Volkswagen Hit With Class Action Over Emissions Test Deceit

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Volkswagen Group of America Inc. has been hit with one of what is likely to be many class action lawsuits alleging it deceived consumers and regulators when it installed defeat devices that block the release of pollutants during emissions testing in nearly half a million vehicles.

The VW class action lawsuit was filed just days after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a Notice of Violation to Volkswagen, claiming the automaker violated the Clean Air Act by installing these defeat devices in some of its vehicles.

The EPA announced that Volkswagen has admitted to systematically cheating on U.S. emissions tests since at least 2009, and the company may be subjected to as much as $18 billion in fines. The automaker may also face criminal prosecution.

“This action is not about corporate negligence; rather, it is about a global auto manufacturer’s intentional deception of well-meaning, conscientious consumers and regulators, and its misguided plan to profit by gaming the system rather than playing by the rules,” the Volkswagen emissions scam class action lawsuit says.

According to the VW class action lawsuit, the car manufacturer installed “defeat devices” in more than 482,000 diesel Volkswagen and Audi vehicles that have been sold in the United States since 2009. Under federal law, cars that are equipped with defeat devices in order to evade clean air standards cannot be certified by the EPA.

“Defendant marketed those vehicles as environmentally-friendly cars that possessed the holy grail of automotive qualities: extremely high fuel efficiency and performance, with very low emissions,” the VW class action lawsuit alleges. “Although Defendant successfully marketed these expensive cars as ‘green,’ their environmentally-friendly representations were a sham.”

The VW emissions fraud class action lawsuit alleges that the defeat devices in the Volkswagen vehicles turn on the full emissions control systems only when the vehicle is undergoing emissions testing. However, when the vehicles are being operated normally, they reportedly release up to 40 times as much pollution into the environment as allowed under the Clean Air Act.

The plaintiffs allege they paid a premium for their Volkswagen vehicles based on the car company’s reputation for environmentally-friendly and efficient vehicles. As a result of the alleged fraud, the plaintiffs claim they have suffered harm and will be unable to make their vehicles compliant with the standards without experiencing a serious deterioration in performance.

According to the VW class action lawsuit, the plaintiffs would not have purchased the vehicles, or they would have paid significantly less for the vehicles, had they known the cars had the defeat devices installed.

Class Members of the proposed Volkswagen class action lawsuit include: “All persons or entities in the United States who are current or former owners and/or lessees of a ‘Defeat Device Vehicle.’ Defeat Device Vehicles include, without limitation: Model Year (‘MY’) 2009-2015 VW Jetta; MY 2009-2015 VW Beetle; MY 2009-2015 VW Golf; MY 2014-2015 VW Passat; and MY 2009-2015 Audi A3.”

The plaintiffs are represented by Keller Rohrback LLP.

The Volkswagen Emissions Scam Class Action Lawsuit is McCabe v. Volkswagen Group of America Inc., Case No. 5:15-cv-01930, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

UPDATE: On June 28, 2016, Volkswagen reached proposed settlements with both the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission following the VW emissions scandal. VW’s deal with the DOJ includes up to $14.7 billion along with vehicle buyback provisions as well as funding for pollution control programs. In addition to the DOJ settlement, Volkswagen will also spend up to $10 billion in a buyback and lease termination settlement with the FTC that is expected to include about 475,000 vehicles.

UPDATE 2: The Volkswagen, Audi diesel emissions class action settlement is now open! Click here to file a claim!