Report: Volkswagen's Reported Death and Injury Claims May Be Too Low

A study commissioned by Bloomberg, conducted by Stout Risius Ross, revealed that Volkswagen’s rate of injury or fatal crashes reported by the automaker was significantly lower than 11 other automakers and nine times less than the industry average.

“The data demonstrates that even on a fleet-adjusted basis, the number of reported incidents by Volkswagen is significantly below what one would expect based on those reported by other automakers,” Neil Steinkamp, a Stout Risius managing director, told Bloomberg. “They are also significantly below the reporting of automakers that have already been cited for non-compliance.”

The report calls into question whether Volkswagen has been accurately reporting crashes, as required by law. Volkswagen didn’t comment on the report.

Last month, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reported that it had under-reported death and injury claims to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation (TREAD) Act. Earlier this year, Honda was fined $70 million for its errors in reporting under the law.

According to Bloomberg, an auto watchdog group said the low numbers from Volkswagen indicated that the automaker may not be correctly reporting safety data.

“NHTSA doesn’t have the resources to police all of this, but now they’re asking the automakers to tell them whether they’re in compliance,” Clarence Ditlow, executive director for the Center for Auto Safety, told Bloomber. “For the automakers, it’s a time of reckoning.”

Volkswagen reported 34 serious crashes for every million cars, according to the data. By comparison, General Motors reported 524 crashes per million vehicles and Nissan reported 78 crashes per million. Honda and FCA, who admitted they under-reported, reported 78 and 101 crashes per million respectively.