Three suppliers conspired to raise prices on seatbelts, airbags and steering wheels to Volkswagen and BMW. The European Commission announced March 5 that it has fined Autoliv and TRW a total of €368,277,000 ($413.5 million) for breaching EU antitrust rules by participating in a cartel to raise the prices of automotive safety parts. Takata, the […]
Auto Parts Manufacturer Pleads Guilty to Antitrust Conspiracy Involving Steel Tubes
Company agrees to pay $12 million criminal fine. Maruyasu Industries Co. Ltd., an automotive parts manufacturer headquartered in the Aichi Prefecture in Japan, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $12 million criminal fine for its role in a criminal conspiracy to fix prices, rig bids, and allocate customers for automotive steel tubes incorporated […]
Oregon Collision Repair Shop Sues GEICO Alleging Antitrust
Lawsuit by Leif’s Auto Collision alleges GEICO and ARX shops engaged in conspiracy to suppress repair costs, refuse to reimburse for diagnostic scans. GEICO had sued collision repair facility in January alleging abusive and intimidating conduct against its adjusters. Portland, Oregon-based Leif’s Auto Collision, filed a lawsuit Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in Oregon […]
European Commission Fines Three Vehicle Lighting System Producers €27 million in Antitrust Settlement on Parts Sales to Aftermarket
The European Commission has fined Automotive Lighting and Hella a total of €26,744,000 ($29.78 million) for participating in an automotive lighting cartel, in breach of EU antitrust rules. Valeo was not fined as it revealed the cartel to the Commission. All companies admitted their involvement and agreed to settle. The investigation concerned the aftermarket segment […]
Mitsubishi Electric to Pay CA$13.4 million for Car Part Bid Rigging in Canada
Car parts manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric Corporation pleaded guilty to three counts of bid-rigging for participating in an international conspiracy and was fined CA$13.4 million ($9.8 million) by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Canada. A Competition Bureau investigation determined that Mitsubishi Electric entered into illegal agreements with a competing Japanese car parts manufacturer. The […]
House Passes Legislation to Eliminate Antitrust Exemption on Health Insurance, Possible Precedent for Repeal of Property-Casualty Exemption
Insurance group concerned about impact on other types of insurance. ASA sees opportunity for meaningful insurance reform. The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 372, the Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act of 2017 on Wednesday by a vote of 416-7. The bill would repeal the limited antitrust exemption for health insurers established by the McCarran-Ferguson […]
Auto Door Latch Manufacturer to Plead Guilty to Bid Rigging, Pay $6.1 Million Fine
Kiekert AG, an automotive parts manufacturer based in Heiligenhaus, Germany, has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $6.1 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to rig bids of side-door latches and latch minimodules installed in cars sold in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today. According […]
Japanese Auto Parts Company Pleads Guilty to Antitrust Conspiracy
Company Agrees to Pay $7.2 Million Criminal Fine Usui Kokusai Sangyo Kaisha Ltd. (Usui), an automotive parts manufacturer based in Shimizu, Japan, has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $7.2 million criminal fine for its role in a criminal conspiracy involving automotive steel tubes sold to automobile manufacturers in the United States and elsewhere, […]
Auto Parts Executives Indicted for Obstruction of Justice
A federal grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan returned an indictment charging one current automotive parts industry executive and one former automotive parts industry executive with conspiring to obstruct a federal investigation. The current executive also was charged with attempted obstruction of justice, the U.S. Justice Department announced. […]
Auto Parts Manufacturer Pleads Guilty in Price-Fixing and Bid-Rigging Conspiracy
Alpha Corporation will pay $9 million fine. Marks 46th company charged with price-fixing auto parts. The U.S. Justice Department announced that Alpha Corporation has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $9 million criminal fine for its role in a price-fixing and bid-rigging conspiracy involving automotive access mechanisms such as door handles and lock […]