Volkswagen offers $1,000 to customers after 'emissions scandal'

The carmaker is seeking to regain good will after a blow to its international image

The carmaker is seeking to regain good will after a blow to its international image (EPA)

Volkswagen in the United States has said it would be giving $1,000 to some owners of diesel VW and Audi cars that do not achieve the emissions limits that were claimed for them but half of the “free” money will have to be spent on products at the car group’s dealerships.

The gesture, which may cost the company $500 million, is an attempt by buy back goodwill from owners in America amid revelations that erupted in September that the company had rigged certain models to help them pass strict nitrogen oxide emissions in America.

While some consumers may welcome the offer, it is unlikely to be enough to settle the issue with the government. VW remains in conversation with regulators and it may yet be forced to buy back some of the cars caught in the emissions testing scandal.

Under the offer, owners of the cars will be sent a Visa card pre-loaded with $500 and another $500 dealership card. They would also receive three years of free road-side assistance.

It did not seem to impress critics of the car giant on Capitol Hill in Washington, however. Senators Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Edward Markey of Massachusetts decried the compensation as "insultingly inadequate" and "a fig leaf attempting to hide the true depths of Volkswagen's deception."

The senators said VW "should offer every owner a buy-back option" and "should state clearly and unequivocally that every owner has the right to sue."