This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/apr/06/volkswagen-installed-thousands-unlawful-defeat-devices-high-court-dieselgate

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Volkswagen installed thousands of unlawful 'defeat devices', high court finds Volkswagen installed 'defeat devices' to subvert emissions tests, high court finds
(about 3 hours later)
Court makes first major ruling in mass ‘dieselgate’ litigation brought in England and Wales Judge makes major ruling in mass ‘dieselgate’ litigation against VW in England and Wales
Volkswagen installed unlawful “defeat devices” in thousands of its diesel vehicles, the high court has found in the first major ruling on mass litigation brought in England and Wales over the “dieselgate” emissions scandal. The car manufacturer Volkswagen subverted key air pollution tests, a British court has found, by using special software to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides under test conditions.
About 90,000 motorists who bought VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda diesel vehicles have taken legal action for compensation in a case that could be the largest consumer action in English legal history. The high court finding is a boost to attempts by campaigners to force the company to address the impact of its cars in producing lung-damaging pollutants at far higher levels than were legally permissible.
Their lawyers say VW “cheated” European emissions standards, which were designed “to save lives”, by installing the unlawful devices in its diesel vehicles, meaning they were emitting up to 40 times the legal limit of nitrogen dioxide when out on the road. A group of about 91,000 claimants is taking Volkswagen to court in the UK, in one of the biggest “class action” cases, or group litigation orders, yet to be heard in this country. Although Volkswagen has been found guilty in the US, in Europe the carmaker has denied that it cheated tests.
In September 2015, Volkswagen Group announced that 11m vehicles worldwide, including almost 1.2m in the UK, were affected, prompting a flurry of litigation around the world. Monday’s preliminary finding in the UK case, by Mr Justice Waksman, casts a fresh light on the activities of the carmaker, first revealed in the “dieselgate” scandal of 2015.
The aftermath of the scandal has led to VW paying out more than €30bn (£26bn) in fines, recall costs and civil settlements, and has led to criminal charges by German prosecutors against current and former senior employees. In his summary, the judge wrote: “[After considering the arguments made by Volkswagen] the upshot was that I found that the software function in the vehicles here did indeed amount to a prohibited ‘defeat device’… I also concluded that VW’s attempt to relitigate the issue here was an abuse of the process.”
The litigation was filed back in 2016, but reached what lawyers described as “a decisive court battle” at a preliminary hearing in December when the high court was asked to decide whether software installed in VW cars was a “defeat device” under EU regulations. He said: “A software function which enables a vehicle to pass the test because (artificially) it operates the vehicle in a way which is bound to pass the test and in which it does not operate on the road is a fundamental subversion of the test … it destroys the utility of the test.”
In a judgment delivered remotely on Monday, Mr Justice Waksman ruled that “the software function in issue in this case is indeed a defeat device” under EU regulations. The judge said he was “far from alone in this conclusion”, referring to “numerous courts and other bodies in various other jurisdictions [which] agree that the software function here is a defeat device”. Diesel vehicles were once touted by the car industry as a green alternative to petrol vehicles, because they have lower greenhouse gas emissions. But their emissions of tiny particles and irritant gases such as nitrogen dioxide are far higher, unless trapped by filters.
He added: “While I take comfort from that fact, I make it clear that there is no need to resort to it because in my judgment the answer is so plain in any event.” In 2015, campaigners revealed that cars produced by Volkswagen emitted far more nitrogen oxides in standard road driving than was recorded in test conditions. The ensuing scandal engulfed the car industry, which has faced turmoil and falling sales in some categories.
The judge said: “A software function which enables a vehicle to pass the test because (artificially) it operates the vehicle in a way which is bound to pass the test and in which it does not operate on the road is a fundamental subversion of the test and the objective behind it.” The revelations also highlighted rampant air pollution around the world, which is estimated to cause as many as 800,000 premature deaths every year in Europe alone.
He added: “In other words, it destroys the utility of the test because it makes it impossible for performance under it to be the approximation of normal driving conditions and performance which it is intended to be.” In the UK, the sale of new diesel and petrol cars is to be banned from 2035, in an effort to clear up dangerous air and reduce the impact of road transport on the climate crisis.
In a statement after the ruling, Gareth Pope, the head of group litigation at Slater and Gordon, which represents about 70,000 claimants, said: “This damning judgment confirms what our clients have known for a long time, but which VW has refused to accept: namely that VW fitted defeat devices into millions of vehicles in the UK in order to cheat emissions tests. Jenny Bates, a campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said: “Diesel exhaust is in the same category for causing cancer as smoking, according to the World Health Organization, so to deliberately hide this toxicity cannot go unnoticed or indeed unpunished. The sale of all diesel and petrol cars and vans should be banned by 2030, earlier than the government is planning, both for air pollution and climate reasons.”
“In the judge’s own words, VW’s defence was ‘highly flawed’, ‘hopeless’ and ‘absurd’. Volkswagen is now likely to continue to a full trial of liability for the claims of deceit. The claimants argue that they were sold vehicles that were represented as being compliant with emissions regulations, when they did not comply.
“The case exposed VW’s approach to this litigation and its customers, refusing to admit wrongdoing and compensate its customers in favour of running drawn-out and pointless litigation. A spokesperson for Volkswagen Group told the Guardian: “The judgment relates only to preliminary issues [and] does not determine liability or any issues of causation or loss for any of the causes of action claimed. These remain to be determined by the court as the case continues.
“The court’s conclusion that the existence of software was a ‘fundamental subversion’ of tests designed to limit pollution and make our air safe to breathe exposes VW’s disregard for EU emissions regulations and public health in pursuit of profit and market dominance. “Volkswagen remains confident in our case that we are not liable to the claimants as alleged and the claimants did not suffer any loss. We will continue to defend our position robustly. Nothing in this decision today changes this.”
“VW’s utter failure to convince the court of the merits of its case means that now is surely time for it to settle these claims and put this shameful episode behind it.” The group litigation order in the UK is brought against Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, Seat, the Volkswagen financial services arm, and various authorised dealers, by owners and lessees of cars under these brands which used a particular Volkswagen diesel engine.
In a statement, Bozena Michalowska-Howells, a solicitor from the law firm Leigh Day, which also represented some of the claimants against VW, said: “Today’s ruling is hugely significant for our clients who have been battling for four years to hold Volkswagen to account. In the US, Volkswagen has paid out $4.3bn (£3.5bn) in civil and criminal penalties since pleading guilty more than two years ago to criminal charges based on deceit. Global costs are thought to have reached at least $21bn.
“In reaching his decision, the judge rejected virtually all of Volkswagen’s arguments and found that the vehicles were fitted with illegal defeat devices. Our clients bought their vehicles in good faith and are fully entitled to expect them to comply with the law. Gareth Pope, who leads the legal team at the Slater and Gordon law firm, representing 70,000 claimants, said: “This damning judgment confirms what our clients have known for a long time but Volkswagen has refused to accept: that Volkswagen fitted defeat devices into millions of vehicles in the UK in order to cheat emissions tests.
“Many of our clients have been horrified to find out that they had been driving vehicles which were much more harmful to the environment than they were led to believe. “The court’s conclusion that the existence of software was a ‘fundamental subversion’ of tests designed to limit pollution and make our air safe to breath exposes VW’s disregard for EU emissions regulations and public health, in pursuit of profit and market dominance.”
“We hope that Volkswagen accepts the court’s decision and we urge them to now do the right thing and put their customers first by entering into settlement negotiations so that our clients are not forced to drag VW through the courts and be faced with further years of litigation to determine their losses.”