A district judge has approved a settlement which will see 650 Volkswagen dealers in the US receive an average £1.49 million compensation payment.

US District Judge Charles Breyer said that the settlement would be paid over the course of 18 months as part of a deal which would also see Volkswagen make volume-based incentive payments to dealers, Reuters reported.

The deal – worth a total of £964 million – will also allow dealers to defer capital improvements for two years.

Volkswagen North America chief executive, Hinrich Woebcken, said that the agreement with "dealers is a very important step in our commitment to making things right for all our stakeholders in the United States."

Earlier this month it emerged that Volkswagen could be forced to pay out a further £30 million in compensation to customers after owners in the UK and Europe demanded compensation of £3,000 each.

But no compensation had been offered in relation to the dieselgate scandal in Europe, Volkswagen agreeing only to “fix” affected models.

Now a legal case is being spearheaded by Harcus Sinclair UK for a consortium of law firms including Slater and Gordon will seek compensation for 10,000 Volkswagen owners in the UK and Europe.

As yet there is no suggestion that UK Volkswagen dealers will benefit from a similar compensation package to their US counterparts, however.