Car makers launch own diesel scrappage offers

Car manufacturers are cashing in on a diesel price scare by launching scrappage schemes for drivers of polluting cars who agree to buy new “greener” versions.

It comes after the Government threatened to develop a diesel scrappage scheme but failed to follow it through.

Now manufacturers including BMW and Ford are taking matters into their own hands. Both have said they will give drivers of pre-2009 diesel vehicles a £2,000 discount if they trade it in and buy a new car.

Edmund King, president of the AA, said: “These initiatives are obviously there to boost sales of new cars.”