[USA] “In Civil Settlements with the United States and California, Fiat Chrysler to Settle Allegations of Cheating on Federal and State Vehicle Emissions Tests”

[EPA, 10 January 2019]

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V., FCA US, and affiliates were accused of violating the Clean Air Act and California laws. But the company managed to reach a settlement with the Department of Justice, the EPA, and the State of California. The resulting settlement requires Fiat Chrysler to start a recall program that would repair over 100,000 non-compliant diesel vehicles sold or leased sin the US and would have to offer an extended warranty on these repaired cars. In addition, the automobile company needs to pay $305 million to settle the claims of manipulating emission tests and failing to disclose the illegal devices used to defeat the emission tests. Finally, the company will have to create a program to mitigate the excess pollution caused by the exploitation of emission tests by their vehicles. Fiat has also entered into a separate settlement with the state of California which requires the company to pay another $19 million for Fiat’s non-compliant vehicles in California. Separately, the company must pay $6 million to United States Customs and Border Protection to resolve accusations of the illegal importation of 1,700 non-compliant vehicles. It is important to note that these settlements do not “resolve any potential criminal liability.”