Dieselgate was never just about Volkswagen. Nearly all European car manufacturers have used so-called "thermal window" technology — illegal software that automatically reduces emissions cleaning at lower and higher temperatures. The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled this is unlawful and that affected car owners are entitled to compensation.
So this case applies to you if you own or have owned a diesel car. Any brand.
Filing deadline: 14 July 2026. Register now.
Anyone who owns or has owned a diesel car, regardless of brand, manufactured from approximately 2008 onwards.
It does not matter whether you bought the car new or used. It does not matter whether you still own the car or have sold it. If you have owned an affected diesel car, you may be entitled to compensation.
Affected brands include: Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, SEAT, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo, Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Opel, Ford, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, Land Rover, Jaguar, Hyundai, Kia and others.
If you own a diesel car with an EA189 engine from Volkswagen, Audi or Skoda manufactured between 2008 and 2015, see Dieselgate instead — that case has its own track.
A thermal window is software in a diesel car's engine management system that automatically reduces emissions cleaning when the outside temperature drops below a certain level. In practice, this means the car emits significantly more nitrogen oxide (NOx) under normal driving conditions than during laboratory testing.
Read more about thermal windows.
Car manufacturers have claimed this is necessary to protect the engine. The Court of Justice of the European Union rejected this argument. In case C-666/23 (1 August 2025), the court ruled that thermal windows constitute illegal defeat devices and that manufacturers cannot hide behind national type approvals.
In September 2025, a German court (OVG Schleswig-Holstein) went further and ruled that type approvals granted to vehicles with illegal software must be revoked. This could lead to millions of cars across Europe losing their type approval.
Nothing. It is completely free to register and participate. You pay nothing unless the case is won.
If the case succeeds, you receive 65% of the compensation. The remainder covers lawyers, litigation funding and platform operating costs.
| Share | Example (€ 2,500) | |
|---|---|---|
| You (participant) | 65% | € 1,625 |
| Lawyers and funding | 30% | € 750 |
| Platform fee | 5% | € 125 |
Compensation amounts vary based on vehicle purchase price, age and usage. The CJEU ruling in C-666/23 allows for up to 15% of the purchase price as compensation.
| Purchase price | Typical compensation (5–15%) |
|---|---|
| € 20,000 | € 1,000 – 3,000 |
| € 35,000 | € 1,750 – 5,250 |
| € 50,000 | € 2,500 – 7,500 |
| € 70,000 | € 3,500 – 10,500 |
This is a compensation claim — not a car repair. It is based on the fact that you paid full price for a car that contained illegal software. The EU court has determined that you are entitled to compensation for this.
Germany is Europe's most important jurisdiction for diesel claims. Volkswagen AG is headquartered there, but other German manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Porsche also have their headquarters in Germany. German courts have handled diesel claims at scale.
In 2020, Volkswagen settled with 260,000 German car owners for € 830 million. Over 60,000 additional individual lawsuits were filed. More than 300,000 German car owners have received compensation.
In March 2023, the German consumer federation (VZBV) won a landmark case against Mercedes-Benz for thermal window fraud. The CJEU has ruled in C-100/21 and C-666/23 that all affected car owners in the EU/EEA are entitled to compensation — regardless of brand.
ClaimShare works with a German law firm specialising in Dieselgate cases.
The filing deadline in Germany is 14 July 2026. After this date, it may be too late to file a claim.
The thermal window issue is now legally settled through the CJEU rulings and the German Schleswig-Holstein decision. The legal foundation is stronger than ever.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| July 2022 | CJEU (C-145/20 et al.): Thermal window is unlawful. Consumers have the right to compensation. |
| March 2023 | CJEU (C-100/21, Mercedes-Benz): All car owners — regardless of brand — are entitled to compensation for defeat devices. Negligence is sufficient; intent is not required. |
| March 2023 | European Commission confirms in letter to ClaimShare that this applies to EEA and thus Norwegian car owners. |
| August 2025 | CJEU (C-666/23, Volkswagen AG): Type approval does not exempt the manufacturer. Liability also covers software updates installed after sale. Compensation up to 15% of purchase price. |
| September 2025 | OVG Schleswig-Holstein (Germany): Type approvals granted to vehicles with illegal software must be revoked. |
| February 2026 | European Commission sends third official letter to ClaimShare. Cites C-666/23 and states that procedural obstacles making it impossible for consumers to obtain compensation violate the principle of effectiveness. |
| Country | Type | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| USA | Settlement | Over € 10 billion total |
| Germany | Settlements + individual judgments | Over 300,000 car owners compensated |
| Netherlands | Settlement (2025) | € 300–2,500 per car |
| United Kingdom | Settlement (2022) | ÂŁ 193 million / 91,000 car owners |
| Italy | Judgment (2021) | € 3,300 per car + interest |
| Austria | Judgment | Up to € 14,520 per car |
Norway is one of the last large markets where affected car owners have not received compensation.
Sign up with your vehicle information. It takes just a few minutes.
The Norwegian participant's claims are grouped by manufacturer and forwarded to our German law firm.
German Dieselgate specialists handle the legal proceedings. You do not need to do anything else.
65% of the compensation is paid directly to you. If we do not win, it costs you nothing.
- It is completely free to register and participate.
- You pay nothing unless the case is won.
- The filing deadline in Germany is 14 July 2026. Do not wait too long.
- Dieselgate 2.0 covers all diesel cars, regardless of brand. If you have a VW/Audi/Skoda with an EA189 engine (2008–2015), see Dieselgate instead.
- If you are already registered with Bilklager, you must also register here to participate in the German proceedings. Your Bilklager registration applies to the Norwegian legal process. (Important: If you are already registered with Bilklager and you have replied "yes" to whether Bilklager can transfer your case to Car.Claims / ClaimShare, you do not need to register your case again here.)
ClaimShare is a European platform for collective consumer litigation. We coordinate legal proceedings across borders and ensure that consumers receive the compensation they are entitled to — regardless of where they live.
Car.claims is ClaimShare's website for recruiting participants to European consumer cases.
Bilklager.no, which has represented Norwegian Dieselgate owners since 2016, is the foundation on which ClaimShare is built. Over 10,000 Norwegian car owners and a decade of experience with the Dieselgate case form the basis for the European expansion.
Filing deadline: 14 July 2026
Register now — it is free and takes just a few minutes.
Dieselgate was never just about Volkswagen. Nearly all European car manufacturers have used so-called "thermal window" technology — illegal software that automatically reduces emissions cleaning at lower and higher temperatures. The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled this is unlawful and that affected car owners are entitled to compensation.
So this case applies to you if you own or have owned a diesel car. Any brand.
Filing deadline: 14 July 2026. Register now.
Anyone who owns or has owned a diesel car, regardless of brand, manufactured from approximately 2008 onwards.
It does not matter whether you bought the car new or used. It does not matter whether you still own the car or have sold it. If you have owned an affected diesel car, you may be entitled to compensation.
Affected brands include: Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, SEAT, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo, Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Opel, Ford, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, Land Rover, Jaguar, Hyundai, Kia and others.
If you own a diesel car with an EA189 engine from Volkswagen, Audi or Skoda manufactured between 2008 and 2015, see Dieselgate instead — that case has its own track.
A thermal window is software in a diesel car's engine management system that automatically reduces emissions cleaning when the outside temperature drops below a certain level. In practice, this means the car emits significantly more nitrogen oxide (NOx) under normal driving conditions than during laboratory testing.
Read more about thermal windows.
Car manufacturers have claimed this is necessary to protect the engine. The Court of Justice of the European Union rejected this argument. In case C-666/23 (1 August 2025), the court ruled that thermal windows constitute illegal defeat devices and that manufacturers cannot hide behind national type approvals.
In September 2025, a German court (OVG Schleswig-Holstein) went further and ruled that type approvals granted to vehicles with illegal software must be revoked. This could lead to millions of cars across Europe losing their type approval.
Nothing. It is completely free to register and participate. You pay nothing unless the case is won.
If the case succeeds, you receive 65% of the compensation. The remainder covers lawyers, litigation funding and platform operating costs.
| Share | Example (€ 2,500) | |
|---|---|---|
| You (participant) | 65% | € 1,625 |
| Lawyers and funding | 30% | € 750 |
| Platform fee | 5% | € 125 |
Compensation amounts vary based on vehicle purchase price, age and usage. The CJEU ruling in C-666/23 allows for up to 15% of the purchase price as compensation.
| Purchase price | Typical compensation (5–15%) |
|---|---|
| € 20,000 | € 1,000 – 3,000 |
| € 35,000 | € 1,750 – 5,250 |
| € 50,000 | € 2,500 – 7,500 |
| € 70,000 | € 3,500 – 10,500 |
This is a compensation claim — not a car repair. It is based on the fact that you paid full price for a car that contained illegal software. The EU court has determined that you are entitled to compensation for this.
Germany is Europe's most important jurisdiction for diesel claims. Volkswagen AG is headquartered there, but other German manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Porsche also have their headquarters in Germany. German courts have handled diesel claims at scale.
In 2020, Volkswagen settled with 260,000 German car owners for € 830 million. Over 60,000 additional individual lawsuits were filed. More than 300,000 German car owners have received compensation.
In March 2023, the German consumer federation (VZBV) won a landmark case against Mercedes-Benz for thermal window fraud. The CJEU has ruled in C-100/21 and C-666/23 that all affected car owners in the EU/EEA are entitled to compensation — regardless of brand.
ClaimShare works with a German law firm specialising in Dieselgate cases.
The filing deadline in Germany is 14 July 2026. After this date, it may be too late to file a claim.
The thermal window issue is now legally settled through the CJEU rulings and the German Schleswig-Holstein decision. The legal foundation is stronger than ever.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| July 2022 | CJEU (C-145/20 et al.): Thermal window is unlawful. Consumers have the right to compensation. |
| March 2023 | CJEU (C-100/21, Mercedes-Benz): All car owners — regardless of brand — are entitled to compensation for defeat devices. Negligence is sufficient; intent is not required. |
| March 2023 | European Commission confirms in letter to ClaimShare that this applies to EEA and thus Norwegian car owners. |
| August 2025 | CJEU (C-666/23, Volkswagen AG): Type approval does not exempt the manufacturer. Liability also covers software updates installed after sale. Compensation up to 15% of purchase price. |
| September 2025 | OVG Schleswig-Holstein (Germany): Type approvals granted to vehicles with illegal software must be revoked. |
| February 2026 | European Commission sends third official letter to ClaimShare. Cites C-666/23 and states that procedural obstacles making it impossible for consumers to obtain compensation violate the principle of effectiveness. |
| Country | Type | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| USA | Settlement | Over € 10 billion total |
| Germany | Settlements + individual judgments | Over 300,000 car owners compensated |
| Netherlands | Settlement (2025) | € 300–2,500 per car |
| United Kingdom | Settlement (2022) | ÂŁ 193 million / 91,000 car owners |
| Italy | Judgment (2021) | € 3,300 per car + interest |
| Austria | Judgment | Up to € 14,520 per car |
Norway is one of the last large markets where affected car owners have not received compensation.
Sign up with your vehicle information. It takes just a few minutes.
The Norwegian participant's claims are grouped by manufacturer and forwarded to our German law firm.
German Dieselgate specialists handle the legal proceedings. You do not need to do anything else.
65% of the compensation is paid directly to you. If we do not win, it costs you nothing.
- It is completely free to register and participate.
- You pay nothing unless the case is won.
- The filing deadline in Germany is 14 July 2026. Do not wait too long.
- Dieselgate 2.0 covers all diesel cars, regardless of brand. If you have a VW/Audi/Skoda with an EA189 engine (2008–2015), see Dieselgate instead.
- If you are already registered with Bilklager, you must also register here to participate in the German proceedings. Your Bilklager registration applies to the Norwegian legal process. (Important: If you are already registered with Bilklager and you have replied "yes" to whether Bilklager can transfer your case to Car.Claims / ClaimShare, you do not need to register your case again here.)
ClaimShare is a European platform for collective consumer litigation. We coordinate legal proceedings across borders and ensure that consumers receive the compensation they are entitled to — regardless of where they live.
Car.claims is ClaimShare's website for recruiting participants to European consumer cases.
Bilklager.no, which has represented Norwegian Dieselgate owners since 2016, is the foundation on which ClaimShare is built. Over 10,000 Norwegian car owners and a decade of experience with the Dieselgate case form the basis for the European expansion.
Filing deadline: 14 July 2026
Register now — it is free and takes just a few minutes.