Almost exactly 10 years after the so-called ‘Dieselgate’ scandal kicked off with Volkswagen in 2015, another five car companies are set to go to trial in the UK for allegations of emissions cheating.
According to the BBC,Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Peugeot/Citroen, and Renault are all set to face the British High Court this week as part of a class action – with all five manufacturers denying the allegations.
A total of 220,000 owners have joined the class action, with 22 law firms involved – the largest class action in English and Welsh legal history, the BBC reports.
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The five accused companies were chosen by the court as lead defendants initially, with a further nine automakers set to be tried depending on the result.
It was September 2015 when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) first accused Volkswagen of using software in its vehicles to defeat emissions tests within laboratory conditions.
Volkswagen had marketed its range of new-generation models as ‘clean diesels’ at the time, but subsequent on-road testing found the vehicles produced significantly more toxic nitrogen oxide tailpipe emissions than those conducted in labs.
It’s estimated the Volkswagen Group has been forced to spend approximately A$57 billion in fines, compensation, and vehicle buy-back programs globally – including a record A$125 million paid to the Australian Government.
Volkswagen axed diesel engines from most of its passenger cars in the wake of the scandal, with the company now offering just six diesel-powered models in Australia – mainly commercial vans and people movers, as well as the Ford-built Amarok ute.
Representatives from all five of the car manufacturers in the latest UK class action have issued statements denying any wrongdoing.
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