UK drivers score a High Court win in battle with Volkswagen for Dieselgate justice

Volkswagen has suffered a defeat at the hands of UK owners in the High Court as it is ruled that the Dieselgate scandal did see illegal devices fitted by VW.

It’ll be five years this year since the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal erupted as it became clear VW had used nefarious methods to understate the true emissions of their cars. And it’s all still rumbling on.

But despite the furore, and the huge dent it has made in both VW’s reputation and bank balance, VW has always claimed that the devices it fitted to fiddle emissions weren’t actually illegal in the EU, and even the ‘fix’ they came up with was nothing more than a goodwill gesture.

That hasn’t stopped action by a group of around 90,000 UK owners of VW, SEAT, Audi and Skoda cars taking the fight to VW for compensation, and they’ve just got some good news as the High Court has ruled the devices VW fitted were illegal, with Mr Justice Waksman saying VW’s arguments that they were legal were “Hopless” and “Highly Flawed”.

A statement from VW said:

While Volkswagen is disappointed that the outcome was not in our favour, the judgment relates only to preliminary issues. To be clear, today’s decision does not determine liability or any issues of causation or loss for any of the causes of action claimed. These remain to be determined by the Court as the case continues.

Which seems to make it clear that VW intend fighting the ongoing litigation, despite losing this battle, instead of settling the claims. Which is what they should do.