German automaker Volkswagen is giving its US vehicle owners $500 gift cards that can be spent anywhere.
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It was these alterations that caused the newly admitted additional 800,000 diesel and gasoline cars with emissions “irregularities” in Europe that the Volkswagen Group estimates will cost it $2.19 billion dollars.
He said his subsidiary operation had been asking Volkswagen in Germany since nearly as soon as word of the scandal broke in September for support for the 9000 or so local owners of vehicles powered by engines fitting with emissions-cheating software.
The offers would be made as VW works on a fix and recall that would bring the cars back within USA emissions standards. The company says about 11 million cars worldwide have the software. The Customer Goodwill Package also gives customers access to 24-hour road assistance for 3 years. It’s calling the payouts the “TDI Goodwill Program”.
Volkswagen, which has a total of twelve brands including Audi and Porsche, said that a similar “package” would soon be offered to the owners of Audi models which are also concerned.
“The cash program announced today by Volkswagen appears to be a goodwill gesture and nothing more”, New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman said in a statement on Monday. VW said that Audi will launch the same program on Friday.
The package comes without strings, and customers will not be obliged to sign a release or waive any rights, a spokesperson for the company said.
Last week, the EPA accused VW of cheating with different software on larger six-cylinder diesels in about 10,000 vehicles.
Appearing before Congress in October, Volkswagen America’s new CEO Michael Horn attributed the faults to “a couple of software engineers who put this in for whatever reasons” and said that he had had no knowledge of the deception prior to a meeting with the EPA. Citing information from the company, the ministry said that of the 2.4 million vehicles affected in Germany, just 540,000 would require a complicated hardware fix.
The offer is aimed at placating VW drivers who are upset that the cars they paid a premium price for are now worth much less than they were banking on.
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Credit-ratings firm Fitch Ratings on Monday downgraded Volkswagen with a negative outlook, citing governance, management and internal-control issues.
