Mercedes-Benz agrees to pay a fine of IDR 2.3 trillion after the discovery of emission manipulation
JAKARTA - A bipartisan coalition of attorneys general in the United States has officially reached a settlement agreement related to the dieselgate scandal that dragged Mercedes-Benz. This case is related to the use of hidden software on hundreds of thousands of diesel vehicles to deceive government emission tests.
The New York Attorney General's Office said Mercedes equipped its diesel vehicles with software that could artificially reduce emissions during testing. However, in normal driving conditions, the vehicle's exhaust emissions can reach 30 to 40 times the legal threshold, polluting the environment and misleading consumers.
Not only that, the coalition of attorneys general assessed that Mercedes also engaged in misleading marketing practices by advertising the diesel vehicle as a clean, environmentally friendly car with very low emissions. In fact, the vehicle does not actually meet the required emission standards.
In total, more than 211,000 diesel vehicles were said to have been sold with emission cheating devices between 2008 and 2017. In this agreement, Mercedes is required to pay a total of 149.67 million US dollars, equivalent to Rp. 2.3 trillion, of which about 120 million US dollars is allocated to the state for air pollution prevention, reduction, and mitigation programs.
Meanwhile, the remaining 29.67 million US dollars is categorized as a temporary suspended fine. Mercedes is also required to carry out a vehicle repair program.
Manufacturers will receive a credit of 750 US dollars for each vehicle that is repaired, repurchased, or withdrawn from circulation. To encourage consumer participation, Mercedes must provide an incentive of 2,000 US dollars to vehicle owners who are willing to make official emission modifications.
The claim submission is open until September 30, 2026, with a notification letter to be sent directly to the affected vehicle owner.
In addition to financial sanctions, Mercedes is prohibited from selling or leasing diesel vehicles that still use illegal emission cheating devices.
Companies also can no longer make misleading claims regarding emission performance, including calling diesel vehicles clean or low-polluting without accurate and proven grounds. Vehicle improvement developments must also be reported periodically to the authorities.
The approval document also reveals a list of affected models, ranging from the E350 produced from 2011-2016, to a number of GL, GLE, GLK, ML, R-Class, S-Class variants, as well as the Sprinter van. The state accuses the use of several Automatic Electronic Control Devices (AECD) designed to detect the emission test cycle and activate a special mode to appear compliant with regulations, before returning to the normal mode that produces excess NOx emissions in the real world.