VOLKSWAGENis to pay owners of its polluting diesel cars up to $7,000 (about £4,700), and agree to fund a grant programme to offset air pollution, under a $10 billion (£6.7bn) settlement being negotiated for submission to a federal judge next week, according to reports in the US.
The German car-maker will provide cash payments worth between $1,000 and $7,000, depending on the vehicle’s age and other factors, to compensate consumers, sources within the company have said.
The environmental remediation programme is a key priority for regulators looking to undo the damage of 482,000 diesel cars that emit up to 40 times the permitted amounts of smog-forming nitrogen oxides.
VW has admitted that since 2009 it rigged cars to pass strict US emission tests.
Car owners will be faced with complex calculations to figure out how much cash they might receive from Volkswagen.
Regulators are looking at a small but popular diesel-emissions clean-up programme as a model for a VW remediation fund, according to sources.
In an attempt to move on from the diesel emissions scandal VW last week announced a plan to sell up to three million electric vehicles a year by 2025 -- or about one quarter of its projected sales.
Its chief executive Matthias Mueller also declared that battery technology would become a "new competency," and the car-maker had begun a review of its strategic options in the field.
