State of Alaska, consumers to receive payout in Volkswagen settlement

Both the State of Alaska and consumers will receive money from Volkswagen after the company’s cars were revealed to have software designed to beat emissions tests.

Today the Alaska Department of Law announced it joined 37 other states in a fraud settlement against Volkswagen because the company violated state consumer protection laws. VW must pay $570 million nationwide because it knowingly marketed, sold and leased diesel vehicles equipped with the illegal software.

The state of Alaska will receive $2.5 million under the settlement for its 1,245 affected Volkswagen and Audi 2.0-liter diesel vehicles in the state. That money will go to consumer protection enforcement and education at the attorney general’s discretion, according to Assistant Attorney General Davyn Williams.

In addition, residents who bought or leased the more than 1,000 affected vehicles can receive money under separate settlements. Volkswagen must pay up to $10 billion to the 475,000 owners and lessees across the country. Per person, the restitution totals as much as $5,100.

Additionally, Volkswagen will either buy back the vehicles or pay to have them fixed.

A federal judge still needs to approve the restitution program before consumers can receive payments from VW, according to the settlement website. He will hold a preliminary approval hearing on July 26, and if he thinks the terms are appropriate, consumers will be mailed information about the next steps they need to take.

Consumers can also look up if their vehicle is affected and if they’re entitled to money on a

.

Earlier this year an attorneys general investigation revealed Volkswagen sold more than 570,000 2.0- and 3.0-liter diesel vehicles in the U.S. with software that purposefully gave false readings for emissions tests.

Those vehicles included various years of Audi’s A3 and Volkswagen’s Beetle, Golf, Jetta and Passat. The investigation also showed VW was aware of the issue and knowingly marketed its vehicles as environmentally friendly anyway, deceiving both regulators and the public.