Mercedes-Benz Emissions Cheat Device Class Action Dismissed For Now

Following a judge’s dismissal, plaintiffs in a Mercedes-Benz class action lawsuit will have a chance to re-plead their allegations that the company’s BlueTEC diesel engines were designed to cheat emissions tests.

U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares dismissed the claims for lack of standing. He determined the plaintiffs failed to state that any alleged misrepresentation by Mercedes-Benz was the cause of their harm – namely, that they overpaid for a car that didn’t do what it was supposed to do.

Mercedes-Benz argued that the plaintiffs “have not plausibly alleged that any purported injury of ‘overpayment’ is fairly traceable to the challenged action of the [Defendants].”

The company said the plaintiffs failed to point out specific misrepresentations, such as advertisements or promotional materials that they relied on in deciding to purchase their vehicles. The plaintiffs can’t claim they relied on a particular representation without specifying which one they relied on, the company argued.

Judge Linares essentially agreed. He noted that it’s not necessary for the plaintiffs to point to specific advertisements. However, proving reliance would require more than just making a “vague reference to ‘advertisements and representations,’” the judge said.

The judge noted that he did not find a description of such reliance in the plaintiffs’ pleadings. Although the plaintiffs did specify certain particular advertisements in their Mercedes-Benz class action lawsuit, none of them alleged they relied on those advertisements.

Without that required reliance, the plaintiffs’ pleadings do not adequately show that their harm was traceable to any action by Mercedes-Benz, the judge reasoned. And without that traceability, the plaintiffs don’t have standing to sue.

Judge Linares dismissed the Mercedes-Benz class action lawsuit without prejudice, giving the plaintiffs a chance to fix the deficiencies in their pleadings and resubmit them.

This Mercedes-Benz class action lawsuit began in early 2016. Named plaintiff Ulyana Lynevych alleged the emission control systems in the company’s BlueTEC diesel engines failed to work in cooler weather.

The BlueTEC mechanism is designed to reduce pollutants by injecting a liquid into the engine’s exhaust that breaks up nitrogen oxides into nitrogen and oxygen. The mechanism apparently stops working when the ambient temperature drops below around 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Government emissions testing failed to catch the problem because it was conducted indoors at higher temperatures, the plaintiffs say. Private testing conducted out on the road revealed BlueTEC engines can emit levels of pollutants up to 65 times those allowed by the EPA.

Mercedes-Benz failed to disclose the alleged BlueTEC defect, plaintiffs claim. They say the company falsely promoted its BlueTEC vehicles as offering “Earth Friendly” and “clean diesel” performance.

Plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Steve Berman and Sean Matt of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, Jeffrey Goldenberg of Goldenberg Schneider LPA, David Freydin and Timothy Scott of the Law Offices of David Freydin PC, and James Cecchi and Lindsey Taylor of Carella Byrne Cecchi Olstein Brody & Agnello PC.

The Mercedes-Benz Emissions Cheat Device Class Action Lawsuit is Ulyana Lynevych v. Mercedes-Benz USA LLC, Case No. 2:16-cv-00881, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.