When the Environmental Protection Agency disclosed VW’s emission rigging secret, the news rang out around the world. Consumers that had purchased any VW (or Audi) impacted by the emissions rigging “default devices” felt wronged, and rightly so, but there’s a bigger picture here as well.
Not only has VW defrauded consumers that thought they were buying clean automobiles (thereby reducing resale values), the company has also made a massive black mark on the face of diesel automobiles in general.
Diesel: A Hard Sell
In the U.S., diesel cars are not flying out of showrooms. While these automobiles may be popular in other parts of the world (diesel cars account for 50% of all cars on the road in Europe, for example), cars that burn diesel have been a hard sell across the United States.
In recent years, sales of cleaner cars have increased slightly, but all of that might now change. Those consumers that did step out on a limb to test out a cleaner car (and pay a premium for that car) have now been duped by VW. This, in turn, could lead to a massive decrease in diesel cars in the very near future.
Why does this matter? The environmental impact that fuel-burning cars and trucks have is enormous. Volkswagen had promised consumers that the company was cutting back on this negative environmental impact by manufacturing automobiles that were clean burning.
Now that it has been discovered that various diesel VW models were not as clean as was once thought, those consumers that might have ventured towards diesel are likely to shun the whole idea.
A Greater Impact
What VW has done by fixing emissions readings is misleading, and those consumers that purchased any VW model cited by the EPA should receive compensation for their damages. However, it’s important to consider the wider impact of what VW has done as well. Will consumers ever trust car companies that charge a higher price for cleaner cars? Or, has the damage been done?
There may be a bright side to all of this as well, though. It is possible that car manufacturers will now have to abide by stricter guidelines when claiming that a car is clean or green. VW might have set the bar just a little bit higher, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
In the meantime, the Dellutri Law Group wants to make sure that you gain the compensation that you deserve. If you think that you have been misled and damaged by VW’s intentional conduct, contact us today for more information.
