Bosch may pay $300 million in compensation for involvement in Volkswagen cheating scandal: insider

German auto parts supplier Bosch was previously sued by American car owners for its alleged involvement in the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal. According to Reuters, on December 19, a person familiar with the matter revealed that Bosch had reached a settlement with American car owners and would end the case for $300 million. A spokesman for the prosecutor's office said that Bosch's role in the Volkswagen cheating incident is still under investigation.

In 2015, American Volkswagen diesel car owners sued Bosch, claiming that it helped Volkswagen develop emission test cheating software and pointed out that Bosch has been an "active participant" in Volkswagen's decade-long cheating plan. Bosch previously considered the accusation of American car owners to be "barbaric and unfounded."

Bosch Chairman Volkmar Denner ordered an internal investigation in January 2016 and said he would actively cooperate with regulators. In April this year, Denner revealed that Bosch had set aside 650 million euros to deal with potential legal action. Reuters reported last year that the U.S. Department of Justice was also investigating whether Bosch was involved in the Volkswagen cheating incident.

According to people familiar with the matter, Bosch's solution to the car owners' complaints is very important to Volkswagen's final handling method.

In November this year, Reuters reported that Volkswagen may buy back about 20,000 Volkswagen diesel vehicles with excessive emissions and repair the remaining vehicles. After intense negotiations last weekend, Volkswagen and the car owners' lawyers should soon reach an agreement on compensation for the car owners. At a short court hearing in San Francisco on December 19, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said that negotiations are still continuing in Washington and a solution for the 3.0-liter diesel car is expected to be reached on December 20.

According to Reuters on December 16, Volkswagen's U.S. 3.0-liter diesel vehicle treatment plan includes agreeing to pay $200 million to reduce air pollution, and agreeing to buy back 20,000 vehicles and repair 60,000 diesel vehicles with excessive emissions. In June this year, Volkswagen agreed to buy back or repair about 475,000 2.0-liter diesel vehicles in the United States with excessive pollution for $10 billion.

The amount of compensation for the 3.0-liter diesel cars is uncertain because the number of owners who choose to buy them back is not yet clear, but two people familiar with the matter said it would exceed $1 billion.

According to Reuters, as of press time, Volkswagen has agreed to pay $16.5 billion for the cheating scandal, including fees paid to dealers, state governments, new energy projects, and car owners' lawyers.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.