What You Need To Know if You Own a Volkswagen Diesel Vehicle

What You Need To Know if You Own a Volkswagen Diesel Vehicle
Do you own a Volkswagen (VW) diesel vehicle?  If so, you, along with millions of other unsuspecting customers, just found out in the past several weeks that your vehicle may not pass federal emission standards.   This means that there is now millions of dollars’ worth of unsellable inventory on the VW car lots, as selling them will violate federal law.  And of course, anyone who owns one of these vehicles now has a big problem.  Because of this, VW diesel owners and dealers are heading in droves to the courthouse to file lawsuits against the company responsible for selling hundreds of thousands of defective cars.
 
What Exactly Did Volkswagen Do?
It is estimated that half a million Volkswagens that were shipped to the United States and sold to dealers were fitted with a “defeat device”.  A defeat device is a software that tricks standard emissions tests into believing the vehicles are safe enough to pass the test and be within federal emission guidelines.
 
The defeat device is alleged to have been installed in all VW “diesel light duty vehicles” from 2009 through 2015.  When some of the vehicles were tested after removing the defeat device software, the levels of nitrogen oxide emissions were up to 40 times higher than the federal legal limit.  Volkswagen will begin a recall of these vehicles in January, and thinks it can have the problem fixed in all vehicles by the end of 2016.
 
Problems for Dealers and Owners
Everyone who owns a VW diesel light duty vehicle is stuck in a bad situation right now, and should seek legal advice.  Car dealers cannot sell these cars that are in their inventory, because they are now aware they violate EPA standards, and selling them would therefore violate federal law.  Anyone who owns one cannot get nearly the value they anticipated in resale, due to this defect, and even though VW is assuring drivers that the vehicles are technically safe to drive, it is not ideal to be driving any vehicle that exceeds the legal emission standards.
 
What Laws Has Volkswagen Broken?
The tactics used by Volkswagen, putting software into almost half a million vehicles to cheat the emissions test, violates a host of state and federal laws, including the Nevada Deceptive Trade Practices Act.  The Nevada Attorney General has joined 27 other states and has launched its own investigation into VW’s actions, issuing subpoenas to begin the process.  A countless number of consumer protection and environmental protection laws have been violated by Volkswagen’s flagrant behavior.
 
Naqvi Injury Law Stands Ready to Help all VW Owners
If you own a VW diesel light duty vehicle, it will certainly be difficult to sell it.  It also will not be possible for you to pass an emissions test until modifications are made, which might not happen until the end of 2016.  The personal injury lawyers at Naqvi Injury Law can help you if you have been the victim of fraud and deceptive trade practices by Volkswagen.  If you have any questions regarding your legal rights, contact us today and let us help you.