A legal firm has launched a case it claims is the largest class action in Scottish legal history on behalf of more than 1,600 Volkswagen owners.

Thompsons Solicitors is representing drivers caught up in the VW "Dieselgate" scandal and hopes to earn compensation payouts running into millions of pounds.

The legal action comes after an English High Court judge ruled that VW had fitted a group of cars made using EA189 engines between 2007 and 2015 with "defeat devices" which did not accurately reflect the amount of emissions the vehicles produced.

Around 90,000 motorists who bought or leased affected VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda diesel vehicles took legal action for compensation following revelations about the Dieselgate emissions scandal five years ago.

Their lawyers said VW “cheated” European emissions standards, which were designed “to save lives”, by installing devices in some diesel vehicles, meaning the vehicles were emitting up to 40 times the legal limit of nitrogen dioxide when out on the road.

Partner Patrick McGuire, who is leading the class action in Scotland, told The Herald: "The English ruling is very significant and with this precedent being set south of the border the legal pressure on VW has increased greatly and we are very confident of a similar outcome in our civil courts.

"My team has spent the last few years building our case against VW and we have secured expert opinion from some of Scotland’s leading vehicle emission engineers which strongly supports our clients' claims.

"And despite the current lock down due to Covid 19, working fully from home, we are ready to move to the next stage in the class action. At a conservative estimate I would expect to secure several million pounds in compensation for our clients.

“It is also very important that any driver of a VW vehicle or a vehicle that is part of the VW group like Audi or Seat that is not part of our legal action join now as we will be unable to take on new cases after June.

"If you think you are affected you should contact my team now to join with us in this historic legal action."

READ MORE: Volkswagen 'cheated' European emissions standards

One of the people involved in the Scottish class action, who did not wish to be named, said: "I feel very angry.

"My cousin in the US had her entire car paid off plus a $5000 sweetener.

"People in the UK have got nothing - yet. "

Volkswagen promised to fight the class action – but said that no proceedings have been commenced yet.

A spokesman added: "Firstly, there is no Class Action in Scotland nor indeed have any claims been issued against the Volkswagen Group in Scotland.

"Secondly, while the High Court in London did make certain findings against Volkswagen Group on narrow points of law, we are seeking permission to appeal that decision.

"The Court did not determine questions of liability, causation or loss which will be considered at trial in 2022.

"Importantly, the High Court did not make any findings that our customers paid a premium for a greener option. The High Court did not find that vehicles in the UK and Europe emit 40 times more emissions than had been claimed. "

Volkswagen said the problem is called the "N0x issue" and "relates to the fact that software was fitted in certain (but not all) diesel vehicles manufactured by Volkswagen, SKODA, SEAT and Audi".

It added: "The software operated so that when the vehicles were experiencing test conditions, the characteristics of nitrogen oxides (NOx) were affected.

"It is also clear that in the UK this NOx issue does not affect petrol vehicles or other diesel vehicles not fitted with affected engines.

"The Volkswagen Group has implemented technical measures on affected vehicles. The technical measures offered to customers have been approved by regulators.

"Volkswagen has continued to research and develop increasingly efficient engines with lower NOx emissions. As a result, it has developed the new EU6 engines which have a twin dosing solution and have reduced NOx emissions by around 80 percent.

"The Volkswagen Group has consistently said that there is no legal basis for the claims. Scottish customers, like others in the UK, have not suffered any loss or damage as a result of the NOx issue.

"The Volkswagen Group will defend itself robustly throughout the course of any action. "

In September 2015, Volkswagen Group announced that 11 million vehicles worldwide, including almost 1.2 million in the UK, were affected. 

The aftermath of the scandal has seen VW pay out more than 30 billion euros (£26 billion) in fines, recall costs and civil settlements, and has led to criminal charges by German prosecutors against current and former senior employees.

The English litigation was filed back in 2016, but reached what lawyers described as “a decisive court battle” at a preliminary hearing in December when the High Court was asked to decide whether software installed in VW cars was a “defeat device” under EU regulations.

In a judgment, Mr Justice Waksman ruled that “the software function in issue in this case is indeed a defeat device” under EU regulations.

The judge said he was “far from alone in this conclusion”, referring to “numerous courts and other bodies in various other jurisdictions (which) agree that the software function here is a defeat device”.

The judge also stated that “a software function which enables a vehicle to pass the test because (artificially) it operates the vehicle in a way which is bound to pass the test and in which it does not operate on the road is a fundamental subversion of the test and the objective behind it”.