Volkswagen sued twice after fire in Felicity Ace cargo ship could have come from a Porsche

In February 2022, the cargo ship Felicity Ace caught fire and ultimately sank, ending up at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Some 4,000 cars were killed in the violent incident, most of which were new vehicles from various brands of the Volkswagen group. The drama is not yet over for the automobile conglomerate since the German behemoth is facing not one but two trials.

Bloomberg reports that the VW Group has been sued twice over allegations that the fire was caused by a lithium-ion battery inside a Porsche en route to a customer. Felicity Ace caught fire near the Azores archipelago while transporting high-end cars worth an estimated $155 million, including 1,110 Porsches. The plaintiffs claim that one of these cars started the fire which then generated a full-blown fire. cartastrophy.

One of the lawsuits was filed in a court in Stuttgart, where Porsche makes its home. The lawsuit is being led by the cargo ship’s operator, Mitsui OSK Lines, and Felicity Ace’s insurer, Allianz. Interestingly, this lawsuit was filed over a year ago, but its progress was halted due to mediation negotiations for a second lawsuit in a court in Brunswick, located in Lower Saxony, Germany .

Additional discussions between the parties involved are planned for later this month. If no settlement is reached, the proceedings will resume. According to documents related to the original 2023 lawsuit, the plaintiffs accuse VW of withholding information about the risks of transporting electrified cars. Additionally, the complaint filed in Stuttgart court alleges that VW failed to disclose the necessary precautions to transport the cars safely.

Bloomberg reports that the fire started from a Porsche EV, which can only be the Taycan. However, it’s worth noting that the automaker also sells a variety of Cayenne and Panamera versions with plug-in hybrid powertrains that feature smaller batteries. Parent company VW confirmed both lawsuits while Mitsui OSK Lines and Allianz declined to comment on the case.

Please find attached a incomplete list of VW group cars that perished that day. There were also a bunch of private vehicles that went bankrupt with Felicity Ace. Notable mentions include a 2015 Ford Mustang GT, a Porsche 718 Boxster GTS 4.0, a 2007 BMW 750i, and even a JDM-spec 1996 Honda Prelude SiR. Additionally, there was a 1977 Land Rover Santana, built in Spain under license from Land Rover using complete knock-down kits from the Defender.

As a reminder, Lamborghini had to restart production of the Aventador to replace the 15 Ultimae units lost on the burned and sunk cargo ship.