KARLSRUHE, Germany (Reuters) – Volkswagen expects German courts to reject any compensation claims from car owners about devices that control emissions in its engines because they are not illegal, a spokesperson told Reuters on Monday.
Germany’s highest federal court had ruled that carmakers must pay compensation for diesel vehicles fitted with illegal emissions-controlling devices, in a case that could potentially cost Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and others millions of euros.
Defeat devices are mechanisms or software that can change vehicle emissions levels, leading to numerous court disputes over whether manufacturers use them improperly to mask the true pollution levels of their vehicles.
(Reporting by Ursula Knapp, writing Andrey Sychev; editing by Matthias Williams)
