U.K. Truckers Seek Compensation in Price-Fixing Case

LONDON – A U.K. truckers’ group will seek compensation for its members who allegedly suffered under a Europe-wide price-fixing scam by five major manufacturers.

The legal challenge by the Road Haulage Assn. comes a couple of weeks after the European Commission found five truck makers guilty of running a price-fixing cartel over a 14-year period.

The EC fined four of the five, U.S.-owned DAF, Daimler, Iveco and Volvo/Renault, a total of €2.9 billion ($3.3 billion), while the fifth, Volkswagen Group-owned MAN, escaped penalties in return for blowing the whistle on the scam.

European investigators found that between 1997 and 2004 meetings were held at a senior-manager level, often at trade fairs or other industry events, to discuss strategy. From 2004 onward, authorities say, the cartel was organized through the truck producers’ German subsidiaries using email exchanges.

Now the RHA pledges to take legal action to gain compensation after seeking legal advice. “As the representative body with sole responsibility for U.K. road-freight operators, we consider ourselves duty-bound to acknowledge and act upon our members’ wishes,” association CEO Richard Burnett says. “They have made it clear that they feel aggrieved at the news of a truck-pricing cartel and are looking to us to represent them.

“Last week, the association’s board of directors (comprising member-elected individuals from RHA member companies) met to discuss the European Commission’s fine. Their unanimous decision was that the association should (pursue) compensation claims on behalf of its members.”

Adds RHA National Chairman Jim French, director of PD Portcentric Logistics: “This is a serious issue for the haulage industry, both for hauliers in general and our members in particular. The road-transport sector works to extremely tight margins and the truck itself is the largest capital investment our members make. Therefore they are looking for compensation from the manufacturers.

“The process for such a large number of interested parties is complex, but we have been in discussions with our legal advisors so that we can progress the matter further.

“We are keen to maintain the amicable and close working relationship we have always enjoyed with the truck manufacturers, as they have with their customers,” French says. “We would seek to act in a way which resolves the interests of our members as swiftly and as appropriately as possible.”

Daimler was fined the most at €1.01 billion ($1.12 billion) while DAF, owned by the U.S. group PACCAR, received a €753 million ($841 million) fine. Sweden’s Volvo was fined €670.4 million ($748.7 million) and Iveco, part of Italian truck and tractor maker CNH, was assessed €494.6 million ($552.4 million).

The four companies admitted wrongdoing in return for a 10% reduction in their sanctions. Scania, another VW subsidiary, did not settle and remains under investigation.