner of an audi, porsche or VW with 3.0 to 4.2 liter V6 TDI from audi company to get compensation for damages?

You should first claim damages yourself. The following will help

When does my right to claim compensation for damages due to the emissions scandal expire??

Your right to compensation expires three years after the end of the year in which you learned that your car was involved in the emissions scandal. The decisive factor should be when you receive the request to come to the workshop with your car in order to have a new engine control installed there. your right to compensation for damages also expires at the latest 10 years after ordering or purchasing your car. The decisive date is the day on which you have committed yourself to the seller of the car to pay the purchase price. Was that the 10. November 2011, then your right to compensation for damages is no later than 11. November 2021 statute of limitations if you have not taken legal action before then.

Can I still sue for damages despite the expiration of the three-year statute of limitations??

Yes, you are then still entitled to the so-called residual damage claim. However, it has not yet been clarified what exactly is required and how far the claim extends. Many consumer advocates and some legal scholars believe that the residual claim for damages will bring many victims of the emissions scandal just as much as the original claim for damages, which is time-barred. On monday, 21. february, it will probably be finally determined what exactly applies. On that day, the Federal Court of Justice will hear the lawsuits of two scandal car owners who had purchased their cars new and only went to court after the normal statute of limitations had expired.

Rights against the seller

Do I have any rights at all against the seller of a scandalous car??

One thing is certain: cars with illegal engine management systems are defective. The dealer is liable, even if he knew nothing at all about the illegal engine control.
Federal Court of Justice, decision of 08.01.2019
case no: VIII ZR 225/17

This means that buyers of the cars have the right to demand compensation from the dealer in any case rectification of defects to be claimed. Rectification is either repair or new delivery. A right to complete redelivery is not excluded even if, after a model change, only the new model is still available, even if it is somewhat faster, more powerful and larger than the old one.

However, the right to redelivery may be excluded if it involves disproportionate costs for the dealer. If the new model is 25 or more percent more expensive than the old model, the owner of the scandalous car must pay extra if he wants the new model. However, he does not have to compensate for the full difference, but only for one third of the price difference, the Federal Court of Justice ruled.
Federal Court of Justice, ruling from 08.12.2021
File no: VIII ZR 190/19

Can I also withdraw from the contract if I have received a car with illegal engine control??

Yes, they can. By law, if the dealer refuses to remedy the defect or if the remedy is unreasonable, the buyer may withdraw from the contract or demand a partial refund of the purchase price.

If I file a claim, do I have to give my dealer a chance to fix the problem??

This is controversial. Some courts have ruled that if the VW Group succeeds in retrofitting the car with an engine control system and/or components that comply with the emission limits, the seller is no longer liable for material defects.

However, VW needed almost a year until a new and, in the opinion of the Federal Motor Transport Authority in flensburg, legal engine control system was available for the first scandal cars. Car owners don’t have to wait that long for a repair.

I want to withdraw from the purchase and reclaim the purchase price. I should be credited an amount for my kilometers driven. How is it calculated?

If a case like this goes to court, the judges first estimate how many kilometers the car typically manages before it is taken out of service. For cars with diesel engines, they usually assume 250,000 kilometers; for large cars, they sometimes assume 300,000 or even more kilometers.

On the calculation of compensation in the case of new car divide the purchase price by the total kilometers and multiply the amount by the kilometers already driven.

Example: the car cost 25,000 euros, drove 20,000 kilometers and will probably do a total of 250,000 kilometers before it is scrapped. compensation for use = purchase price / total mileage * kilometers driven = 25 000 euro / 250 000 kilometers * 20 000 kilometers = 2 000 euro. Here you would have to take 2 000 euros into account.

If it is a used car, is calculated like this:
1. Expected total kilometers – kilometers driven until purchase = remaining mileage.
2. Purchase price x (mileage on return – mileage on purchase)/ remaining mileage.

Example: the car cost 15 000 euros with a mileage of 50 000. Now it has 75,000 kilometers on the clock. Expected total mileage: 250,000 kilometers. compensation for use = 15 000 x (75 000 – 50 000)/(250 000 – 50 000) = 1 875 euro.

Use our VW compensation calculator if you want to determine the approximate amount of compensation for your case.

When do my rights against the dealer expire??

Material defect rights normally expire exactly two years from delivery of the car. By then, purchasers must actually have initiated legal action or declared withdrawal from the contract.

The augsburg regional court sees the legal situation in emissions scandal cases as much more consumer-friendly. According to this, buyers of scandal cars can still demand reimbursement of the purchase price if only the purchase price after 31. December 2018 was paid. The sales contract is null and void due to the violation of EU approval regulations.

Only cars with legal engine control may be put on the market. Dealers must then return the purchase price as unjust enrichment. This claim does not become time-barred until three years after the end of the year in which the payment was made.
regional court of augsburg, judgment of 07.05.2018
File number: 082 O 4497/16 (not legally binding)
plaintiff’s representative: lawyers dr. Stoll& sour, lahr

How can I stop the statute of limitations?

You can either take legal action in good time before the statute of limitations expires or call in a state-approved compensation agency. If you have purchased a used car, you can usually also call the vehicle arbitration office responsible for your place of residence.

As a buyer of a used car with illegal engine management, do I have the same rights as the first owner??

If it is a private sale, it depends on whether the liability for material defects was effectively excluded. If so, you will come away empty-handed. Otherwise the seller is liable. However, liability for material defects is excluded if you knew of the defect at the time of purchase. Then the seller is not liable for it.

However, you can easily have your rights against the pre-seller and the manufacturer assigned to you, and you should do so if possible. Sample declaration of assignment:

i, as the seller of the used car (type, chassis number), hereby assign all my rights against
a) the previous seller (car dealer XY) and
b) the manufacturer
to the purchaser (name, address) from. The buyer of the car accepts this assignment.
Signatures of buyer and seller

Even third or fourth owners of the car can thus become owners of the rights against new car sellers and manufacturers. however, you must then be able to present a complete chain of assignment declarations. The assignment can also be agreed subsequently.

Independent. Objective. Incorruptible.

Rights of lessees

What do I have to consider if I have leased a scandal car?

As a lessee, you must be particularly careful in the emissions scandal. The lessor assigns to you the material defect rights against the seller. As a rule, you are obliged to assert material defect rights consistently. If you fail to do so, you may be liable to the lessor for the scandalous loss of value of the car.

as soon as you find out that your car might be equipped with an illegal engine control system, you should immediately ask the lessor how you should act and insist on a binding answer. Otherwise, you are only on the safe side if you immediately assert possible material defect rights due to the emissions scandal.

Possible way out: leasing contracts with insufficient information about the right of revocation or incorrect consumer information can still be revocable years after they were concluded. Read more in our news item loan revocation brings chance of return.

Rights of car borrowers

What changes if i paid for my scandal car with a car loan arranged by the dealer?

The consumer information on almost all from 14. June 2010 closed car loan agreements are flawed. Such contracts can be revoked by borrowers even years after the contract was concluded if the car bank has deviated from the statutory model texts for informing its customers, as has often happened. If the credit agreement was arranged by the car dealer, the revocation of the credit agreement leads to the fact that the car purchase must also be reversed. this should often be easier to enforce than property defect or damage claims.

For 13 and up. According to consumer advocates, the following even applies to credit agreements concluded on June 2014: after revocation, you may return the car without paying compensation for the kilometers driven. Detailed tips and a sample text for the revocation can be found in our news item car financing: credit revocation brings chance of return.

Fundamental rulings on the emissions scandal

How the Federal Supreme Court (BGH) ruled on the VW scandal?

Germany’s highest civil court has ordered VW to compensate buyers of cars with EA189 turbodiesel engines for intentional immoral damage. you will get the purchase price back, but you will have to accept the deduction of a compensation for the kilometers driven with the car.

If the car has already driven as many miles as were expected of it when it was purchased, scandal car owners get nothing more. If scandal cars were financed on credit, VW must also reimburse the interest paid and other financing costs, such as the contribution to a residual debt insurance policy.

But interest is not due to VW scandal victims, federal court judges ruled. Only when VW has defaulted on the refund of the purchase price less compensation for use, or scandal car owners or their lawyers have filed a lawsuit, will interest be due.

Buyers of scandal cars are left empty-handed if they bought their car after it was known that it was equipped with an illegal engine control system. Buyers of VW with EA189 diesel engines will not receive compensation for damages if they cancel the purchase contract for the car after the scandal became known on 22. September 2015 have completed.

VW had changed its behavior through the statements on the emissions scandal to such an extent that it no longer appeared as intentional immoral damage to buyers of the scandal cars, the federal supreme court justified its ruling.

How do the federal judges justify their decisions??

intent. VW intentionally and unethically harmed buyers of the scandal cars by pretending that the powerful and efficient diesel engines of type EA189 were also as clean and environmentally friendly as prescribed. Even the purchase of such a car represents a damage, because the authorities can prohibit the operation because of the illegal control of the engine.

It can be assumed that the VW management knew about this, argued the federal judges in karlsruhe. VW had always stated: it is still being investigated who exactly is responsible for the machinations and what the VW management knew about it. That wasn’t enough to prevent a conviction.

Only if VW had been able to fully explain that subordinate employees were responsible and that the top managers responsible under the Stock Corporation Act were not to blame, would not the company, but only directly responsible employees, have had to pay damages for intentional immoral damage.

compensation for use. Buyers of scandal cars, however, do not get back the full purchase price. They must pay compensation for the kilometers driven with the car. The aim is to compensate for damages, not to punish the damaging party and put victims in a better position than they would have been in if VW had acted correctly. Therefore, scandal victims do not have the right to get the full purchase price back, even though they have driven the car for years and in some cases many hundreds of thousands of kilometers.

We explain above exactly how the compensation for use is to be calculated (see question "how is the compensation for use calculated that VW may deduct from the purchase price to be reimbursed??").

Interest. VW scandal victims are not entitled to interest on the purchase price because they were able to use their cars exactly as intended. Only if the authorities had actually withdrawn the scandal cars from circulation would the owners be entitled to interest on the purchase price, the federal judges argued.

However, plaintiffs receive at least so-called "procedural interest" and often also interest on arrears. At the latest from the date of service of the statement of claim and often also from the date of expiry of the deadline set for VW to refund the purchase price less compensation for use, VW must pay interest at a rate of five points above the base interest rate on the respective amount owed.

The calculation is complicated. the courts must determine the interest for each day individually (see question "assuming i am entitled to compensation for damages: what can i then claim from the manufacturer?".

What about interest paid by scandal car owners when financing their car?

If the car manufacturer has to compensate owners of the car for intentional immoral damage, it must also compensate financing costs including often very expensive residual debt insurance. This has now been confirmed by the Federal Court of Justice. The buyer of a used golf TDI now receives an additional 3 275.55 euros, which she had paid in interest for the car financing as well as for a residual debt insurance. The Regional Court and Higher Regional Court of Cologne had already ruled in favor of the golf driver.
Cologne Regional Court, judgment of 19.07.2019
File reference: 16 O 406/18
Cologne Higher Regional Court, judgment of 19.02.2020
reference number: 27 U 52/19
federal court of justice, judgment of the 13.04.2021
Case no: VI ZR 274/20
consumer attorneys: baumeister rosing attorneys-at-law, berlin/esslingen

What has the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) ruled on the statute of limitations??

The claims for compensation of scandal car owners for intentional immoral damage become time-barred three years after the end of the year in which they learned of the emissions scandal and the possible involvement of their car in it.

Claims against VW for cars with EA189 engines are thus often time-barred as early as 31.12.2018 statute of limitations. More precisely than already known in 2015, affected car owners did not need to know in order to make it reasonable to file a claim for damages against VW, and therefore the statute of limitations starts to run.

The Federal Court of Justice considers cases in which car owners did not learn about the emissions scandal as early as 2015 to be unlikely, but not impossible.

Registrations for the VW model declaratory action after the beginning of 2019 still stopped the statute of limitations for claims for damages in time, even if the statute of limitations had already expired at that time. The registration takes effect on the date on which the action for a declaratory judgment was filed on 1 January 2009. November 2018 back.
Federal Court of Justice, judgment of 29.07.2021
case no: VI ZR 1118/20

Do the previous BGH rulings also apply to other scandal car owners??

No, each ruling applies directly only to the one case that the judges judged. Judges who have to rule on other VW scandal cases are not bound to do so.

However: if courts want to assess the decisive legal issues differently from the Federal Supreme Court, they must allow appeals to ensure uniformity of case law. The case would then ultimately end up back at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe.

The Federal Court of Justice would overturn such rulings on the grounds of legal errors if it judged cases differently from the previous instances in the same circumstances. the regional and higher regional courts therefore generally follow the guidelines of the federal judges in karlsruhe.

How does the european court of justice (eugh) view the emissions scandal??

the judges at the eugh in luxembourg have ruled: an illegal defeat device is also present if the exhaust gas purification is improved for test bench conditions compared to driving in normal road traffic. This also applies if the exhaust gas cleaning system functions correctly even if the test bench conditions happen to be present during normal driving in individual cases.

Central statement of the eugh judges: "regulation nr. 715/2007 expressly prohibits the use of defeat devices that reduce the effectiveness of emission control systems under normal conditions of use."it does not matter whether physical components or software are involved, whether the emission of pollutants is regulated by influencing the combustion process, such as in the case of recirculation of exhaust gases, or subsequently by injecting adblue into the exhaust gases.

Either way, it is an emission control system that must be as active during normal driving as it is during test bench driving. Nor does increased wear or additional maintenance effort justify reducing or switching off exhaust gas purification or, conversely, improving exhaust gas purification only for test bench conditions.

A French investigating judge had asked the eugh in luxembourg how the regulations on type approval in the EU directives should be understood. VW lawyers were of the opinion that there was no illegal deactivation of the exhaust gas purification system. French criminal proceedings against VW executives can now continue.

But the significance of the ruling probably goes much further: according to the strict specifications, just about any engine management system for diesel engines up to and including euro 6c is likely to be illegal. Even the new engine management systems developed by VW after the scandal came to light are unlikely to meet the eugh’s requirements.

Manufacturers had reduced exhaust gas cleaning in numerous cases. For example, it often functioned only at air temperatures between, say, 15 and 32 degrees, as under test bench conditions, or was reduced when the air pressure dropped to values prevailing at an altitude of about 1,000 meters above sea level.
european court of justice, ruling of 17.12.2020
FILE NO: C-693/18

Technical background: the pollutant emissions of cars for type approval had to be measured by simulating a drive under precisely defined conditions on the test bench. Speed and acceleration were much lower than usual in normal driving conditions. Under these conditions, it was possible to comply with the limits prescribed at the time by recirculating part of the exhaust gases into the intake tract. This reduces the amount of ignitable mixture in the cylinder, thus lowering the pressure and temperature in the engine and producing less nitrogen oxide. However, performance also decreases and wear increases.

SCR catalytic converters used later in euro 6 engines also functioned in principle at higher engine speeds and temperatures, but then consumed a lot of adblue. Maintenance costs and wear have also increased. Car manufacturers were therefore happy to reduce the injection of adblue in conditions beyond the test bench and accept increased nitrogen oxide emissions.

Legal protection and class actions

I own a car with an EA189 engine, but so far I have done nothing about it. Can I still stop the statute of limitations for possible claims for damages against VW, or is it too late??

Claims for damages against VW have been time-barred since 1. January 2019 is the statute of limitations if you learned back in 2015 that your car was affected by the emissions scandal and did nothing to stop the statute of limitations from running out. This is how the Federal Supreme Court ruled.

Irrespective of this, the absolute statute of limitations, which does not depend on whether and what I know about my rights, comes into effect ten years after the conclusion of the purchase contract.

Example: I placed the order for my car on 10 January 2021.11.signed with the local dealer in 2011. My right to claim damages for a car with a V6 TDI engine, of which it became known in the course of 2018 that the engine management system was illegal, will then become time-barred on January 10, 2019.11.2021 at midnight and not on the 31st.12.2021.

What applies if I had registered my rights at the time for the vzbv’s pattern determination action against VW?

One thing is certain: participation in the model declaratory action stopped the statute of limitations retroactively to the filing of the action on 1 January 2009. November 2018. Participants in the action for a declaratory judgment could register up to and including Monday, 4 January 2021. I can file a lawsuit on January 2021 without VW being able to successfully invoke the statute of limitations.

Exception: on 4. The rights for the period up to and including January 31, 2021, were not exercisable.12.cars ordered or purchased in 2008 are time-barred because of the expiration of the ten-year period for the absolute statute of limitations, even if you had registered your rights as the owner of a scandalous car with an EA189 engine from VW at the time for a model declaratory action against VW.

Still to be noted: only the effective filing of the rights to the sample declaratory action stops the statute of limitations. If you did not designate your claim in such a way that VW, as the defendant, could identify which car with illegal engine control you bought and when, then the filing does not stop the statute of limitations. The confirmation of receipt from the federal office of justice does not help you then either.

What risk do I run if I file a lawsuit against the manufacturer without legal protection insurance??

you need enough money for the usual advances for legal fees and court costs and you will lose the money if your claim is dismissed. In addition, you will then have to pay for the car manufacturer’s lawyers. The amount in dispute is decisive for the advance payment of court costs and lawyers’ fees. This is at least the purchase price of the car less compensation for the kilometers driven with the car.

Our calculator provides an overview of the litigation cost risk and the usual advance on legal fees and court costs.

What can I do if I can’t afford the advance for attorney’s fees and court costs??

You can involve a litigation cost financer. However, as far as we know, this currently costs a commission of at least 17 percent of the sum that the car manufacturer ends up paying. So out of 20,000 euros, at best 16,600 euros remain for you.

Depending on the current value of your car, it may not make sense for you to finance legal costs. With our calculator: litigation cost financing you can check what to expect in your case.

As the owner of a scandal-ridden car, can I count on support from the authorities??

We can only give you little hope. The Federal Motor Transport Authority is responsible for ensuring that cars are safe and comply with environmental regulations. It does not represent the interests of car owners.

On the contrary, it appears that the authority is more concerned with promoting business than protecting consumers and the environment. For years, it ignored all evidence of nitrogen oxide emissions exceeding limits and only took action after authorities in the U.S. had already uncovered the emissions scandal.

Apparently in agreement with the federal government, it continues to be extremely lenient with VW and the other car manufacturers even after the scandal has come to light. Thus, it considers the registration of the scandal cars to be effective, although subsequent changes under the road traffic licensing regulations lead to the immediate expiration of the registration. Why this should not apply if cars do not comply with the type approval from the outset is not comprehensible.

The authorities responsible for trade supervision and criminal prosecution check whether those responsible at the VW Group have committed a criminal offense or acted in a disorderly manner and file charges or impose fines. This benefits owners of scandalous cars indirectly at best.

After all, the high-ranking ex-manager and engine developer wolfgang hatz and audi boss rupert stadler were held in custody on urgent suspicion of fraud and are now out on bail.

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bafin) has investigated whether those responsible at VW complied with the regulations for stock corporations. According to spiegel, it came to the conclusion that VW was late in informing the markets about the scandal – and has therefore filed criminal charges against all members of the board of volkswagen AG.

This, too, helps shareholders only indirectly, but can at least provide them with ammunition for suing for damages for violation of investor protection laws.

In the meantime, according to a report in the German magazine "spiegel", the EU authorities had solid and detailed indications as early as 2010 that the exhaust gas purification system required for approval was often not working, at least when the vehicle was in operation. You obviously did not follow up on these tips.

The scandal only came to light under pressure from U.S. authorities. The U.S. judiciary also led the way in dealing with the emissions scandal. An engineer significantly involved in the emissions scandal was convicted of fraud and conspiracy and served three years in prison in the u.s.

Questions about the emissions scandal in general

What happens to the scandal cars?

The Federal Motor Transport Authority in flensburg has ordered that a new engine control system be developed and installed in all cars with illegal engine control systems.

The usual procedure for such a recall: the manufacturer concerned receives the addresses of the current owners from the authorities. As soon as the modified engine management system, which is now legal according to the Federal Motor Transport Authority, is ready, the company will write to car owners and ask them to come to the workshops to have the new software installed in the engine control unit. This is of course free of charge.

Car manufacturers cannot force car owners to have the legal engine management system installed. However, you report every retrofit to the authorities. 18 months after the start of the respective recall, the company writes to all vehicle owners who did not participate in the recall campaign.

Those who still do not visit a repair shop are reported by the federal authorities to the local registration offices. They then decide whether to forcibly shut down the car. In addition, cars affected by the emissions scandal will only receive a new emissions sticker 18 months after the recall if the new engine management system has been installed in the meantime.

What are politicians doing about the emissions scandal??

Around five million diesel cars in the euro 5 or euro 6 emission classes in germany have received a software update. This is what the car manufacturers offered at the "diesel summit" in august 2017.

Most of the cars affected are from the volkswagen group with its VW, audi and porsche brands, as well as diesel models from BMW, Daimler and Opel. However, this figure already includes the approximately 2.5 million cars that volkswagen has already retrofitted at the behest of the authorities. Foreign manufacturers do not participate in the action.

All cars with emissions of up to 270 milligrams of nitrogen oxide per kilometer should be spared from driving bans, even if they belong to the outdated emission classes euro 4 and euro 5. For information on where driving bans apply or are planned, see our FAQ on driving bans in inner cities.

Residents of cities with driving bans and commuters who work there are to receive exchange premiums for their euro 4 and euro 5 diesels to compensate for the loss in value of their cars associated with the emissions scandal. owners of euro 5 diesels should be able to demand the retrofitting of their cars. Manufacturers to install, at their own expense and with full liability for defects, catalytic converters that reduce nitrogen oxide emissions to below 270 milligrams per kilometer. Municipalities and businesses are to receive a subsidy of 80 percent of the cost of retrofitting.

How do I find out what emissions class my car has??

The emission class, for example "euro 4", is noted in the registration certificate (field 14).

Car manufacturers offer "environmental bonuses" for returning old diesels. Is it worth it??

Several groups have already promoted the sale of new electric, hybrid or gas-powered vehicles with diesel premiums. Further bonuses should make cars with alternative drives attractive for owners of old diesels. Some manufacturers, such as volkswagen, also pay a premium for the purchase of young used cars.

Find out how much of a discount the dealer is offering you if you buy your dream car new. then compare this discount with the offers you receive as part of the diesel premium campaign. It is conceivable that dealers will cut rebates if the diesel premium comes into play. If it absolutely has to be a diesel, you should make sure that the car is certified to the euro 6d emissions standard or younger. These cars reliably emit less nitrogen oxide than permitted under the latest tighter regulations.

It is now known that audi, at least, has once again supplied cars with reduced emission control in exchange for old diesels with illegal engine management systems. As recently as may 2018, the company stopped delivery of an A6 model in which the engine control system reduced the injection of ad-blue when the supply of cleaning fluid ran low before an inspection date.

Retrofitting the scandal cars – the details

What exactly has volkswagen done with the retrofit??

The volkswagen group, as the manufacturer of most of the scandal cars, has retrofitted a large proportion of the cars affected with a new engine control system approved by the german Federal Motor Transport Authority (kraftfahrtbundesamt).

1.6-liter TDI engines were the most costly. In addition to an update of the engine management software, they have also received a so-called "flow rectifier. This is a plastic tube in the intake tract designed to optimize airflow for combustion in the cylinders.

VW has promised that the retrofit will not lead to increased fuel consumption or reduced performance, nor will it affect the durability of the engines. However, the company did not want to provide a legally binding guarantee.

According to motor-talk.In VW engines with the new control system, the diesel is injected into the cylinders at a higher pressure – and no longer in one go, but in staggered amounts. The exhaust gas recirculation valve is also controlled differently than before. The recirculation of non-combustible exhaust gas into the cylinder, which is otherwise only filled with an air-diesel mixture, reduces the temperature and pressure in the combustion chamber. As a result, less nitrogen oxide is produced during combustion.

For cars with adblue, VW has also increased the amount of additive injected. Disadvantage of the modified fuel injection system in particular: more soot is produced than before. The soot is deposited in the particulate filter and therefore has to be burned out more often than before with a little extra fuel. In addition, the valves for fuel injection close and open more frequently than before and must withstand the increased fuel pressure.

However: also the new engine control contains a so called "thermowindow. In the case of a tiguan 2.0 according to a ruling by the dusseldorf regional court, the exhaust gas purification system only works between 10 and 32 degrees Celsius, above and below which it is switched off. It is also deactivated at altitudes of over 1,000 meters above sea level. The european Court of Justice has now ruled that such mechanisms are illegal.

Why retrofit? Wouldn’t it have been enough if the cars always ran in clean test bench mode??

Apparently not, because then fuel consumption increases and performance decreases. Our American colleagues at consumer reports – probably with the help of VW insiders – managed to switch a 2011 VW jetta sports wagon (equivalent in this country: golf variant) with an EA 189 TDI engine permanently to test bench mode and drive it with it video from consumers report.

Result of the road tests: the car consumed 5.1 instead of the previous 4.7 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers. Acceleration from 0 to 60 miles (around 97 kilometers) per hour took 10.5 instead of 9.9 seconds.

How do pollutant emissions and fuel consumption change when cars are retrofitted??

The authorities have approved the retrofitting of all originally known emissions scandal cars. So you believe that the cars with the modified engine management system will meet all standards without increasing fuel consumption and thus carbon dioxide emissions.

The ADAC has a golf 2.0 TDI, a polo 1.2 TDI and a golf variant 1.6 TDI examined in each case before and after retrofitting. The result: nitrogen oxide emissions fell by up to 56 percent. But it was above 270 milligrams per kilometer in almost all road tests. According to the federal government’s current plans, this is the upper limit for free driving in no-driving zones.

Fuel consumption increased by up to around 4.5 percent, depending on the driving cycle, with a measurement accuracy of plus/minus two percentage points. The retrofit apparently works best with the 1.6-liter engine, which in addition to the new engine management system has also received an additional component in the intake tract.

Our italian partner organization altroconsumo has also checked the effect of the VW retrofit. your measurement results cast doubt on retrofitting. The nitrogen oxide emissions of an audi Q5 2.0 TDI was even higher after the retrofit than before.

While nitrogen oxide levels in exhaust gas were on average a good 10 percent above the limit value before retrofitting, they were a good 25 percent higher afterwards. Consumption, however, hardly changed at all: it fell from 7.5 to 7.4 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers.

Audi reacted with astonishment to these measurement results and declared its willingness to take a look at the audi Q5 under investigation together with the Italian testers and carry out subsequent measurements. Unfortunately, nothing more was heard from audi afterwards.

Does the durability of the engines deteriorate as a result of the retrofit??

That is unclear. "experts warn of engine damage," headlines spiegel online, citing unnamed employees of the EU commission. They in turn refer to the technicians at the "vela" exhaust gas laboratory in northern Italy, which is one of the world’s leading facilities in its field.

The vela engineers fear that the exhaust gas recirculation valve, the storage catalytic converter, the urea injection system, the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalytic converter or the particulate filter could fail prematurely.

In the VW forum of the online network motor-talk, owners of retrofitted scandal cars, who often only drive short distances, report problems with the modified engine management system.

Manipulated cars: tuv, registration, vehicle tax, owner’s liability

Am i still allowed to drive cars with manipulation software on board??

According to the Federal Motor Transport Authority, cars affected by the scandal may continue to be driven as long as they are properly registered and a valid inspection sticker is affixed to the license plate. Authorization remains effective for the time being in the opinion of the authorities.

The legal experts at stiftung warentest consider this legal interpretation to be incorrect. According to the road traffic licensing regulations, a subsequent modification of the engine control system with deactivation of the exhaust gas purification system leads to the immediate expiration of the operating license. In this case, the operating permit for a car that switches off the exhaust gas purification system from the outset and therefore does not comply with the type approval cannot be valid.

The european Court of Justice apparently takes a very similar view. a mechanism that reduces exhaust gas cleaning can only be legal if the manufacturer applies for approval for it. If there is already no application, then engine control with such a mechanism is illegal from the outset, and consequently the approval granted in ignorance of the mechanism cannot be effective.

It is still unclear whether and how a ruling by the court of the european union will have an impact. The EU Commission’s regulation on the limit value for nitrogen oxide emitted during driving is therefore null and void. Nevertheless, the regulation is to continue to be applied for at least another 14 months. Details of the ruling in the court’s press release. After the expiry of the deadline, all cars registered under the invalid ordinance should actually be withdrawn from circulation.

Can the authorities revoke the registration of my car?

Yes. This is now the view of all administrative courts, including the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia. The German Federal Court of Justice apparently also sees it that way (ruling of 8 March 2009). January 2019, case no: VIII ZR 225/17). the legal basis for this is the vehicle registration ordinance.

However, it is not the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) in flensburg that is responsible, but the respective local registration office. However, the KBA informs the authorities if scandal cars have not received the new engine management system within 18 months of the recall.

Can I defend myself against the withdrawal of approval and decommissioning??

It depends. For cars for which the Federal Motor Transport Authority has decided on the type approval and later changed it because of the illegal engine control, it is virtually hopeless to defend oneself against the decisions of the approval authority. The administrative courts are unanimous in rejecting applications to stop the implementation of such decisions by the authorities.

However: according to the majority of administrative courts, the original type approval initially covered the operation of the scandal cars. The cars would have had the illegal mechanisms in the engine management system from the start. Nevertheless, the authority had approved the car types in question. By imposing the obligation to develop a new engine management system, the authority changed the type approval. Only this change in type approval would lead to scandal cars becoming illegal.

Important consequence: owners of cars whose type approval was not granted by the federal motor Transport authority and subsequently changed can defend themselves against decommissioning. In the VW Group, this mainly affects cars from skoda. This was also the view of the Schleswig-Holstein administrative court in a decision on costs (decision of 13.05.2019, file reference: 3 B 39/19), after the authority had already withdrawn the decommissioning ordered there on its own initiative.

The legal experts at stiftung warentest see the matter differently: the type approval was based on the information provided by the manufacturers to the authorities. The illegal mechanisms for deactivating or reducing exhaust gas purification have been concealed from the authorities by the manufacturers. According to the facts, the cars were only approved with the variant of the engine control system that was active during the test bench trials to determine the emission of pollutants. The scandal cars therefore did not comply with the type approval.

the harsh consequence of this view: all scandal cars should have been taken out of circulation immediately and – assuming that the federal motor transport authority was right in approving the modified engine management system – should not have been allowed to drive again until the software update had been carried out. This is apparently also the view of the regional court of augsburg, Germany, (ruling of 07.05.2018, case reference: 082 O 4497/16). However, the decision is not yet legally binding and is unique among the thousands of rulings on the emissions scandal in the meantime.

gansel rechtsanwalte provide information on the withdrawal of admission and resistance to this depending on the region.

Do I get a new tuv for a scandal car without retrofitting??

the inspection sticker for the main inspection at tuv, dekra and similar providers is only available for a maximum of 18 months after receipt of the request to retrofit the car with a new engine management system.

Anyone who has to undergo a general inspection after this deadline will no longer receive a sticker without a new engine control unit. The lack of an update is considered a significant defect, but does not lead to immediate decommissioning. Affected car owners can therefore make up for the update and then receive a new inspection sticker.

For more details and background, read a detailed report by focus on the topic. Anyone who wants to refuse the retrofit and nevertheless continue to drive their scandalous car, at least for the time being, should seek advice in good time from a lawyer experienced in traffic law.

Do I have to expect driving bans??

Yes, there are a number of driving bans in force. But they apply to all diesel cars in emission classes euro 4, 5 and sometimes 6, regardless of whether the engine control is legal or illegal. More on this topic in our FAQ on driving bans in inner cities.

Do I have to pay car tax if VW underreported the carbon dioxide emissions of my car??

This is still unclear. However, the lawyers and tax experts at stiftung warentest believe that this is probable. The amount of vehicle tax depends on carbon dioxide emissions. Tax offices are entitled to correct tax assessments if they have been issued on the wrong basis. in any case, back taxes can only be determined once the actual carbon dioxide emissions of the cars concerned have been established. VW has given an assurance: if additional tax claims become due, the group will pay them.

Am I liable for unacceptably high pollutant emissions from my car??

In theory, yes, but hardly in practice. It is true that you, as a consumer, must also comply with emission protection regulations and are acting illegally if you drive a car that you know does not comply with the prescribed limits.

Victims of air pollution would at least have to prove that their car has significantly increased the risk of damage from nitrogen oxide or particulate matter. This should be out of the question insofar as there are still millions of engines without any exhaust gas cleaning – plus fireplaces, oil heaters and other forms of legal pollution that increase the risk far more than the manipulated diesel cars from the VW Group.

The rights of VW shareholders

As a VW shareholder, am I entitled to compensation for share price losses??

The legal experts at stiftung warentest believe it is safe to say that shareholders can claim damages for share price losses incurred after the scandal became known if they acquired their shares from spring 2015 onwards. Since then, at the latest, VW has known that the u.S. authorities suspect the manufacturer of illegal cheating in the emission control of cars with certain diesel engines.

stock corporations are obliged to inform their shareholders immediately about events relevant to the share price. However, VW did not make the events public until months later. The decision to use software at all that reduces or even switches off exhaust gas purification during driving is also likely to result in shareholders being entitled to compensation for damages. Individual VW officers may have additional personal liability.

please note: legal expenses insurers do not always have to pay for shareholder lawsuits. Especially in the case of contracts concluded only in recent years, such legal disputes are often excluded. Test.De maintains and updates a list of consumer-friendly rulings in connection with the emissions scandal.

Is there a sample procedure that I can follow as an investor??

Yes, but the deadline has now expired. The Regional Court of Braunschweig has received around 1,540 claims for damages against VW with a value in dispute of around 8.8 billion euros, most of them from private investors.

But also the bavarian pension fund (amount in dispute: 700 000 euro), the special fund "pension reserve of the state of hesse", the pension fund of the state of baden-wurttemberg (amount in dispute: 1.1 million euro) and the united states of america (because of the losses of pension funds with VW shares, the amount in dispute is in the three-digit million range) have sued VW.

Most of the lawsuits filed by small and medium-sized investors have been suspended by the braunschweig regional court. the braunschweig higher regional court has appointed deka investment gmbh from frankfurt am main as the model plaintiff. In their proceedings, all essential legal questions are to be clarified. The other plaintiffs do not need to take any action for the time being. your procedures continue when the pattern procedure is clarified.

What do I have to consider as a VW shareholder if I want to claim damages??

If you have not yet taken any action, your rights are now time-barred.

This special is updated regularly. Latest update: 10. november 2021.