After Volkswagen's emissions scandal that cost the German automaker nearly $1 billion, it is now facing its first major lawsuit in its own country. Deutsche See, a major fish and seafood distribution company in Germany, took to court and filed a malicious deception complaint against the German automaker.
Reuters reported that according to the German tabloid Bild, Deutsche See was suing Volkswagen for $12.8 million or 11.9 million euros. Prior to taking the case to court, the distribution company was in fact seeking to settle. Unfortunately, they were unable to.
Deutsche See converted its entire fleet of commercial and passenger vehicles to VW believing on the premise that they were investing in low-emission vehicles. The German distribution company won the Sustainability Award back in 2010 for committing to preserve fish stock. Now that they are involved in the VW scandal, the company claims that this has caused a major damage to their company's image.
"We are deeply disappointed with VW and feel we have been deceived and betrayed," said Egbert Miebach, the CEO of Deutsche See. "Deutsche See only entered into partnership with VW because VW promised the most environmentally friendly, sustainable mobility concept," the company said in a statement, reports Telegraph UK. It is believed that around 500 VW vehicles were fitted with the emission-rigging software.
In other Volkswagen-related news, another country has begun its criminal proceedings in accordance with the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal. Fortune reports that regulators said that they had been cheated by car manufacturers.
Volkswagen is already facing several class-action lawsuits from individual owners, dealers, regulators, and states, mostly in the United States. The company's legal fallout has already cost them over $21.6 billion, so far. In fact, its former chief exec is under investigation for fraud and market manipulation by German prosecutors.
Volkswagen's legal battles are far from over. Also, its stocks have plummeted after the German fish and seafood distribution company Deutsche See filed to court.
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