Consumers’ Association takes Volkswagen to court again

Compensation demanded for cheating diesel

Consumers’ Association takes Volkswagen to court again

The cheating diesel scandal has misled consumers who bought Volkswagens in the past. They deserve compensation for that. That is what the Volkswagen Group Diesel Efficiency Foundation (VGDES) and the Consumers’ Association argue in a case about cheating diesels that will be heard before the court in Groningen on Wednesday.

The organizations ask the court to determine compensation for a consumer who deliberately purchased a Volkswagen Polo Bluemotion in 2011 because of its ‘clean character’. In the sales brochures at the time, this Polo was praised for ‘its enormous economy, environmentally friendly technology and pleasant dynamics’. But later, according to the Consumer Association, this turned out to be completely wrong. “The Polo turned out to be not clean at all. It even turned out to be well above the permitted emission standard. But it passed the admission tests due to manipulation software. The customer was very deliberately misled,” says Consumers’ Association director Sandra Molenaar. Dick Bouma, the chairman of VGDES, says that the stake in the case is repayment of the purchase price minus the current trade-in value. “In this case $17,290 minus $2,000. So sir should get $15,290 back.”

This Polo case is one of four trial proceedings in which the Consumers’ Association and VGDES are claiming compensation. “Our goal is that Volkswagen realizes that it really has to compensate Dutch consumers and, based on the outcome of those procedures, enters into discussions with us about a scheme,” said Molenaar.

In the Netherlands, several foundations have cases against car manufacturers. Car Claim, which also cooperates with the Consumers’ Association, managed to convince a Dutch court last year that buyers of Volkswagen cheat diesels are entitled to compensation. But the manufacturer appealed. According to Volkswagen, motorists have not suffered any financial damage at all due to the fact that their cars emit more than reported. If the Consumers’ Association and VGDES manage to arrange compensation in the case of the Polo owner, this could set a precedent for other victims.

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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl

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