German car maker Volkswagen has been fined €5 million for its chicanery with emission tests, the Italian competition authority said on Monday.
The fine was imposed for “improper business practices”. The authority said that vehicles designed to deceive pollution tests had been marketed in Italy since 2009.
The worldwide scandal saw 11 million VW diesel vehicles installed with software created to demonstrate, for the duration of the test, that the emissions met environmental standards.
VW admitted in September that it had installed the software and in June, VW agreed to pay $14.7 billion in a settlement with US authorities.
Last week, the German state of Bavaria said it was to take VW to court over the impact of the scandal.
Bavaria is concerned that share prices have dropped which has impacted on Bavaria’s state pension fund, the state’s finance minister said.
It is the first German state to mount a legal challenge.
Last Tuesday, South Korea gave a $16 million fine to VW.
There is little doubt that Volkswagen will yet see a raft of further fines and costly court actions over the scandal.
