Volkswagen strikes 'dieselgate' compensation deal with German consumers

Under German law, plaintiffs have a month to decide whether to accept the settlement offer after its approval by judges

An important chapter in Volkswagen's years-long "dieselgate" emissions cheating saga appeared headed for a close Friday, as the German car giant agreed a compensation deal with domestic consumer groups.

VW and German consumer federation VZBV reached a "comprehensive agreement" in a first-of-its-kind collective lawsuit brought by around 400,000 diesel car drivers, the Brunswick higher state court said.

The mass lawsuit is one of the biggest legal hangovers from VW's 2015 admission to fitting 11 million vehicles worldwide with software to make the engines appear less polluting in regulatory tests than in real driving conditions.

Consumer federation VZBV said it would reveal details of