On Tuesday, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) decided that Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE) must compensate customers whose unlawful cutoff mechanisms in diesel vehicles have harmed.
The case was filed before a German court in Ravensburg by the buyer of a pre-owned Mercedes whose exhaust gas recirculation system functioned within a temperature range but decreased recirculation in lower temperatures, increasing nitrogen oxide emissions.
A German court questioned the European Court of Justice (ECJ) over whether, by EU law, the buyer of a car fitted with such a device had a claim for compensation from the vehicle manufacturer and the methodology for determining such compensation.
According to the ECJ’s statement from Tuesday, car owners have this right, and member states are in charge of seeing to it that it is enforced.
Germany’s federal court denied the plaintiff’s request for damages because the automaker could only be liable for willful damage.
But, in June of last year, an advisor to the ECJ stated that owners of vehicles with such devices were entitled to compensation in both intentional and negligent circumstances.
On May 8, the German Federal Court will hold a follow-up session to review the effects of the European court’s decision on German liability law.
