Volkswagen Class Action Says ‘Dieselgate’ Scandal Harmed Salespeople

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In a multidistrict litigation, Volkswagen salespeople claim that the recent “dieselgate” emissions scandal caused them to lose sales.

The salespeople say the company tarnished their reputation and affected their personal income.

In 2016, Volkswagen and their brand, Audi, were accused of defrauding emissions regulators by using emissions software that enabled the cars to run while producing low emissions when being tested, but produce much higher emissions levels when being driven normally.

Consumers claimed financial injury as a result of the company’s alleged misdeeds, and the company settled the class action lawsuit by offering $10 billion to compensate consumers. Now, Volkswagen salespeople are alleging that they too were injured by the company’s actions.

Plaintiffs Robert Saavedra, Armando Rodriguez, and Mickey Gaines work as salespeople for Volkswagen in the Los Angeles area, and claim that after reports showed that Volkswagen had defrauded regulators, they were financially affected by a reduction in sales, diminished sellable inventories, and decreased consumer trust.

The three salespeople seek to establish a Class of Volkswagen salespeople who earn their income primarily on commission, and who have allegedly suffered a drop in their income as a result of Volkswagen’s alleged emissions fraud.

The plaintiffs accuse Volkswagen of negligent interference, fraud, breach of contract, and racketeering. They seek compensatory, general, treble, and special damages for themselves and similarly affected consumers.

The salespeople claim that Volkswagen violated consumer trust in defrauding emissions regulators. They allege that as Volkswagen salespeople are often seen as the face of the company in the case of consumer interaction, consumers also lost trust in the salespeople.

The Volkswagen diesel emissions sales class action lawsuit claims that the “relationships which had been cemented through the hard work and fair dealings of the [salespeople] were poisoned by the bad acts of Volkswagen such that loyal customers were driven away from the brand and transformed from referral sources to vocal detractors.”

Allegedly, Volkswagen provided salespeople with no guidance on how they should respond to consumer complaints and questions about the emissions scandal. The salespeople claimed that as a result of Volkswagen’s negligence, they were unable to sufficiently help consumers or provide satisfactory answers, further losing consumer trust.

Saavedra and the others say that overall Volkswagen sales decreased as a result of how the company’s image was tarnished. Furthermore, they claim that the vehicles involved in the alleged scandal, diesel vehicles made between 2009 and 2015, were unsellable, leaving salespeople with inventory that they could not sell, which was damaging to salespeople who work on commission.

The plaintiffs are represented by Raymond P. Boucher and Maria L. Weitz of Boucher LLP, Todd Schneider and Carolyn H. Cottrell of Schneider Wallace Cottrell Konecky Wotkyns LLP, Sahag Majarian II of the Law Office of Sahag Majarian II, Marcus J. Bradley and Kiley L. Grombacher of Bradley Grombacher LLP, Justin Sterling of the Sterling Firm and Robert C. Hayden and Richard E. Williamson of Ezer Williamson Law APC.

The Volkswagen Diesel Emissions Sales Drop Mulitdistrict Litigation is In re: Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” Marketing, Sales Practices, and Products Liability Litigation, Case No. 3:15-md-02672-CRB, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.