Trial in Feldkirch

Emissions scandal: landmark ruling at the regional court

Nachrichten
12.03.2024 06:05

As a result of the emissions scandal, an Audi customer in Vorarlberg is receiving 20 percent of the purchase price back as compensation. This has also set a new benchmark for comparable cases in Vorarlberg.

Much has been discussed and written about the "emissions scandal" in recent years, and the case continues to occupy courts around the world to this day.

A very exciting legal chapter was recently played out at the regional court in Feldkirch: A man from Vorarlberg had bought a used Audi A4 Avant (55,000 kilometers) for 32,700 euros in 2014. However, this vehicle was fitted with the almost notorious EA189 "scandal engine".

Although the manufacturer carried out a software update in 2016, this did not remedy the defects - a shortcoming that has been established by the Austrian Supreme Court (OGH) in at least 50 cases alone. As a result, the vehicle is still at risk of being taken out of service. Like so many others, the man from Vorarlberg sought legal advice and sued Volkswagen AG for compensation of 30 percent of the purchase price. In the first instance, the Bludenz District Court awarded him 3270 euros, which is exactly ten percent of the purchase price. Both parties appealed against this ruling.

Lawyer Michael Poduschka is satisfied with the verdict. (Bild: Kerstin Wassermann)
Lawyer Michael Poduschka is satisfied with the verdict.

Feldkirch provincial court found fraudulent action
The parties recently met again at the provincial court in Feldkirch. And something quite remarkable happened there: on the grounds that Volkswagen AG had acted fraudulently through its employees when installing the original cheating software, the upper limit of 15 percent of the purchase price set by the Supreme Court was lifted - only for the scandalous EA189 engine, not for other types - and the Vorarlberg Audi customer was awarded 6540 euros in damages. The ruling can no longer be appealed, as the Feldkirch Regional Court is the highest professional court in this case.

Michael Poduschka, the plaintiff's lawyer from Upper Austria and one of the leading lawyers in Austria in this field, speaks of a groundbreaking judgment: "For the first time, an appellate court has determined the amount of damages for a federal state. Now all car buyers in Vorarlberg can imagine what they will most likely receive in damages in court. The statute of limitations has not yet expired either."

Porträt von Vorarlberg-Krone
Vorarlberg-Krone
Loading...
00:00 / 00:00
Abspielen
Schließen
Aufklappen
Loading...
Vorige 10 Sekunden
Zum Vorigen Wechseln
Abspielen
Zum Nächsten Wechseln
Nächste 10 Sekunden
00:00
00:00
1.0x Geschwindigkeit
Loading
Kommentare

Liebe Leserin, lieber Leser,

die Kommentarfunktion steht Ihnen ab 6 Uhr wieder wie gewohnt zur Verfügung.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen
das krone.at-Team

User-Beiträge geben nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des Betreibers/der Redaktion bzw. von Krone Multimedia (KMM) wieder. In diesem Sinne distanziert sich die Redaktion/der Betreiber von den Inhalten in diesem Diskussionsforum. KMM behält sich insbesondere vor, gegen geltendes Recht verstoßende, den guten Sitten oder der Netiquette widersprechende bzw. dem Ansehen von KMM zuwiderlaufende Beiträge zu löschen, diesbezüglichen Schadenersatz gegenüber dem betreffenden User geltend zu machen, die Nutzer-Daten zu Zwecken der Rechtsverfolgung zu verwenden und strafrechtlich relevante Beiträge zur Anzeige zu bringen (siehe auch AGB). Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.

Kostenlose Spiele
Vorteilswelt