Dodge Ram Emissions Lawsuit, What Cummins Owners Can Actually Claim in 2026

TL;DR

• Cummins paid a $1.675 billion civil penalty for Clean Air Act violations on Ram 2500 and 3500 diesel trucks, but that money went to the federal government and California, not to truck owners (U.S. Department of Justice, 2024).
• The only money currently reaching owners is a $500 prepaid Mastercard for completing Emissions Recall 67A, and the window is closing. The recall must be completed by September 30, 2026, with the claim submitted by October 22, 2026 (Cummins, 2026).
• Completing Recall 67A also activates a free Special Warranty Extension covering SCR catalysts, NOx sensors, and the entire DEF system for up to 10 years or 120,000 miles. For most owners this is worth far more than the $500 (Cummins, 2026).
• Your model year decides everything. 2013-2018 trucks get the recall, the $500, and the warranty. 2019 trucks fall under the recall program but not the rewards offer. 2020-2023 trucks are not subject to any recall (U.S. EPA, 2026).
• Modified or “deleted” trucks are excluded from both the $500 and the warranty extension, and pre-existing failures are generally not covered, which makes waiting expensive (Cummins, 2026).
• A separate consumer class action, Biederman v. FCA US LLC, is still being litigated in California and has produced no payout. If your truck has had repeated DEF or SCR failures under warranty, a lemon law or warranty claim is a separate and usually faster path.

There is a specific kind of silence that happens in a Ram owner’s driveway. The truck is fine. It pulls a trailer like it always did. Then a letter shows up with the words “Emissions Recall” on it, and suddenly a perfectly good truck feels like evidence in somebody else’s court case.

If that letter is sitting on your kitchen counter right now, this article is the one you want. Not because the legal history is thrilling, but because there is real money attached to it, there is a deadline 18 days from the date of this writing, and almost every page ranking for “Dodge Ram emissions lawsuit” will tell you about a penalty from 2024 and then quietly fail to mention either one.

What the Dodge Ram Emissions Lawsuit Actually Is

The Dodge Ram emissions lawsuit is not one case. It is a government enforcement action plus at least two separate consumer class actions covering different truck generations, and confusing them is the single most common mistake owners make.

The enforcement action is the big one. In December 2023 the Department of Justice announced, and in January 2024 finalized, a settlement requiring Cummins Inc. to pay a $1.675 billion civil penalty, the largest ever assessed under the Clean Air Act (U.S. Department of Justice, 2024). Cummins agreed to spend more than $325 million on remedies on top of that penalty. California’s share came to roughly $164 million of the penalty plus more than $175 million for mitigation.

The allegations were specific. The United States and California alleged that nearly one million model year 2013-2023 Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 pickups with Cummins diesel engines ran undisclosed engine control software. Of those, more than 630,000 trucks from model years 2013-2019 carried software the government called illegal defeat devices, which reduced the effectiveness of emissions controls during real-world driving while still passing standard laboratory tests (U.S. Department of Justice, 2024).

Cummins denied the allegations and did not admit liability. The terms sit in two consent decrees filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Here is the part that matters to your wallet, and it is the part competitors bury. Not one dollar of that $1.675 billion is earmarked for truck owners. Civil penalties under the Clean Air Act are paid to government treasuries. Owners got two things instead, a recall and a warranty extension, and one of them has a deadline.

Why the $1.675 Billion Settlement Does Not Send You a Check

No consumer payment comes from the Cummins Clean Air Act settlement, because a civil penalty is a fine paid to the government, not a compensation fund for buyers. There is no settlement administrator, no claim number, and no class list tied to that $1.675 billion.

This is the most common question we hear:

The honest answer is that the check people are waiting for does not exist, and waiting for it has a real cost, because the benefit that does exist expires.

Compare the Cummins matter to the Volkswagen diesel scandal, and the difference becomes obvious. Volkswagen’s resolution included a dedicated consumer buyback and compensation program with a claims portal and deadlines. The Cummins consent decrees did not create one. They required a recall, an extended warranty for repaired trucks, ongoing follow-up testing, and emissions offsets (U.S. EPA, 2026).

So the practical question is not “where is my settlement money?” It is “what is available to my specific VIN, and when does it close?”

Emissions Recall 67A and the $500 Deadline That Closes September 30, 2026

Emissions Recall 67A is a free software update for model year 2013-2018 Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 trucks with the Cummins 6.7L Turbo Diesel engine, and completing it earns a $500 prepaid Mastercard plus a free warranty extension. The update takes under an hour, requires no parts or hardware, and does not change horsepower, torque, or throttle response (Cummins, 2026).

The update changes how the truck doses Diesel Exhaust Fluid. It sends revised signals to the DEF injection system, increasing the DEF dosing rate to the aftertreatment catalyst under certain conditions in order to lower tailpipe NOx output (Cummins, 2026).

The rewards program has run in defined windows, and the current one is the last published window.

Source: Cummins Emissions Recall 67A program terms, 2026.

Three details owners get wrong.

First, the recall itself never expires. Safety and emissions recalls stay open indefinitely, so you can get the software update in 2028 if you want. It is the $500 that expires on September 30, 2026.

Second, the order of operations matters. You must complete the recall at an authorized Ram dealership first, then return to the claim form and submit your VIN. Completing the service without filing the claim gets you nothing.

Third, you can claim for more than one truck. Cummins allows offer claims for up to 20 unique VINs per person, provided the service happens during the program period (Cummins, 2026). Fleet owners and farm operations running four or five trucks are leaving real money on the table.

Digital Mastercards arrive within about two business days after the claim is verified in the Stellantis system. Physical cards take roughly four to six weeks (Cummins, 2026).

One more point of fairness to Cummins, because accuracy cuts both ways. The consent decree requires Cummins to repair at least 85% of the affected 2013-2019 trucks within three years (U.S. EPA, 2026). The $500 is not generosity, it is cheaper than missing a federal completion target. Knowing that is useful, because it tells you the offer is unlikely to be extended indefinitely once the target is met.

The Special Warranty Extension Is Worth More Than the $500

The Special Warranty Extension is the more valuable half of Recall 67A, and it is free and automatic once the software update is complete. It covers all parts and labor for a defined list of emissions and aftertreatment components on 2013-2018 Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks with the Cummins 6.7L (Cummins, 2026).

Anyone who has paid for an SCR catalyst or a DEF pump module knows why this matters. These are four-figure repairs, and they tend to arrive in clusters.

Covered components include:

• The Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) catalyst assembly and the Ammonia Oxidation Catalyst, which are the two most expensive single items on the list.
• NOx sensors, including both engine-out and system-out sensors, which are a frequent and recurring failure point on high-mileage 6.7L trucks.
• The complete DEF system, meaning the DEF injector, injector controller, storage tank, delivery lines, quality sensor, and the DEF supply module, pump, and temperature sensor unit.
• Any On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) scan for a fault that triggers the malfunction indicator light, and this one is broader than it looks. The extension covers the diagnostic scan cost whether or not the fault turns out to be a covered part.
• The SCR controller hardware, which Cummins will replace at no cost with a two-year parts warranty if the software update somehow damages it.

The coverage term is the greater of two calculations, which is genuinely favorable math for older trucks:

• 10 years from the date of initial sale or 120,000 miles on the odometer, whichever comes first, or
• 4 years or 48,000 miles from the date Recall 67A was completed, whichever comes first.

That second option is the one that rescues a high-mileage 2013 truck. A 2013 Ram 3500 with 190,000 miles is long past the first calculation, but completing the recall today still buys four years or 48,000 miles of DEF and SCR coverage from the completion date.

One hard stop to note. Coverage cannot extend past December 31, 2033 for any truck that receives Recall 67A after April 9, 2027 (Cummins, 2026).

If you have already paid out of pocket for a covered component before getting the extension, there is a reimbursement path through FCA US LLC rather than a lost cause. FCA Customer Care runs 24 hours a day at 1-866-726-4636, and there is a VIN-based reimbursement request form. Keep the invoice. Understanding what your manufacturer warranty covers before you argue with a service advisor changes the conversation, and so does knowing whether you should be paying for warranty service at all.

Find Your Truck in This Table Before You Do Anything Else

Your model year determines which benefits exist for your truck, and the differences are larger than most owners expect. Model year alone decides whether you get a recall, a $500 card, and a decade of emissions coverage, or nothing at all.

Sources: U.S. EPA Cummins settlement recall information, 2026; Cummins Emissions Recall 67A program terms, 2026.

The 2020-2023 group surprises people, so it deserves a plain explanation. Roughly 330,000 model-year 2019-2023 trucks were alleged to carry undisclosed auxiliary emission control devices, or AECDs, rather than defeat devices. Regulators concluded that this particular undisclosed software did not increase NOx emissions, which is why the failure to disclose was still a Clean Air Act violation but did not trigger a recall obligation (U.S. EPA, 2026). Your truck was part of the government’s case. It is not part of the recall remedy.

The Two Ram Diesel Cases Everyone Confuses, and Which One Is Yours

There are two distinct Ram diesel emissions class actions covering two different truck generations, and the top-ranking pages for this keyword do not tell you which is which. Landing on the wrong one costs owners months.

The 2007-2012 case: Filed in November 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, this case covers 2007-2012 Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks with the 6.7L Cummins. In a March 27, 2019 order, U.S. District Judge Terrence G. Berg upheld most claims, including RICO and state consumer protection claims across all 50 states, while denying the breach of warranty claims (Hagens Berman, 2019). In August 2025, a Sixth Circuit panel revived claims on appeal, holding that the owners’ claims were not preempted by the Clean Air Act because they turned on what the companies marketed to consumers rather than what they disclosed to the EPA.

The 2013-2023 case: This is the one tied to the $1.675 billion penalty. Biederman v. FCA US LLC, No. 3:23-cv-06640-JSC, was filed December 27, 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley. The proposed class covers everyone in the United States who owned or leased a 2013-2023 Ram 2500 or Ram 3500 with a Cummins 6.7L diesel as of December 23, 2023.

On February 11, 2025, Judge Corley granted the motions to dismiss in part and denied them in part. Roughly half of the eleven claims survived, largely the California consumer protection claims under the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, the Unfair Competition Law, and the False Advertising Law. The court dismissed the civil RICO claims and several breach of warranty claims.

FCA and Cummins argued there was no case at all because the trucks were being repaired for free under the recall. The court was not persuaded on the consumer protection theories, since the owners’ claim is that they overpaid for the trucks at purchase, which a later free software update does not undo.

What this means for you in September 2026 is simple. Biederman is active litigation, not a settlement. There is no claim form, no payout, and no deadline to join, because a putative class action does not require you to sign up in advance. Anyone promising you a Ram emissions settlement check today is selling something.

The Warranty Detail From the Corley Ruling That Should Change Your Behavior Today

The most useful thing in Judge Corley’s February 2025 order is not the headline. It is the reason the warranty claims failed, because it is a mistake you can still avoid.

Several plaintiffs lost their breach of warranty claims because they had not satisfied the requirement to give the manufacturer a chance to repair. The court noted that some plaintiffs had not brought their trucks in for repair at all, and it rejected the argument that repair attempts would have been futile.

Read that again if you own a truck with a recurring DEF or SCR problem. Warranty and lemon law claims are built on a documented repair history. A truck with four dealership visits for the same fault and four repair orders describing it is a case. The same truck with no paperwork is a story.

So if your 6.7L is throwing DEF system faults, derating, or going into limp mode, do three things now.

1. Take it to an authorized dealership every single time, even when you already know what the fault is and could clear it yourself. Independent shop receipts are useful but they do not build the same record.
2. Get a written repair order for every visit, and make sure it describes your actual complaint in your words. If you said “engine derate and DEF light on highway,” the order should say so, rather than “customer states check engine light.”
3. Keep the days-out-of-service count. Total time in the shop is an independent trigger under many state lemon laws, separate from the number of repair attempts. If you are wondering how long a dealership can hold your car for repair, that number is often doing more work in your claim than you realize.

Our guides on how many repairs it takes before lemon law applies and how the lemon law process actually works walk through the thresholds in detail.

If Your Truck Is Deleted or Tuned, Read This Before You Book the Recall

Modified trucks that cannot receive the Recall 67A software update are not eligible for the $500 Mastercard or the Special Warranty Extension (Cummins, 2026). This is the single most consequential exclusion for the Cummins community, and none of the pages currently ranking for this keyword mention it.

A large share of 2013-2018 6.7L trucks on the road today have aftermarket tunes, EGR deletes, or DPF and SCR removals. If a dealership identifies your truck as modified and cannot load the update, the benefits do not apply.

There is a limited piece of good news in the official terms. If a dealership flags your truck as modified, that finding does not by itself void the warranty on unmodified components, and it does not stop the dealership from performing other services. Practically, it means future Recall 67A notices stop being sent for that VIN (Cummins, 2026).

Nobody can promise you an outcome there, because it depends on whether the dealer can successfully load the software and how the modification is documented. What is certain is that the eligibility check is free and takes minutes at CumminsRecall.com, and that the deadline does not pause while you decide.

When a Ram Emissions Problem Becomes a Lemon Law Claim Instead

An emissions recall and a lemon law claim are different legal tools, and the recall does not replace your warranty rights. A recall fixes a defect the manufacturer has admitted across a population of vehicles. A lemon law or warranty claim compensates you because your specific truck could not be repaired in a reasonable number of attempts.

That distinction is where Ram diesel owners most often have a real, individual claim worth pursuing. Consider the pattern:

• Repeated DEF injector or DEF pump failures inside the warranty period, with the truck back at the dealer three, four, or five times for the same complaint.
• Recurring NOx sensor faults that trigger derates, leaving the truck unable to tow or hold highway speed.
• Extended time out of service while the dealer waits on aftertreatment parts, sometimes weeks at a stretch.
• A post-recall condition that appeared after the software update and that the dealer cannot resolve.

Any of those can support a buyback, replacement, or cash-and-keep resolution under a state lemon law or the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, depending on your state, your mileage, and your documentation. Our overview of federal lemon law protections for used vehicles covers how that federal layer works when a state statute does not reach your situation.

Two practical notes specific to the emissions warranty extension.

The extension states that all applicable existing warranty provisions remain in effect, and that issues existing before the truck receives the software update likely will not be covered (Cummins, 2026). Eligibility is also subject to FCA’s standard exclusions for accident, abuse, neglect, and tampering. A DEF pump that is already failing today is exactly the repair the extension may decline tomorrow, which is the strongest financial argument for booking the recall this month rather than next spring.

Diesel truck aftertreatment problems also stack in a way that matters legally. One NOx sensor is a repair. Three aftertreatment failures in eighteen months, each documented, starts to look like a truck that cannot be made to conform to its warranty.

If you want to see rough numbers before calling anyone, our lemon law buyback calculator estimates what a repurchase looks like after the statutory mileage offset. Owners also ask what representation costs, and the answer is usually less alarming than expected, which we break down in how much lemon law attorneys cost and how long a lemon law case takes.

Heavy-duty Ram owners dealing with non-emissions defects may also want our coverage of Dodge Ram 1500 transmission problems, 2022 Ram 1500 problems and recalls, and Stellantis Hurricane engine problems. Diesel owners comparing fuel system litigation across brands can look at the GM CP4 fuel pump lawsuit, where the settlement deadlines have already closed, a useful reminder of what happens when owners wait.

Your Seven Day Action Plan for the September 30 Deadline

Given the September 30, 2026 completion deadline, the sequence below is the fastest route from “I got a letter” to money and coverage. Total active time is under two hours.

1. Check your VIN today at CumminsRecall.com. Use the 17-digit VIN from your door jamb or insurance card. This confirms in minutes whether Recall 67A is open on your specific truck, which is more reliable than reasoning from the model year on your title.
2. Book the appointment at an authorized Ram dealership this week, not next. Dealership capacity tightens ahead of a recall deadline, and the service must be physically completed by September 30 to qualify. An appointment on October 2 is worth zero dollars.
3. Run your emissions or smog inspection before the update if one is due soon. A software reflash resets OBD readiness monitors, and a vehicle with incomplete monitors can fail an inspection until it has been driven through enough drive cycles for them to reset.
4. Stack the visit with other service. Since the truck is already there and the update takes under an hour, this is the cheap moment to have the dealer document any DEF, SCR, or derate complaint you have been living with. That repair order becomes evidence.
5. Submit the claim at CumminsRecall.com after the work is done. The deadline is 11:59 p.m. ET on October 22, 2026, for recalls completed between August 1 and September 30. Choose the digital Mastercard if you want it in two business days instead of six weeks.
6. Repeat for every eligible VIN you own. Up to 20 claims per person are allowed. Four qualifying trucks are $2,000.
7. Gather your repair history if the truck has a pattern. Pull every repair order for aftertreatment, DEF, and derate complaints, along with dates and days out of service, before you talk to anyone about a warranty or lemon law claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Ram owners get money from the $1.675 billion Cummins emissions settlement?

No. The $1.675 billion is a civil penalty paid to the federal government and California, not a consumer compensation fund (U.S. Department of Justice, 2024). The benefits that reach owners are Emissions Recall 67A, the $500 prepaid Mastercard for completing it during the program window, and the free Special Warranty Extension. There is no claims portal or settlement check tied to the penalty itself.

How do I get the $500 from Emissions Recall 67A, and what is the deadline?

Complete the free software update at an authorized Ram dealership, then submit a claim with your VIN at CumminsRecall.com. For the current window, the recall must be completed between August 1, 2026 and September 30, 2026, and the claim must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. ET on October 22, 2026 (Cummins, 2026). You may claim up to 20 unique VINs. Digital cards arrive within about two business days of verification, physical cards in four to six weeks.

Will Recall 67A hurt my fuel economy, power, or DEF consumption?

Cummins states the update does not change horsepower, torque, or responsiveness, and that it takes under an hour with no hardware changes (Cummins, 2026). The update does increase the DEF dosing rate to the aftertreatment catalyst under certain conditions, so somewhat higher DEF consumption is a reasonable expectation. Cummins published owner comments on its recall site, including one owner who reported the truck uses a little more DEF after the update. Fuel economy effects are not addressed in the official recall documentation.

Is my 2021 or 2022 Ram 2500 part of the Dodge Ram emissions lawsuit?

Model year 2020-2023 Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks are not subject to the emissions recalls (U.S. EPA, 2026). Trucks from model years 2019-2023 were alleged to contain undisclosed auxiliary emission control devices, but regulators concluded that software did not increase NOx emissions, so no recall remedy was required. Those model years are, however, within the proposed class definition in Biederman v. FCA US LLC, which covers 2013-2023 trucks and remains in litigation with no payout.

Can I still sue or file a warranty claim if I complete the recall and take the $500?

Completing a recall is a repair, not a settlement agreement, and the Recall 67A rewards terms are an incentive offer rather than a release of claims. The separate consumer class action over the same trucks has continued even though the free recall is available, and the court declined to dismiss the California consumer protection claims on the theory that the recall cured the alleged harm. Because your individual rights depend on your state, your truck, and your repair history, confirm your own position with a lemon law attorney before relying on any general statement.

My truck is deleted or has an aftermarket tune. Am I still eligible?

Trucks that have been modified and cannot receive the Recall 67A software update are not eligible for the $500 Mastercard or the Special Warranty Extension (Cummins, 2026). If a dealership identifies the truck as modified, that finding does not void the warranty on unmodified components or prevent other services, and it stops future 67A notices for that VIN. Checking your VIN is free, so confirm your status rather than assuming either way.

What if I already paid for a DEF pump or SCR catalyst out of pocket?

You may be able to recover it. The Special Warranty Extension covers parts and labor for listed components, and Cummins directs owners who paid for a covered repair or service to submit a reimbursement request through FCA’s VIN-based form (Cummins, 2026). FCA US LLC Customer Care is available 24 hours a day at 1-866-726-4636. Keep the original invoice and the repair order showing the part replaced.

How long does the Special Warranty Extension last on a high-mileage truck?

Coverage runs for the greater of two terms, which favors older trucks. The first is 10 years from the date of initial sale or 120,000 miles, whichever comes first. The second is 4 years or 48,000 miles from the date Recall 67A was completed, whichever comes first (Cummins, 2026). A 2014 truck with 200,000 miles therefore still gains four years or 48,000 miles of coverage from the completion date. No coverage extends past December 31, 2033, for trucks that receive the recall after April 9, 2027.

Does the Ram 1500 EcoDiesel fall under this lawsuit?

No. The 3.0L V6 EcoDiesel used in the Ram 1500 is a different engine and was the subject of separate litigation and a separate settlement. The Cummins matter described here covers the 6.7L inline-six Turbo Diesel in Ram 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty pickups only. If you own a 1500 EcoDiesel, the eligibility tables above do not apply to your truck.

My 2016 Ram 3500 keeps derating and throwing DEF faults. Is that the lawsuit or a lemon law claim?

Those are separate paths, and the repair history decides which one helps you. Recurring DEF and SCR failures inside the warranty period, with documented repeat repair attempts for the same complaint, are the classic fact pattern for a state lemon law or Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act claim, which seeks a buyback, replacement, or cash settlement for your individual truck. The class action seeks economic loss damages for the whole class and has not produced a payout. Pursuing a warranty claim does not require you to wait for the class action.

Talk to Someone About Your Specific Truck

Lemon My Vehicle handles defective vehicle and warranty claims for owners across the United States. If your Ram 2500 or 3500 has been back to the dealership repeatedly for DEF system faults, SCR or NOx sensor failures, derates, or any defect the dealer cannot repair, a case review costs nothing and tells you whether you have an individual claim worth filing.

Bring your repair orders, the dates of each visit, and your total days out of service. That paperwork is the case.

Sources

• S. Department of Justice, “United States and California Announce Diesel Engine Manufacturer Cummins Inc. Agrees to Pay a Record $1.675 Billion Civil Penalty in Vehicle Test Cheating Settlement,” January 2024.
• S. Environmental Protection Agency, “2024 Cummins Inc. Vehicle Emission Control Violations Settlement” and related Frequently Asked Questions, 2026.
• California Air Resources Board, “Cummins Settlement Frequently Asked Questions,” 2024.
• Cummins Inc., Emissions Recall 67A program site, rewards program terms, and Special Warranty Extension coverage document, 2026.
• Biederman v. FCA US LLC, No. 3:23-cv-06640-JSC (N.D. Cal.), orders of February 11, 2025 and May 1, 2025.
• Hagens Berman, press release on the March 27, 2019 order of Judge Terrence G. Berg, Eastern District of Michigan, covering 2007-2012 trucks.

This article is general information about vehicle warranty and consumer protection law, not legal advice for your situation. Recall program terms and deadlines are set by Cummins and FCA and can change. Verify current terms at CumminsRecall.com before relying on any date in this article.