Volkswagen emission scandal: 1.2m VW, Audi, Skoda and SEAT diesel vehicles in UK affected

Scandal-hit Volkswagen has announced that almost 1.2 million vehicles in the UK are affected by the fraudulent emission software. The software, which cheated emission tests to let cars pass that actually produce more emission gasses than is legally allowed, is thought to be installed in 1,189,906 cars in the UK.

Of Volkswagen's own cars, more than half a million are affected, while 393,450 Audi cars have software installed, as well as 76,773 SEATs and 131,569 Škoda vehicles. The numbers come shortly after sources told Reuters the car manufacturer's supervisory board is meeting today (30 September) to discuss the results of an internal probe into the crisis.

Volkswagen is facing several external investigations as well, while it is dealing with the loss of almost 40% in market cap since the news of the manipulated software first surfaced. The scale of the crisis prompted new chief Matthias Mueller, who replaced Martin Winterkorn, to call for a corporate overhaul, and promised to punish those involved with the fraudulent actions.

Olaf Lies, a German board member of the carmaker, spoke up on BBC's Newsnight, saying the employees were very well informed about the misconduct. He said: "Those people who allowed this to happen, or who made the decision to install this software - they acted criminally. They must take personal responsibility."

On Tuesday (29 August), the company announced its action plan to deal with the crisis. A spokesman wrote in a statement: "In a first step, the customers affected will be informed that the emissions characteristics of their vehicles will be corrected in the near future. All vehicles are technically safe and roadworthy."

The car manufacturer's management is meeting with authorities throughout October and is presenting its technical plans. It also announced the launch of national websites for those brands affected to keep its customers up to date.

Car valuation guide Glass found that the value of second hand VW diesel cars slipped by 0.2% in September, against a market price increase of almost 3%. As the company is dealing with its "biggest crisis in history", the future of the German car manufacturer has never been more unsure. Despite making strong gains earlier in the day, Volkswagen shares dropped by 1.7% on the announcement of the numbers in the UK.