Class actions against car maker Volkswagen over its emissions cheating scandal have a very good chance of resulting in compensation for thousands of Australian consumers, legal experts say.

Bannister Law filed two class actions in the Federal Court on Saturday. If successful, the cases could amount to billions of dollars in payouts to car buyers.

The class action was lodged against Volkswagen and Audi – separate companies in Australia – on behalf of the 91,000 Australians whose diesel vehicles contained secret engine software to cheat emissions tests.

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Maurice Blackburn Lawyers announced a similar class action, representing 7000 applicants, to be filed “soon”, according to class actions principal at Maurice Blackburn, Damien Scattini. 

“We are convinced that our action will offer thousands of aggrieved vehicle owners the best chance of success in holding the company to account and recovering some deserved compensation for them,” Mr Scattini said in a statement. 

Bannister Law principal Charles Bannister told The New Daily the cars never should have been sold in the first place.

“The diesel vehicles are not what they thought they were getting, which is compliant cars. There is an effect on the brand and there is an effect on the value,” Mr Bannister said.

The class action followed revelations the German manufacturer had cheated emissions tests in 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide.

It achieved this by fitting ‘defeat devices’ to the engines of its cars, that automatically altered the emissions mode when it detected it was being tested.

Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn issued an apology to “customers … regulatory agencies and the public” in September.

‘Misleading and deceptive’

The class action alleges the conduct of the German car manufacturer was “misleading and deceptive” under Australian consumer law and seeks to compensate – or at least part compensate – owners.

Melbourne University Law School associate dean Professor Jeannie Paterson said applicants had the right to be reimbursed for their cars via the courts.

“It’s pretty clear that VW seriously misrepresented the emissions from its diesel car and one would think that at least some consumers would have a remedy on that basis,” Professor Paterson said. 

“They have a right to a remedy which will get them the cost of the car back.”

In an article for The Conversation, University of Melbourne’s Arlen Duke and Professor Paterson wrote that compensation could be owed if Volkswagen was found to have made misleading claims.

“Those consumers might also be able to seek damages as compensation for other kinds of loss they may have incurred, including possibly for the disappointment and distress arising from their supposedly environmentally-friendly car not meeting expectations,” they said.

“Consumers are entitled to a replacement, repair or refund of the goods that fail to live up to the manufacturer or suppliers’ representations.”

Mr Bannister said both car owners and dealers had suffered financial losses as a result of the scandal.

“There is also a community effect, any excess of nitrous oxide is something to worry about that is why it is so heavily regulated,” he said.

First of its kind

The class lawsuit will be the first of its kind in Australia and the first action against Volkswagen locally.

At the global level, not only did Volkswagen’s profits suffer – it reported a loss of $5.37 billion in October, its first in about 15 years – but some called for the diesel cars to be banned from cities all together.

Those seeking a speedy resolution could be out of luck: the class actions could take years to settle.

A local voluntary recall of affected cars is currently underway.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is also continuing its investigation into Volkswagen and has previously threatened legal action against the firm.

-with AAP