Mercedes-Benz USA and Daimler will pay $150 million in response to allegations that the automaker violated state laws by marketing, selling and leasing vehicles equipped with devices that evaded emissions standards.
The settlement — announced Monday by the attorneys general of Connecticut and Delaware, who helped lead the investigation and settlement joined by all 50 states — also includes more than $200 million in potential consumer relief.
“Mercedes-Benz and Daimler hid devices inside their vehicles to cheat emissions tests, knowingly pumping out toxic emissions far exceeding legal limits,” said Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D). “Their deception hurt their customers and harmed air quality for all Americans, and we’re holding them accountable.”
Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings (D) said Mercedes and Daimler — which was renamed Mercedes-Benz Group AG in 2022 — sold diesel vehicles from 2008 to 2016 “with software designed to cheat.” She said cars were designed to appear compliant but emitted dangerous levels of nitrogen oxides, a pollutant that contributes to smog and particulate matter.
