In recent news, German car manufacturer Volkswagen recalled 8.5 million of its cars for cheating the diesel emissions test over the past month in Europe as ordered by the authorities. In an effort to restore its known reputation to its existing and future owners, the giant automobile manufacturer will reportedly launch a prepaid card campaign on Nov. 9 as a form of compensation.

According to reports, Volkswagen will be announcing a "TDI Goodwill Program," a campaign that will compensate diesel car drivers in the form of prepaid cards. The campaign will target the current owners of TDI models affected by the recall regardless of whether the cars they have bought are new or used.

Volkswagen will be offering two prepaid cards for the affected TDI owners. The first is going to be a universal card, which would amount to US$500 and will have no restrictions on where the recipient can use it. The second that may have a value between US$500 to US$750 will be limited only to Volkswagen dealerships.

However, owners of the affected models will have to visit the nearest Volkswagen dealership and the proof of vehicle ownership in order to participate in the campaign and activate the prepaid cards. Car owners can determine if they qualify for the campaign just by visiting the Volkswagen Diesel Information website and use their VIN lookup to determine if their vehicles have the 2.0L TDI emissions issue.

Owners will need to register once they qualify in order for them to receive updates about future developments on their vehicles. Furthermore, the TDI Goodwill Program is anticipated to apply only to four-cylinder diesels at the moment. However, the program could be expanded to 3-litre V-6 diesel in the future.

This is not the first time Volkswagen gave great deals to existing owners. "However, the goodwill effort would represent the first instance of VW directly compensating drivers who'd previously thought they were getting an eco-friendly machine," Engadeget reports.