Italy will be unable to collect the 5-million-euro penalties levied on Volkswagen for selling rigged diesel cars to around 700,000 Italians. This was established by a decision of the European Union's Court of Justice. Why is that? In Germany, the German automaker has already been sanctioned for the same reason. Consequently, while Berlin can replenish its coffers with 1 billion euros, Italy may be left with an empty stomach. The plot revolves around the Dieselgate incident. The United States Environmental Protection Agency revealed in September 2015 that the diesel automobiles sold in the United States by Volkswagen contained software that manipulated the measurement of nitrogen oxide emissions, making them lower than the true ones and therefore permitting compliance with regulatory limitations. It was later discovered that this mechanism was also employed in automobiles sold in Europe, and that other car manufacturers, including Fiat, had used the method. Volkswagen moved fast to compensate impacted drivers in the United States, agreeing in 2016 to pay roughly $15 billion in compensation to settle legal cases. Things have been slower in Europe. Following a judgement by the Braunschweig Public Prosecutor's Office, the manufacturer paid a 1 billion euro fine to the German state in 2018. Now, Luxembourg's judges have concluded that Italy's 5-million-euro fine against Volkswagen is unconstitutional because it violates the principle of "ne bis in idem," which states that a subject (whether a citizen or a company) may not be tried twice for the same act.
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