Mercedes-Benz must pay $5.5 million in compensation for false advertising

German automaker Mercedes-Benz and parts supplier Robert Bosch LLC have agreed to pay a total of about $5.5 million to settle a lawsuit related to advertising Mercedes-Benz diesel vehicles in the US state of Arizona, Reuters reported.

The three-pointed star brand has been in trouble with lawsuits over Mercedes-Benz diesel vehicles.

"Under the proposed settlement, Mercedes-Benz will pay approximately $5 million in consumer compensation, and each eligible Arizona consumer will receive $625 per vehicle," Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said.

“Arizona requires truth in advertising to help consumers make the most informed decisions when choosing products,” said Mark Brnovich.

Although Mercedes-Benz denies the allegations and does not admit there was any misrepresentation in its advertising, the company will still agree to pay a $5 million fine.

Robert Bosch LLC also did not admit liability, but it will still pay a $525,000 fine.

The cause of this state lawsuit involves engine control components for certain diesel-powered Mercedes vehicles, supplied by Bosch, that were allegedly falsely advertised.

In 2020, Mercedes-Benz agreed to pay $2.2 billion to resolve the US government's diesel emissions cheating investigation.

At that time, Mercedes-Benz agreed to compensate 250,000 car owners up to $3,290 each to cover losses from polluting cars sold in the US.

Diesel vehicles have come under increased scrutiny in the United States since Volkswagen AG admitted installing cheating software on 580,000 vehicles sold in the U.S. market through 2015.

Volkswagen has had to pay more than $30 billion to resolve investigations and buy back vehicles that emitted above regulatory thresholds.

In early November 2022, Bosch had to pay $25 million to settle another lawsuit in the state of California also about diesel engine emissions in Volkswagen and Fiat Chrysler vehicles, for which Bosch acted as a supplier of exhaust catalysts.