A US court hearing in San Francisco, California, yesterday (21 April) confirmed that Volkswagen (VW) has reached the broad outlines of a deal with US authorities over the diesel emissions defeat-device scandal. Judge Charles Breyer gave the company until 21 June to file the specific details of the deal with the court, which is overseeing the consolidation of more than 500 federal lawsuits filed against the company. The agreement will affect the 2.0-litre diesel vehicles that violate US emissions laws, while resolution of the issue for vehicles with 3.0-litre engines is still under discussion, reports the Wall Street Journal and other news sources. The judge confirmed that VW plans to offer consumers the option of selling their vehicles back or having them modified to meet US emissions standards. In addition, Judge Breyer said "substantial compensation" will be offered, and consumers will not be asked to make that choice before having an opportunity to review the details of the offer. The judge also said VW will be required to invest funds in promoting green automotive initiatives, reports USA Today. VW issued only a brief statement, saying, "Volkswagen is committed to earning back the trust of its customers, dealers, regulators and the American public. These agreements in principle are an important step on the road to making things right. As noted today in court, customers in the United States do not need to take any action at this time." The judge also ordered the parties not to discuss the deal publicly and criticised earlier leaks.
Significance: The potential solutions are in line with reports. Yesterday's disclosures did not indicate any specific financial details or clarity what the fix might be. VW has until 21 June to file the details of the agreement, which will need court approval. A hearing regarding approval is set for 26 July and it is unclear when the details will be made available to customers or the public. The agreement will have no direct impact on the ongoing US Department of Justice criminal investigation of the VW diesel emissions issue, or the suit brought by the US Federal Trade Commission over VW's "Clean Diesel" advertising campaign. Consequently, the court hearing answered few questions and was only a small step towards resolution of the issue.
