Administrative offense proceedings against Daimler AG fully concluded

Ad-hoc announcement

Administrative offense proceedings against Daimler AG fully concluded

- Negligent violation of supervisory duties results in fine in the amount of EUR 870 million

- Daimler AG refrains from taking legal remedy

- Earnings forecast of Company remains unchanged
 

Stuttgart, Germany - Today, the Stuttgart public prosecutor issued a fine notice against Daimler AG pursuant to Sections 30 para. 1, 130 para. 1 of the Administrative Offenses Act based on a negligent violation of supervisory duties in the area of vehicle certification in connection with deviations from regulatory requirements in certain Mercedes-Benz vehicles. According thereto, the negligent violation of supervisory duties occurred on the department head level. The Company has refrained from taking a legal remedy against the fine notice. The public prosecutor's administrative offense proceeding against Daimler AG is thereby fully concluded.

According to the public prosecutor's findings, the negligent violation of supervisory duties caused at least in part that certain vehicles of Daimler AG had partly deviated from regulatory requirements since 2008. In this context, the public prosecutor essentially refers to the known recall orders by the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA). In order to get clarity also for the future with respect to the interpretation of relevant legal provisions in a complex technical environment, Daimler AG maintains the objections against the KBA orders. After weighing all aspects, Daimler has refrained from taking a legal remedy in the public prosecutor's administrative offense proceeding. It is in the Company's best interest to end the administrative offense proceeding in a timely and comprehensive manner and thereby conclude this matter.

The fine notice provides for a fine in the amount of EUR 870 million. The amount of the fine consists of a sanctioning part as well as a disgorgement part. The amount of the sanctioning part is EUR 4 million for the negligent violation of supervisory duties as assumed by the public prosecutor. It is thus below the statutory maximum amount. The amount of the disgorgement part is mainly determined by the profitability of the Company and amounts to EUR 866 million.

The Company's full cooperation and the considerable quality control measures that have meanwhile been established in the context of the technical Compliance Management System have been considered to the benefit of the Company.

For the third quarter 2019 the fine does not result in a relevant additional negative effect on earnings. The Company maintains its earnings forecast as published.
 

Contact:
Jörg Howe, + 49 711 17-4 13 41, joerg.howe@daimler.com
Ute Wüest von Vellberg, + 49 7 11 17-2 55 73, ute.wueest_von_vellberg@daimler.com
Johannes Leifert, + 49 711 17-4 13 43, johannes.leifert@daimler.com
Hendrik Sackmann, + 49 7 11 17-3 50 14, hendrik.sackmann@daimler.com

This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current views about future events. The words "anticipate," "assume," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "can," "could," "plan," "project," "should" and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a decline of demand in our most important markets; a deterioration of our refinancing possibilities on the credit and financial markets; events of force majeure including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, political unrest, armed conflicts, industrial accidents and their effects on our sales, purchasing, production or financial services activities; changes in currency exchange rates and tariff regulations; a shift in consumer preferences towards smaller, lower-margin vehicles; a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services which limits our ability to achieve prices and adequately utilize our production capacities; price increases for fuel or raw materials; disruption of production due to shortages of materials, labor strikes or supplier insolvencies; a decline in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook for companies in which we hold a significant equity interest; the successful implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures; changes in laws, regulations and government policies, particularly those relating to vehicle emissions, fuel economy and safety; the resolution of pending government investigations or of investigations requested by governments and the conclusion of pending or threatened future legal proceedings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which we describe under the heading "Risk and Opportunity Report" in the current Annual Report. If any of these risks and uncertainties materializes or if the assumptions underlying any of our forward-looking statements prove to be incorrect, the actual results may be materially different from those we express or imply by such statements. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements since they are based solely on the circumstances at the date of publication.

Contact:
Hendrik Sackmann
Tel.: +49 (0)711 17 35014
hendrik.sackmann@daimler.com