When most people think of the diesel affair, they first think of VW. But thousands of car owners also went to court against Mercedes. Now it’s the investors’ turn – and they’re demanding hundreds of millions.
More than six years ago there were the first allegations against Mercedes-Benz for diesel exhaust manipulation. A new chapter is now beginning for the car manufacturer in the affair: Numerous investors are accusing the listed company of not informing them about the scandal in a timely manner – and are therefore demanding compensation totaling around 900 million euros for losses incurred.
A so-called capital investor model case begins today, Wednesday, before the Stuttgart Higher Regional Court.
However, the 20th Civil Senate is unlikely to deal with substantive questions at the start of the trial. The start is planned as an organizational event. A separation of the complex process material and the structuring of the further proceedings should therefore be discussed with the parties.
More than 200 investors are suing
The model plaintiff in the process – a private investor – is represented by the Tilp law firm. According to the Tübingen lawyers, a large number of private and more than 200 institutional investors have joined the process. These include banks, insurance companies and pension funds from Germany, other countries in the European Union, North America, Asia and Australia.
The plaintiff investors accuse Mercedes-Benz Group AG of violating its obligations under capital market law. The company concealed the use of illegal defeat devices in its diesel vehicles as well as the associated risks and costs from the capital market and deceived investors about the true circumstances. Between July 10, 2012 and June 20, 2018, the share price of the former Daimler AG fell from more than 90 euros to less than 60 euros. The damages caused by exchange rate losses are therefore the subject of the lawsuits.
Car manufacturer considers claims to be “unfounded”
Mercedes-Benz took a clear stance against the allegations: “We consider the claims to be unfounded,” said a spokesman. The company properly fulfilled its disclosure obligations under capital market law. “Our communication on the subject of diesel always corresponded to our current state of knowledge,” he said.
The test case in Stuttgart could drag on for years. This is also shown by an example from Lower Saxony: In a similar lawsuit against the Volkswagen Group and the umbrella holding company Porsche SE, there is currently a dispute over compensation for investors who suffered billions of euros in share price losses after the VW diesel affair was exposed. The process has been progressing slowly since 2018. Before a possible decision is made, the Braunschweig Higher Regional Court wants to hear from dozens of witnesses and review a large number of documents.
Mercedes has had to deal with emissions allegations for years. In 2018 and 2019, the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) issued recall notices against a total of several hundred thousand of the manufacturer’s vehicles due to inadmissible emissions technology. Since then, customers have repeatedly filed lawsuits against the company.
Source: Stern
