Welcome to the homepage about the Volkswagen Group Whistleblower System.
Complying with statutory regulations and internal rules has top priority at Volkswagen. We can only avoid damage to our company, our employees and business partners if rules and standards are respected. Consequently, misconduct must be recognized swiftly, processed and immediately remedied.
That calls for vigilance on the part of everyone along with a willingness to draw attention to possible Serious Regulatory Violations on the basis of Reasonable Suspicion. We also value information of this nature from business partners, customers and other third parties. Reports to the Whistleblower System can be made at any time and in any language.
The Whistleblower System guarantees the greatest possible protection for whistleblowers and persons implicated. An investigation is only initiated after very careful examination of the facts and reasonable suspicion of a regulatory violation. There will be strict confidentiality and secrecy throughout the investigative process. Information will be reviewed fairly, promptly and in a sensitive manner.
Where do I send my report?
The Investigation Office of the Volkswagen Group can be contacted as follows:
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Reporting Channel
You have the option of using an internet-based communication platform to contact the Investigation Office, exchange documents and conduct a dialog with the lawyers via a separate mailbox. This system is confidential and protected. Whistleblowers can decide for themselves whether they wish to give their names. If you would like to send a confidential report to the lawyers in the Investigation Office you can use the secure reporting channel to submit a report.
Important notice: Even if your preferred language is not offered in the reporting channel, you can use any language to submit you report. You can also contact the Central Investigation Office in any language via e-mail or mail.
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E-mail
You can get in contact with the Investigation Office of the Volkswagen Group via e-mail:
io@volkswagen.de
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24/7 Hotline
You can make a report at any time using the international toll-free number: +800 444 46300*
If your local telephone provider does not support the toll-free service, you can call the following chargeable number:
+49 5361 946300.
* Depending on the country you are calling from, it is possible that the international toll-free hotline is not available since some telephone network providers do not support the service. If so, please use the offered chargeable number or your country specific number.
Country specific numbers
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Postal address and in person
Postal address: Central Investigation Office
Box 1717
38436 Wolfsburg (downtown)
GermanyIn person: Central Investigation Office
Porschestraße 1
38440 Wolfsburg (downtown)
Germany
Please make an appointment in advance by writing an e-mail to: io@volkswagen.de.
Ombudspersons of the Volkswagen Group
“Ombudsman” is a term taken from the Swedish word for mediator or legal representative. Dr. Rainer Buchert and Thomas Rohrbach, the external ombudspersons appointed by the Volkswagen Group, act as special counsel to accept reports of potential statutory or internal violation of regulations or any other kind of harmful conduct in the Group, and to review these with respect to plausibility and substantiability. They consult with the whistleblower if necessary and if the identity of the whistleblower is known. Finally, they forward all the information that has been agreed with the whistleblower to the Investigation Office for further processing.
All information is treated as confidential and it is the whistleblower who decides whether he or she wishes to protect his or her identity vis-à-vis the Group. The ombudspersons appointed by the Group ensure that reports from whistleblowers who do not wish to be identified by the company are forwarded to the Investigation Office anonymously.
If you want to get in contact with the Ombudspersons you can find their contact details on the following homepage: http://www.ombudsmen-of-volkswagen.com/
How do I make a report?
It is important to make sure the information contained in the report you submit to the Investigation Office is as concrete as possible so that it can be processed and investigated in an appropriate manner.
It is helpful if your report covers the following five questions:
- who?
- what?
- when?
- how?
- where?
Please make sure that the descriptions contained in your report can be easily understood by persons who are not specialists in your field. It would be helpful if you are available to answer further questions. If you would be willing to do so, but wish to remain anonymous to the company, please contact the ombudspersons to make your report.
In case of violations of regulations on data protection we kindly ask you to contact the Data-Breach-Hotline (05361-9-28479) of the Volkswagen AG.
Responsible for content
The Volkswagen Investigation Office is responsible for the content of this page.
Central Investigation Office
Box 1717
38436 Wolfsburg
Germany
For better readability, only the masculine form is used on this page. This form is explicitly understood as gender-neutral. It is used for editorial purposes only and is entirely without prejudice.