Judicial authorities in Germany are conducting an in-depth fraud investigation on the use of more than 200 000 diesel ‘defeat devices’ in cars produced by an international automotive group and international commercial vehicle manufacturer, as well as their subsidiaries. The investigation is focused on the suspicion that diesel engines installed in several car models sold by the company would be equipped with an illegal defeat device.
Whereas the vehicles meet the emissions standards under test conditions, the defeat device allegedly effectively shuts down the emissions control system in real drive conditions. Such defeat devices are illegal according to the European Union regulations in place. Vehicles with defeat devices are not approved for road usage in the EU and consumers with such devices installed in their cars face possible driving bans. The Prosecutor Office of Turin, Italy, is also investigating the crime of fraud in the framework of a parallel proceeding linked to the same case.
Source: www.riskcompliance.biz; https://www.riskcompliance.biz/news/judicial-authorities-in-germany-conducting-a-fraud-investigation-into-the-use-of-diesel-defeat-devices-in-cars/