VW is making vehicle-tracking free of charge for five years

08 March 2023

Volkswagen just announced that it's making its Car-Net system free of charge for five years for select 2020 vehicles or newer in the US. This comes after the company mishandled a recent accident involving carjacking and a toddler inside the car. To be fair, the basic Car-Net package was available free for new VW owners, but it didn't include the Safe & Secure add-on that lets you track your car.

On February 23, a Volkswagen Atlas was stolen from a pregnant woman near Chicago with a two-year-old child still inside the car. The police contacted customer support to obtain the vehicle's location, but the company's representative refused to give that information until the woman paid the $150 subscription fee. This ultimately lead to a 30-minute delay.

Police later found the car abandoned at a parking lot with the toddler still inside.

In an official response, VW said that it would launch an internal investigation and said that it's making the full Car-Net Safe & Secure package for all compatible vehicles for the next five years. The countdown starts when you create a myVW account and accept the terms of service or after June 1 this year, whichever is later.

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