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Keep an eye on this page to find the latest news, updates and progress on the Mercedes-Benz diesel claim.
July 2023
SOCI Phase 1
Your claim is entering the next stage in the group litigation – supplying Schedules of Client Information (SOCI) as Ordered by the Court to the Defendants.
This will be done in batches over the next few months.
The SOCI is a set of responses to questions about your claim which include various details on your vehicle and how it was acquired.
The SOCI has been prepared by us as a combination of all the information you have provided to us throughout the life of your claim and any documents we have on file.
It is important that you check that the information we propose to supply is correct before we lodge it at Court, and we will be sending you a facility to do that very soon.
May 2023
All Qualified vehicles were added to the Court register.
March 2023
The High Court made a Group Litigation Order (GLO) that will decide the management of the case moving forward. You can find out more about a GLO and how it’s significant below.
At a High Court hearing on 9 February 2023, we took an important step forward in our clients’ diesel emissions case against Mercedes. Handing down its judgment in March 2023, the High Court has accepted a Group Litigation Order (GLO) that will determine the management of the case moving forward.
The GLO judgment is now pending formal approval from the King’s Bench Division. But what is a GLO, how is it significant, and what does this outcome mean for those involved?
A GLO involves the Court deciding about how legal proceedings are going to be managed (the order) when there are multiple claims issued together (the group) with similar facts or law in dispute (the litigation). In other words, a GLO allows people who have suffered common or related issues to have their cases managed collectively via a group action.
At KP Law, we specialise in group litigation cases, and we often have tens of thousands of clients bringing claims against the same Defendant. As you can imagine, without established processes in place, this could quickly become complicated.
A GLO is the best way to coordinate all the moving parts involved in multi-party claims. It establishes a clear timetable and process for all claims in a case against the same Defendant(s). In this instance, the Claimants are all owners or lessors (or former owners or lessors) of Mercedes diesel vehicles, and they are collectively bringing claims against Mercedes (the manufacturer) and its authorised dealerships in England and Wales.
For vehicles to be road-legal in the UK, they must comply with established emissions standards. It is alleged that Mercedes fitted “defeat devices” into many diesel cars and vans produced between 2008 and 2018. These devices were designed to make diesel engines appear to be cleaner and less polluting when tested than they actually were. As a result, people who bought or leased the affected vehicles were misled about their efficiency and environmental friendliness, and have suffered losses as a result. KP Law is holding Mercedes to account for breaking the law and deceiving its customers.
KP Law represents over 50,000 clients who owned or leased Mercedes vehicles, and there are approximately 336,000 claims against Mercedes in total. In fact, it is estimated this case will be the largest ever group action before the English courts. Therefore, using a GLO is the most effective way to manage all these claims simultaneously.
There are some clear benefits to the Court granting this GLO. For example:
Nonetheless, even with a GLO, there are some things Claimants in this case should be aware of:
Amendments to claim forms will be required as more information comes to light. So far, we have issued the claims against Mercedes (filed for at Court) on behalf of our clients. Now, the claims will have to be amended and then served (formally delivered to the Defendants). Following this, we will submit Schedules of Claim Information (SOCIs) to the Defendants on a regular basis. These Schedules present the key details needed to establish the claims and specify which losses each Claimant has suffered.
We will do this on behalf of our clients and keep them updated every step of the way.
A group litigation case is opt-in only, so each Claimant must ensure they provide all the necessary information before their case can progress. Without the information we request from clients, KP Law will not be able to complete a SOCI for an individual and take their claim to the next stage.
By providing everything we have asked for, we will not only be able to proceed with your claim, but we will also be able to make the strongest possible claim on your behalf. This means that you will receive the maximum compensation possible should we win, either through remedial action ordered by the Court or through a settlement agreed with the Defendants.
While the GLO is an important step, it does not accelerate proceedings. As a recent comparison, the GLO in the Volkswagen (VW) group claim took several years from start to finish. However, our experience handling VW claims means we know what it takes to push forward on the Mercedes claims, and keep things moving as much as possible.
Legal Director Hannah Wright-Jones, who represented our firm at the hearing, said:
“This GLO is the critical procedural milestone through which the litigation can now progress.”
“Just like with the VW Group vehicles before this, we believe this case against Mercedes will not only bring the deserved redress for our clients, but that it will continue to deliver justice for all those affected by the diesel emissions scandal.”
So while there could be many challenges that lie ahead in this litigation, we remain confident and committed to pursuing our clients’ claims against Mercedes.
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