EU declares war on botch-ups
As of today, a new EU-wide law is in force, which is intended to make fraud cases such as the diesel scandal more difficult or prevent them.
The year 2015 and the so-called Diesel-Gate scandal are inevitably linked. The industry was shaken by the international fraud case, in which exhaust gas values were deliberately embellished on a large scale during tests, earthquake-like - the loss of confidence is still immense today. Only recently it became known that the Volkswagen group had also installed similar software in its Audi petrol engines (we reported), which influences the values and changes the test results positively.
But now it seems to be finally enough for the EU Commission; they are at the end of their tether, as we have heard from the Parliament. Already in 2018 Brussels promised to do something against such manipulations. According to critics, these attempts were too timid at the time, but now the matter is moving.
From today (September 1st 2020), new cars will be subject to more intensive checks before they are registered for the European market, and random tests will also be carried out afterwards. For infringements, Brussels will impose a fine of €30,000 - per vehicle.
But some politicians do not go far enough. "These new rules are good and important, but unfortunately fundamental problems are again not being tackled. This regulation, which is susceptible to abuse, will be continued," says Oliver Krischer, deputy chairman of the Bundestag parliamentary group.
The next weeks will show how hard and effective the law will be. The word of authority from Brussels comes at a time that is one of the blackest in the automotive industry. The Parliament must now demonstrate how serious Brussels is - in front of the entire world public.