Carmakers face OFT probe
A NUMBER of Europe’s best-known vehicle makers, including Mercedes-Benz, are at the centre of a price fixing investigation by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).
The OFT last night confirmed that it had launched both criminal and civil investigations into suspected price-fixing by major lorry manufacturers in the UK. The OFT said it was looking into suspected cartel activity, which was at an early stage.
As part of the probe, the OFT has visited the UK offices of Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz as part of a broad-ranging investigation into the pricing of trucks. It has also requested information from Sweden’s Scania and Germany’s MAN as part of the probe.
The probes are being carried out under both the Enterprise Act 2002 and the Competition Act 1998. Proven price-fixing carries big fines for firms and criminal prosecutions against executives.