05 May 2023 , 10:59
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Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert has urged drivers to check if they could claim compensation which may be worth thousands.
The Money Saving Expert website explained that if you were a registered owner of a diesel car or van between 2009 and 2020 - whether you owned the car outright or bought on finance - you could join a legal claim.
The case revolves around the alleged claims that people were "deceived" into buying cars with software that cheated emissions tests.
The issue first emerged back in 2015 after it was found the VW Group, which owns both Audi and Volkswagen, used illegal "devices" in their diesel vehicles to cheat the tests done by regulators to check their emissions levels, before approving the vehicles for sale.
This meant cars with up to 40 times the legal limit of nitrogen dioxide were approved for road use.
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The company later admitted that one million cars worldwide, including eight million in Europe, had the devices installed.
The VW Group case reached a settlement on the controversy, which was coined as "Deisalgate" - but it has now spread to other car manufacturers.
The law firms involved in the current legal cases argue that drivers who had these vehicles have been financially impacted.
The groups argued that some drivers may have needed to have work done on the car to make them comply with emission standards - which could have led to worse fuel efficiency or worse performance.
Alongside this, the controversy itself has led to the vehicles being worth severely less than what was originally paid - even if it is secondhand.
According to MSE, some of the affected brands include Audi, BMW, Citroen, Volks Wagen, Mini, Ford, Fiat, Renault, Volvo, Mercedes, Hyundai, and Peugeot.
The MSE website says you could be allowed to join the claim if:
- You'd never have bought the vehicle had you known about the alleged emissions flaws
- You paid more for it than you otherwise would have - eg you paid more because you believed the vehicle was more environmentally friendly
- If the car or van had to be fixed to comply with emissions standards or the fix itself led to worse fuel efficiency or worse performance
The MSE website noted that the car manufacturers "of course" disagree with the claims put to them - this however is "for the courts to decide".
One of these legal claims was previously settled by the VW group out of court and saw the car manufacturer pay out £193million to more than 90,000 motorists in England and Wales.
The MSE website does note that people should think before signing up as there are pros and cons with legal cases such as these.
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MSE explains that signing up is "free - but not risk-free" as these claims are all "no win no fee" legal claims.
This means if the claim is successful, you may win a few thousand - but half of this may go towards the legal firms.
MSE also says the cash payout is not "guaranteed" and could take several years.
You can find out more information on the full list of pros and cons on the MSE website here - along with updates on the legal cases currently running.