Shareholders of the parent company, Volkswagen, demand compensation

A group of shareholders in Volkswagen’s parent company, the Porsche SE, are demanding €8 million in compensation. They believe they have paid too much for their shares for years because they were unaware of the Volkswagen diesel scandal. The case for the claim began on Wednesday in the German city of Stuttgart.

In 2015 it was found that Volkswagen expected nitrogen emissions to be lower than they actually were with its “cheat programmes”. When the problems became known, the Porsche SE stake lost a lot of value. In Europe, he drives 8.5 million “billed diesels” of the brands VW, Audi, Seat, Skoda and Porsche.

The parent company of Volkswagen has rejected all claims so far. The German company insists that it is not a car manufacturer but a holding company. Therefore, it will not be involved in the development, production or marketing of vehicles. The final compensation for all Porsche SE shareholders could amount to hundreds of millions of euros. The Porsche SE holds the majority of the voting rights in Volkswagen.

Since September 2018, a case against Volkswagen itself has been pending in another German court. These contributors believe the car manufacturer should have informed them earlier of the scale of the emissions scandal. Volkswagen has paid fines in Germany, the United States and other countries in recent years over the diesel scandal. Car owners also received compensation.