Volkswagen lost a key legal battle in the long-running Dieselgate scandal on 25 May when a court ordered that a customer is entitled to compensation for his purchase of a car fitted with emissions-cheating software. Germany’s highest administrative court ruled that the carmaker giant pays plaintiff Herbert Gilbert more than 28,000 euros, just short of the purchase price. The ruling could pave the way for around 60,000 other claimants to return their cars and receive a similar payout, at a potential cost to VW of 1.5 billion euros.

Several German-language newspapers described the verdict as a black day for VW. The Hessische Niedersächsische Allgemeine said it marked a “victory for consumers, with a pensioner defeating a global player.” It also questioned whether the authorities, in the form of vehicle testers, turned a blind eye to the illegal fitting of so-called defeat devices, according to CLEW.