U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer approved Volkswagen’s settlement with regulators and vehicle owners over the company’s use of emissions cheating devices in their so-called “clean diesel” two-liter vehicles. Judge Breyer gave Volkswagen preliminary approval of the proposed settlement at a hearing on June 28, 2016, where the details of Volkswagen’s settlement were first announced.
The settlement amounts to $14.7 billion and includes a maximum of $10.033 billion to buy back effected cars at their pre-scandal values.
The Sierra Club previously called for Volkswagen to take the polluting cars off the road, or fix them to ensure they would meet the standard the automaker had claimed when they first sold the vehicles and before the rigging scandal was revealed. The Sierra Club also called for full mitigation for the emissions from the fraudulent vehicles.
In April, Volkswagen announced that the company is increasing its investment in producing electric vehicles.
In response, Sierra Club California Director Kathryn Phillips released the following statement:
“Volkswagen broke the law, and today by approving the settlement, Judge Breyer is making them pay the price. Volkswagen chose to poison our families with dangerous pollution just to pad its pocketbook. This settlement is a move in the right direction toward cleaning up Volkswagen’s dirty deceit.
“The funds won’t fully compensate owners who thought they were buying a better vehicle, but it is a strong step toward ensuring Volkswagen won’t try to cheat again.
“It’s time for Volkswagen to fully embrace the future of transportation: clean plug-in electric vehicles. Along with compensating all who were affected by their pollution, Volkswagen needs to hasten its transition to electric vehicles that don’t have tailpipe emissions that make our families sick and our air dirty.
“We commend Judge Breyer, the regulatory agencies, and the Department of Justice for this strong settlement to rein in Volkswagen and make sure the company pays for its bad actions.”
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