Martin Lewis issues warning to Nissan, Renault or Vauxhall car owners over 'deadline'

Owners of Nissan, Renault or Vauxhall diesel cars have been advised by Martin Lewis that they need to take an urgent decision over whether to join lawsuits linked to the diesel emissions scandal.

A number of car giants are facing group action lawsuits on behalf of hundreds of thousands of drivers over claims they effectively faked the results of diesel exhaust emissions tests in what became known as “Dieselgate”.

This issue began when Audi and Volkswagen (VW), which are both part of the VW Group, faced regulatory action over some of their diesel cars in the US in 2015, and has since grown to take in other manufacturers.

On X, formerly Twitter, Martin Lewis said: "Nissan, Renault or Vauxhall diesel driver - decide now whether to join emissions lawsuits. This month sees the deadlines for new claims against these manufacturers."

Moneysavingexpert.com, which was founded by Martin Lewis, said: “The group legal claims allege, broadly, that the carmakers used illegal 'defeat devices' in their diesel vehicles to cheat the tests done by regulators to check their emissions levels, before approving vehicles for sale.

“Law firms argue that affected cars and vans produce more harmful nitrogen oxide (NOx) pollution than advertised – and were therefore mis-sold to consumers.”

As a result, the law firms argue that purchasers could be due their money back or some other form of financial redress because they would not have bought the vehicles if they had known the true levels of emissions.

The law firms also argue that drivers may well have paid more for their vehicles because they paid a premium price on the basis they were more environmentally friendly than they really were.

MSE said: “If the car or van had to be fixed to comply with emissions standards, the fix itself may have led to worse fuel efficiency or worse performance – potentially lowering its value or creating added costs, for which you may be able to claim damages.”

The manufacturers are fighting the lawsuits, which could see them facing paying out hundreds of millions of pounds, across the world, however the final decision will be left to the courts with the cases set to run for many years.

MSE said that this month sees the deadlines for making new claims against manufacturers, so drivers need to decide now whether they wish to take part.

Martin Lewis flagged up the need to take action in a post on X stating: “Nissan, Renault or Vauxhall diesel driver - decide now whether to join emissions lawsuits. This month sees the deadlines for new claims against these manufacturers.”

MSE offers a guide on the scandal and offers advice to car owners on whether to get involved in the legal action here.

MSE said: “Between December 2023 and March 2024, several court hearings were held involving the claims of some 1.2 million people against 16 car manufacturing groups. The hearings aimed to simplify the management of the claims, reduce costs and delays, and ensure the efficient use of court resources.

“Following these hearings, the High Court set formal cut-off dates for new claimants joining the diesel emission cases – some of these deadlines have now passed, while others are coming up later this year.

“Crucially, however, individual law firms have set their own, earlier deadlines to ensure they can gather the right information to present to the court.

“If you don't sign up in time, you may not be able to bring your claim and you could miss out on any compensation you may be due – so don't hang about if you think you have a case.”

Details of the deadlines set by the law firms involved can be found on MSE at this link.

The legal claims are not certain to be successful, however there are no costs involved for people who join the legal action. If successful, the law firms involved will be able to claim millions of pounds from the car giants to cover their fees.