A court in the US has approved one of the biggest corporate settlements ever, forcing Volkswagen to pay $14.7 billion over the diesel emissions scandal. As per the settlement, Volkswagen has agreed to spend up to $10 billion on buybacks and owner compensation, while an additional $4.7 billion to be spent on programs to offset excess emissions and clean car projects.
Matthias Mueller, Volkswagen's CEO told reporters the approval was "an important milestone for us on the way toward clearing up the problem that we caused some time ago.”
The carmaker is expected to buy back the affected cars from mid-November. Motorists can choose between having their cars bought at pre-scandal "trade in" value or repaired by VW and have regulators approve the fixes. They will also receive an additional compensation ranging between $5,000 and $10,000.
As part of the settlement, Volkswagen will fund programs to provide better charging infrastructure for electric cars, the development of zero-emission ride-sharing fleets and general efforts to increase the sale of emission-friendly vehicles.
The deal with the regulators followed the company’s admission last year that its supposedly “clean diesel” cars had been deliberately designed to cheat on emissions tests.
The German manufacturer is facing an additional €8.2 billion in damage claims from investors over their losses following the emissions scandal. In 2015, Volkswagen lost $6.6 billion after they admitted cheating in emissions tests, with nearly 11 million cars worldwide affected. The company has already put aside $25 billion for its global recall program.
