10,000 Arizonans Eligible for VW Settlement

Thousands of Arizonans who own certain so-called “clean diesel” Volkswagen and Audi vehicles are eligible for compensation from a federal class action settlement over emissions claims.

The German automaker agreed to buy back or fix the “clean diesel” vehicles and give out thousands of dollars to the owners, according to Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich. The affected cars include 2009 through 2015 Volkswagen TDI diesel models of Jettas, Passats, Golfs, and Beetles as well as the TDI Audi A3.

Owners will be paid full, pre-scandal market value for their vehicles along with a cash payment of at least $5,100. If owners want to keep their vehicles and wait to see if VW and Audi develop federally-approved emissions fixes, they can and will also receive a cash payment of at least $5,100.

Owners have until late 2018 to decide whether they want to sell the vehicles back or not.

The compensation is part of the massive nationwide settlement worth up to $15.3 billion that Volkswagen has agreed to pay to end consumer lawsuits and government allegations that claimed the automaker passed off vehicles that exceeded U.S. pollution laws as high-performance, environmentally friendly. It’s reportedly the largest auto-related class-action settlement in U.S. history.

Back in September, VW admitted that it installed secret software that allowed the vehicles to emit up to 40 times the legally allowed pollution. Volkswagen will also pay $2.7 billion into an EPA fund to compensate for the environmental impact caused by the emission issues.

This settlement doesn’t impact Arizona’s ongoing consumer fraud lawsuit against Volkswagen Audi and Porsche, Brnovich said.

“Arizona has one of the strongest consumer fraud provisions in the nation,” said Brnovich. “While some other states are limited to a few thousand dollars in penalties per violation, Arizona law provides for as much as a $10,000 penalty for each willful violation of the Consumer Fraud Act.”

According to the state Attorney’s Office, the federal settlement doesn’t cover false claims made about 3.0L Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche diesel engines and the Arizona lawsuit will continue to seek restitution for owners of 3.0L “clean diesel” cars.

Owners can start submitting information to Volkswagen on July 26, 2016, at https://www.vwcourtsettlement.com. Owners can call 1-844-98-CLAIM for more information. Compensation will reportedly start in October at the earliest. Vehicle owners must file a claim by September 1, 2018.

Source: www.tucsonnewsnow.com