Truck manufacturers DAF, Iveco, MAN, Mercedes, Scania and Volvo/Renault used special software to make the banned price agreements. This is according to a report made public by the European Commission last week. With this additional information, the Dutch MKB-Claim wants to start collective proceedings against the truck manufacturers.
In the report, the European Commission substantiates the previously imposed mega fine of €2.93 billion. The manufacturers periodically coordinated truck price increases, fighting price competition and keeping prices artificially high. The special software used by the manufacturers contained list prices of all models and options. This software replaced traditional price lists and was shared with each other, with the exception of DAF. Consultations between manufacturers took place by phone and e-mail. There were also meetings several times a year, especially in Germany.
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The report shows that not only were agreements on prices made within the cartel, but there was also talk of repeatedly delaying the introduction of new more environmentally friendly and fuel-efficient engines. "We suspect that the manufacturers did this to get rid of their old stocks. This was at the expense of their customers as well as the environment." says Simon Zuurbier of MKB-Claim.
MKB-Claim says it will soon take steps against the truck cartel. "For us, we were still waiting for this additional information from the commission. Now we can start our collective proceedings in the near future." MKB-Claim represents 2,900 companies that collectively bought more than 23,000 trucks during the period when the cartel was active.
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