Extent of the VW emissions cheating reportedly discussed two days before public announcement made, according to reports

On 20^th September 2015, Volkswagen engineers and top managers reportedly discussed the extent of the emissions cheating before publicly admitting they’d installed the so-called “defeat device” software into their U.S. vehicles. The announcement saw the company’s share prices plummet and billions of pounds wiped off its market value.

The impact was then further exacerbated when Volkswagen made another announcement two days later confirming the full extent of Volkswagen group vehicles across the world that were affected. Apparently, this delay in reporting the full extent of the scandal may land VW in further trouble…

According to German newspaper, Der Spiegel, engineers told managers that the diesel emissions issue went far beyond the issues identified by U.S. authorities, but top executives decided not to share this information immediately. They apparently waited a further two days before letting European owners know that their cars were also affected.

The scandal itself tore the integrity of the motor industry apart, and prompted a knock-on effect for authorities probing into other major automakers in search of similar behaviour. For Volkswagen, admission of their behaviour cost them billions through lawsuits and penalties, and may cost much much more given the vast cases they’re yet to settle across Europe and here in the U.K.

Many owners were horrified to discover their ‘eco-friendly’ vehicles were spewing out more toxic NOx levels than they ought to have been. Shareholders saw the value of their investments plummet in the great scandal, which prompted an investigation into whether Volkswagen warned them of the financial impact their admission and / or activity would cause.

In German securities law, firms are required to publish any information that could have an impact on the market in a timely manner. Volkswagen maintained that it fulfilled this obligation under German disclosure rules, but declined to give any details.

Der Spiegel speculates that the former Chief Executive, Martin Winterkorn, and finance chief, Hans Dieter Poetsch, were told by the engineers that all 11 million vehicle across the world – not just those identified in the U.S. – were affected. The newspaper also alleges that participants of that meeting talked about German disclosure rules and whether Volkswagen needed to disclose the full extent of the cheating.

Winterkorn insisted to a government committee that he informed Alexander Dobrindt, Germany’s Transport Minister, that the cheating affected Volkswagen group vehicles all over the world on 21^st September, the day before it became public knowledge. Volkswagen’s lawyers have drafted a document that states the company apparently didn’t have reliable figures on the cheating until the evening of 21^st September 2015…

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