The German automaker is giving out up to $1,000 in compensation to Volkswagen (VW) owners if their vehicle is verified to be one of the 500,000 VW diesel engine cars in the USA carrying the malicious software programmed to circumvent regulations on emissions, The Guardian reported.
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Volkswagen announced that the owners of 482,000 cars in the United States will receive the gift cards as the company’s initiative to rebuild customer trust.
VW has already been offering $2,000 to current owners of the affected cars to trade them in for new vehicles, the AP reports.
As we first heard from The Truth About Cars, VW owners are getting a $500 Volkswagen Prepaid Visa® card upfront, and you should definitely, definitely not call it your Diesel Bribe Card™. They would also receive three years of free road-side assistance.
Please note that VW Touareg TDI models are not included in this program.
“We are providing this goodwill package as a first step towards regaining our customers’ trust”, said Michael Horn, the head of VW’s U.S. operations.
VW is engulfed in a huge pollution scandal that was initially centred on so-called defeat devices – sophisticated software fitted into diesel engines to skew the results of tests for nitrogen oxide emissions.
“I personally feel insulted by their peace offering”, Nevada resident Dave Thompson, who owns a 2010 diesel Jetta sportswagon, told CNN.
Audi will also offer a goodwill package, Volkswagen said.
The company said its Audi luxury brand would offer the same award starting Friday.
U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., blasted the package.
On September 18, 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board notified Volkswagen that certain 2.0L 4-cylinder TDI vehicles do not comply with applicable emissions regulations. The company went on to say they’re working “tirelessly” on a fix and are asking owners for their continued patience.
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In the wake of the scandal, Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn stepped down, the number of affected vehicles swelled to over 11 million worldwide, and resale value for affected TDI vehicles in the US have plummeted (even gasoline-engine Volkswagens have been affected by somewhat lower resale values).
