On Thursday, October 3, numerous companies and communities will join the French process opened against automobile manufacturers in the framework of the “dieselgate” scandal. Two lawyers, Marc Barennes and Romain Boulet, announced to Agence France-Presse (AFP) their intention to present in the afternoon at the public health center of the Paris judicial court a civil party constitution for more than 700 companies and more than 130 groups and administrations.
Among the structures that have decided to act are, according to lawyers, half a dozen companies (especially in the construction or telecommunications sectors) that wish to claim compensation for more than 5,000 vehicles. Various local authorities, such as “around ten apartments” (Loire-Atlantique, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, etc.), or even “cities” (La Rochelle, Béthune, etc.), also intervene.
Initially, each new participant in the legal information linked to “dieselgate” intends to establish itself for one or two vehicles in question, but the lawyers indicate that they have the mandate to request compensation for “more than 70,000 vehicles”.
This approach “sends a very powerful message to the automakers under investigation” in this file, according to Mmy Bárennes. Companies and administrations are determined to obtain “a fair reparation for the vehicles for which they paid too much in relation to their real characteristics. On the other hand, they intend to comply with their commitments regarding social and environmental responsibility in the case of companies.”the advice continues.
“In the rest of the EU and in the United States, numerous agreements have already been closed, compensations have been ordered and even criminal sanctions have been imposed against Volkswagen. “It is time for justice to be done also for public and private companies in France”M added.my Bárennes.
“Deception about a commodity”
Following the revelation in the United States in 2015 of this scandal called “dieselgate”, starting in 2016, several judicial investigations were opened in Paris. The fraud repression services (DGCCRF) mentioned in a 2017 report a “Global strategy to manufacture fraudulent engines and then market them”.
After several years of investigation in France, Volkswagen, Renault, Peugeot, Citroën and Fiat Chrysler were accused between May and July 2021 in Paris of “deception regarding goods that pose a danger to human or animal health.”
The five manufacturers are accused of having equipped diesel vehicles with software capable of hiding polluting emissions during homologation tests. Once in circulation, polluting emissions could exceed authorized standards up to 40 times. During their indictment, the manufacturers disputed the facts.
New wave of plaintiffs
The most advanced case is that of Volkswagen: the investigation has ended and searches from the Paris prosecutor’s office are awaited. The trial in Germany of the former Volkswagen CEO was interrupted for health reasons. In France, the company requests the annulment of the procedures on the grounds that they overlap with those on the other side of the Rhine.
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In this phase, according to elements of the French files of which the AFP is aware, between 1,500 and 2,000 civil parties would be formed, mainly individuals with a single vehicle, several associations and SMEs.
The arrival of this new wave of plaintiffs could increase the final amount owed by manufacturers in compensation in the event of a criminal conviction. METROmy Barennes mentions the amounts obtained abroad, between 1,350 and 6,250 euros in Germany for each of the 200,000 Volkswagen vehicles compensated, up to 4,440 euros per vehicle in the Netherlands.
Is “Relevant indicators of the amounts that can be claimed in France”according to him, which could amount to several hundred million euros in the event of a conviction. Originality: the action, initiated at the beginning of 2023, is not paid by the companies but financed by a litigating company that is remunerated on the compensation finally obtained, if applicable.
