In this instance of consumer fraud, where victims were sold a vehicle under false pretenses and the government's claim of damage to the environment that impacts both society at large as well as the individual drivers, simply because some drivers got to drive a nice car with enticing torque numbers and good fuel mileage that does not mean that the fraud can go unpunished.
And simply because you don't know it happened does not mean the fraud goes unpunished.
The responses here are trying to argue that because the fraud wasn't made public he wasn't harmed or is not entitled to compensation, but that's not accurate. You can be defrauded and not know it...that's the intent of fraud (to remain undetected).
There are statute of limitations that could preclude someone from presenting a claim after finding out about it, but that doesn't mean you weren't harmed during that period of time simply because you didn't know it at the time.
But in civil law, a plaintiff who's suffered no actual harm can't ordinarily recover anything.
You inverted what I wrote.
You can benefit from fraud and still have a fraud claim.
That's a separate issue from whether you are *harmed*
You can simultaneously be harmed *and* benefit from something.