The coach transport company Flixbus has been fined by the German courts for making misleading environmental claims on its Belgian website, according to the Belgian Economy Ministry on Friday.
As part of a European investigation, the Belgian Economic Inspectorate found that Flixbus was greenwashing by making misleading environmental claims on its Belgian website.
The company presented its coaches as "the most environmentally-friendly means of transport," without the necessary comparisons and justifications, according to the Economy Ministry.
Flixbus also boasted about the environmental advantages of the 'Flixtrain,' which is not available in Belgium, and offered an option for offsetting CO2 emissions without being transparent about the actual emissions of the journey.
Important victory
The Belgian Economy Ministry then alerted Flixbus, giving it the opportunity to voluntarily adapt its site.
However, the company failed to comply, so the Economic Inspectorate contacted its German counterpart, the Umweltbundesamt, which initiated legal proceedings. This was concluded on 20 February, when the German Federal Court of Justice "definitively ruled against Flixbus."
The company is now obliged to remove the misleading claims from its website. Although Flixbus has already adjusted its website, some greenwashing remains, according to the Economy Ministry.
"This is an important victory in the fight against greenwashing," said spokesperson Etienne Mignolet in a press release. "It is now written in black and white that such misleading environmental claims are unacceptable. The ruling also sets a legal precedent that will help consumer authorities to take action against companies that use misleading environmental claims."
