Luxemburg/Ortenau After the judgment of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in connection with so-called thermal windows, i.e. defeat devices, in diesel vehicles, the Mercedes-Benz Group is relaxed. It is first of all to be seen how it will be implemented by German case law, say some experts. The ADAC welcomes the Luxembourg decision as “a good signal for consumer protection”. It remains to be seen to what extent this ultimately helps in the enforcement of claims for damages. Far more optimistic is the view of the law firm Dr. Stoll & Sauer in Lahr. She rates the verdict as a “severe defeat for car manufacturers in the diesel emissions scandal.”
compensation
The law firm has experience in the emissions scandal. According to its own statements, it has already filed 30,000 individual lawsuits and the owners represented 260,000 consumers in the model declaratory action against VW. According to Ralph Sauer, they secured 830 million euros in damages.
But back to the ECJ ruling. “Ultimately, it affects the vast majority of diesel vehicles,” emphasizes Sauer. “Although the case was about a Mercedes CDI 220, the illegal defeat device installed in the vehicle is used in almost all vehicles from other manufacturers.”
In this context, the Luxembourg judges declared, according to the lawyer, “that buyers of a motor vehicle with an illegal defeat device have a claim for damages against the vehicle manufacturer if they have suffered damage as a result of this defeat device.” The ECJ dealt with the question of whether the European regulations, which deal with the approval of motor vehicles, also protect the interests of the respective buyer. “And the court answered this question in the affirmative,” says Ralph Sauer.
statute of limitations
Furthermore, it was decided in principle “that claims for damages against the manufacturer are already justified on the basis of negligent behavior.” That makes filing a lawsuit much easier. Previously, the manufacturer had to be proven intentional and immoral. In fact, German courts now have to deal with the ECJ ruling, Sauer admits. But: “In our opinion, they must comply with the European requirements.”
Since the affected vehicles do not comply with the legal provisions, they are illegal on the roads: Therefore, the owners should act quickly now and secure their claims for damages.” The issue of time plays an important role because of the statute of limitations.
background
The ECJ became active on the initiative of the Ravensburg District Court. It had turned to the Luxembourg judges as part of a claim for damages against Mercedes. One of seven questions was whether only intentional immoral behavior by the vehicle manufacturer leads to claims for damages or whether it is also negligent.
The Federal Court of Justice had also postponed its own judgment. Now he has announced a fundamental decision for May 8th, which is eagerly awaited.
Keyword thermal window
Thermal windows are switch-off devices in vehicles. They switch off the exhaust gas cleaning at certain temperatures. However, this is only permitted to prevent specific damage to the engine.
