Volkswagen Group Owners – our clients have had their say on how they feel

As we’re helping thousands of people, our Car Emissions Lawyers have gained a valuable insight in to how the victims of the Volkswagen Group scandal feel about the news that they have been affected. Over the last few days many of the victims have now received a notification letter from their manufacturer to confirm they are affected.

Our clients have been telling us how they feel – and the general consensus is similar throughout.

Volkswagen – a once trusted brand whose reputation has been tarnished

Many of our clients have expressed just how angry they are about all this. This isn’t like many of the other recalls that have affected the vehicle manufacturing industry in the past. This time its different. Its different because the Volkswagen brand has always been seen by many as a trusted and reliable brand. People buy Volkswagen Group vehicles because they want to be rest assured that their investment is a sound one.

But the consumers have been betrayed – something the Volkswagen Group have admitted to victims. This was no accident or engineering mishap. Many recalls are down to mistakes or unforeseen events, with the manufactures never intending to cause a problem to the consumer. But in this instance, the Volkswagen Group – a trusted name in vehicle manufacturing – appear to have deliberately and intentionally misled their customers.

The defeat devices that have been installed were no accident. The programming and coding inside of these devices is not some technological error. It was designed to do exactly what it does. To our lawyers, and the affected customers, a fundamental trust in a big name brand has been tarnished.

Lifelong customers are turning their backs on the German engineering giants

Many people who are claiming with us have told us that they have been buying Volkswagen Group vehicles for decades. They’re a symbol of reliability. Audi, as an example, have been regarded as vehicles that can last for decades. Those people who have always invested their money – and trust – in the brand have been severely let down.

The result is huge – many have told us they will never buy another Volkswagen Group vehicle again, and they have expressed how angry they are that a brand they trusted and believed in has let them down so badly.

What will the affect be on the Volkswagen Group brands?

It’s a bit too early to say, but we have spoken to victims who cant sell their cars because dealerships wont pay for them. Some who have been offered a price have been quoted amounts that are less than half the market value. Some dealerships and traders simply don’t know what to offer people because the market affects have yet to be determined.

But if what our clients have had to say so far is anything to go by then the depreciation concern could be a grave one. We know that the depreciation factor has been played down in the media, but we cannot simply compare this to previous recalls. Previous recalls have been largely accidental – the defeat devices in these vehicles appear to be intentional, and that is the key difference here that could permanently break the bond of trust between Volkswagen and many of their customers.

Will Volkswagen Group ever recover?

We’re legal experts, not experts on the market here. But common sense and knowledge from prior scandals tends to show that eventually things do settle and get back to normal. But the point about this being an intentional problem remains, and this could be set to hurt the brand a lot more than they think.

If that happens then the victims could be set to pay just as badly as they face depreciation levels that could cost people thousands of pounds.