New York: To settle claims originating from its diesel emission cheating scandal, German car manufacturer Volkswagen has agreed to pay $14.7 billion. The deal is expected to include $10 billion to repair or buy back 475,000 cars equipped with the diesel engines, which it admits it rigged to pass emissions tests.
The agreement would cover actions by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and California’s Air Resources Board and is expected to be filed in court Tuesday. The case still must be approved by a judge. In addition, the deal requires Volkswagen to pay $2.7 billion in fines and devotes another $2 billion on clean-emissions technology.
The deal is expected to be the costliest case of its kind ever for an automaker. And the pain isn’t over: Other investigations and suits are underway that could drive the German automakers’ costs even higher. At nearly $15 billion, the settlement would come close to the $18.2 billion that VW took as a charge against earnings in 2015 to cover costs of the debacle.