Volkswagen investors cleared to pursue £3.4 billion in compensation

A German court has reportedly allowed 170 Volkswagen investors to chase £3.4 billion in compensation for losses resulting from dieselgate.

According to the Financial Times, the court, which is located close to VW’s Wolfsburg headquarters, will assign a single plaintiff to the investors later this year to open a legal procedure that’s similar to a US class-action lawsuit to claim losses.

The losses came as a result of the Volkswagen emissions scandal, which saw the German manufacturer's share prices plummet.

Volkswagen has so far not responded to the news. This court decision comes just weeks after the German state of Bavaria announced it would sue VW for losses amounting to more than half a million pounds.

Volkswagen was recently given preliminary approval to hand over $14.7 billion (about £11bn) worth of compensation to 475,000 owners of cars in the US affected by the emissions scandal.

European customers affected by the scandal won’t be awarded compensation, despite mounting pressure from regulators for Volkswagen to offer payouts. The car maker says compensation isn't necessary in the UK and the rest of Europe, because the fix it is applying to cars is less extensive, allowing for a much faster turnaround time that in the US.

Despite the resulting damage to its image following the emissions scandal, the wider Volkswagen Group has maintained growth in its deliveries, with the first six months of this year resulting in a 1.3% increase compared with the year before. However, this growth has largely been spurred on by Volkswagen's other brands, including Audi and Skoda, as the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand saw a 1.8% decrease in customer deliveries during the same period.