Volkswagen is once again making headline news this week. Though in this instance, it’s for all the right reasons. Still reeling from one of the biggest and most alarming emissions of scandals in recent history, the German car maker has joined a growing group of its competitors by announcing a diesel car scrappage scheme.
As is the case elsewhere, British drivers are to be offered anything up to £7,000 to scrap their diesel cars and invest in a cleaner, and more efficient alternative. The scheme will operate across all VW brands, which includes Audi, Skoda and Seat. The minimum discount available for a small Seat will be £1,500, while larger Audi autos will qualify for discounts of up to £7,000.
In order to qualify for the scheme, the diesel car being scrapped must have been registered before 2010. Both domestic and commercial vehicles are covered by the scheme, with more generous payments being offered for hybrid and electric vehicles.
The announcement from VW came just a few hours after Toyota detailed a similar scheme, with up to £4,000 available for those exchanging older diesel vehicles for more environmentally friendly cars. Nevertheless, Toyota’s scheme went one step further – mirroring that of Ford – by also including older petrol cars, as well as diesels.
Given that the schemes are either only just getting underway or have yet to be brought into action, it remains to be seen how effective or otherwise they prove to be. Nevertheless, initial reaction from the public in general has been somewhat tepid, given the way in which scrapping diesel or petrol cars to qualify for such discounts could still mean paying a relatively heavy price to upgrade.
Not to mention, the fact that it was only a few years ago that the government was actively encouraging members of the public to buy diesel cars rather than petrol. For many, these kinds of schemes will only hold any kind of appeal of value, if the government shows willingness to at least modestly compensate those scrapping and upgrading.
Despite having been a relatively hot topic at a governmental level for some time, there are still no concrete indications as to whether or not a nationwide scrappage scheme will be introduced by the government. Instead, critics argue that it is up to the automakers themselves to spearhead such initiatives – given that they were responsible for producing the polluting vehicles in the first place.
Not that playing the blame game is ever particularly useful, but still – fingers are pointing in a wide variety of directions right now.
Still, if the government really is planning to ban all new diesel and petrol car sales over the coming years, these kinds of schemes could prove to be both useful and essential. After all, if it is soon going to become impossible to buy petrol or diesel vehicles in the UK in general, you might as well take advantage of any discounts and incentives made available along the way.
