Volkswagen rejects cash payout to European car owners
European Commission had demanded that the car manufacturer make a similar payment to that of the U.S
- German firm paid $15bn to resolve its emissions scandal in the U.S
- Chief Executive Matthias Muller meets with industry commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska
Updated : 10:48
Volkswagen has rejected calls for the car manufacturer to pay out to over 9 million European customers after having parted with $15bn to resolve their emissions scandal in the U.S.
The company's lawyers were busy in America on the same day as Chief Executive Matthias Muller flew into Brussels for crunch talks with European Commission Industry representative Elzbieta Bienkowska.
Muller made it clear during the meeting that his company had no intention of giving out compensation to its European customers who bought tainted cars. He said that due to tougher regulatory standards in the U.S, it was more difficult to modify the cars to help fit the guidelines, but in Europe this was not the case.
Due to tougher regulatory standards in the U.S, it was more difficult to modify the cars to help fit the guidelines
German Sunday newspaper Welt am Sonntag published the comments by Muller, saying that "I said this to the Commissioner in a personal conversation on Thursday in Brussels."
The position of Volkswagen is that it would face serious financial harm if it were to pay out to its 9 million European customers, compared with only 500,000 in the U.S.
"Volkswagen is solid financially, but you don't have to be a mathematician to see that damage payments in some arbitrary amount would even be too much for Volkswagen to cope with," he told Welt am Sonntag.
Last year, Volkswagen took charges of $18.05bn in order to cover the costs of the faulty vehicles in Europe and settlment costs in the U.S, and they do not see that that figure will be added to.
Last week the company finally agreed a $15bn compensation package for its customers in the U.S
Commisssioner Bienkowska took aim at the company for what she believes to be unfair tretament of its European customers.
Last week the company finally agreed a $15bn compensation package for its customers in the U.S after drawn out talks between legal teams, and if a similar offer were to made to Europeans, the total cost could come to €40bn, and they will not be making that compensation despite being in the midst of a European recall of the tainted vehicles.
"The legal basis in Europe is different from that in America. In Europe, consumer law and environmental law are irrelevant," said Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, head of the Center for Automotive Research in Duisburg.