Independent monitor
In June 2017, in connection with the diesel issue, Larry D. Thompson was appointed as the Independent Compliance Monitor at Volkswagen under the terms of the Plea Agreement with the United States Department of Justice announced on January 11, 2017 and confirmed by a US federal court on April 21, 2017. He also works as Independent Compliance Auditor under the Third Partial Consent Decree concluded separately with the US Department of Justice and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Third California Partial Consent Decree agreed with the US State of California and the environmental authority California Air Resources Board, CARB (for more information on these agreements, please see the Litigation section). Mr. Thompson will perform his duties under the Plea Agreement and Third Partial Consent Decrees for a period of three years, which also includes taking measures to further strengthen the Company’s compliance and its reporting and monitoring mechanisms, as well as the implementation of an enhanced compliance and ethics program.
In his capacity as the Independent Compliance Monitor on the basis of the Plea Agreement, Mr. Thompson submitted three reports: on March 30, 2018, February 8, 2019, and November 5, 2019; in accordance with the provisions of the Plea Agreement, the reports will not be published. In addition, in his capacity as the Independent Compliance Auditor under the terms of the Third Partial Consent Decrees, Mr. Thompson prepared two annual reports, published on August 27, 2018, and September 4, 2019.
Volkswagen announced on October 17, 2019, that the US Department of Justice and the monitor had granted a 90-day extension to the monitorship to be able to demonstrate that Volkswagen had fulfilled its obligations pursuant to the Plea Agreement. Thanks to this agreement, Volkswagen has 90 more days to fully test and, where necessary, adjust the measures that the Group and its brands have put in place, including the monitor’s recommendations, so that Mr. Thompson is able to submit his certification report on the Company’s integrity and compliance programs.
On September 2, 2019, Volkswagen also announced that the Company had concluded a settlement agreement with the US Environmental Protection Agency, which had been the reason for commissioning a second auditor for the Volkswagen Group. This agreement was concluded by Volkswagen to prevent it from being excluded from public contracts in the United States. This second auditorship is planned to last three years.