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You and Yours: VW compensation, Subscription traps, Bereavement damages

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14/01/2016

VW compensation, Subscription traps, Bereavement damages

BBC Radio 4 - You and Yours, VW compensation, Subscription traps, Bereavement damages

After the emissions scandal, will Volkswagen pay compensation to owners in the UK or not?

After the emissions scandal, will Volkswagen pay compensation to owners in the UK or not? Plus who should be allowed to claim bereavement damages after a fatal accident?

Volkswagen can't seem to make up its mind over whether or not it will compensate UK motorists affected by the emissions scandal. First it said it would not. Then its global CEO appeared to say it would. Now its UK Managing Director has put his position in writing, and it's not good news for anyone hoping for a pay-out. His letter was written to the chair of the Transport Select Committee, Louise Ellman MP. We hear from her and also the motoring journalist, Steve Fowler. 

Trading Standards officers are urging banks to provide better compensation to customers who become victims of so-called "subscription traps". These are offers or free trials in which people are tricked into allowing companies to take regular amounts of money out of their bank account. Large numbers of people are being misled into setting up Continuous Payment Authorities when they buy things online. Trading Standards have told You & Yours that it's become one of the biggest threats facing consumers. 

Personal injury lawyers are calling for a change in the law in England and Wales to provide better compensation for the relatives of people who die as a result of negligence. Currently after a fatal accident, only the husband or wife of the person who died can claim bereavement damages, or the parents of children under 18 who have died. Other relatives are excluded. A Private Members' Bill, currently going through parliament, aims to change this and bring the law into line with that in Scotland where judges have discretion. We ask who should be allowed to claim and since no amount of money can compensate for the loss of a loved one, what is the purpose of bereavement damages?

Producer: Jonathan Hallewell
Presenter: Winifred Robinson.

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