VW Group is facing lawsuits in Germany, with plaintiffs alleging that the battery of an electric Porsche sparked the devastating fire aboard the Felicty Ace.
The VW Group is faced with two lawsuits in Germany with the plaintiffs alleging that the battery of a Porsche electric vehicle it was she who caused the fire in 2022 on a large cargo ship – the Felicity Ace – which eventually sank along with the thousands of cars it was carrying.
One of the lawsuits was filed in a court in Stuttgart, at the Porsche headquarters.
Among the plaintiffs were Mitsui OSK Lines, the company-operator of the ship, as well as the Allianz, which was the responsible insurance company for Felicity Ace.
The lawsuits in question have reportedly been filed a year agobut recently the whole process has been put on hold due to the mediation talks that were scheduled
For its part, the VW Group confirmed existence tohn said lawsuits, without, however, making any further comment.
The fire aboard the Felicity Ace
The Panama-flagged Felicity Ace caught fire near the Azores archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean Two years ago and lay still after the crew were rescued, before finally sinking.
According to what was revealed after the incident, the ship was loaded 3,965 vehicles from Audi, VW, Porsche, Bentley and Lamborghini, many of which were electric. The damage to the German car industry was estimated at at least 155 million dollars.
The Felicity Ace was owned by the company Snowscape Carriers SA. His journey started from Emden, Germany – where VW has a factory – bound for Davisville, RI, a port about 70 miles south of Boston. On the ship were loaded, among others, approx 1.100 Porsche and 189 Bentley.
The plaintiffs allege that the fire originated from the lithium-ion battery of a Porsche electric model, saying that the VW Group failed to inform them of the risk and the necessary precautions needed to transport such vehicles.