About 120,000 owners of Volkswagen vehicles equipped with software to cheat on admissions tests have accepted early compensation from the company in the United States, according to USA Today. The VW owners are eligible for a $500 Visa debit card as well as $500 in dealership credits.
The payment is just the first of many economic costs Volkswagen is facing after the Environmental Protection Agency discovered that the company had installed software on some of its diesel cars to make them emit pollutants at different levels during regulatory tests and on the road. The software, known as a defeat device, was put in millions of cars around the world.
The company must tell U.S. Regulators how it plans to make its vehicles compliant with emissions standards by Friday, according to the New York Times. Volkswagen is also expected to announce substantial spending cuts this week in order to pay for the expected billions of dollars in fines and settlements.