MUNICH (dpa-AFX) - The European Commission said it has fined Autoliv (ALV) and TRW a total of 368.28 million euros for breaching EU antitrust rules. Takata was not fined as it revealed the cartels to the Commission.
The companies took part in two cartels for the supply of car seatbelts, airbags and steering wheels to European car producers. All three suppliers acknowledged their involvement in the cartels and agreed to settle the case.
The commission noted that the three car equipment suppliers addressed in this decision exchanged commercially sensitive information and coordinated their market behaviour for the supply of seatbelts, airbags and steering wheels to the Volkswagen Group and the BMW Group. The coordination to form and run the cartel took place mainly through meetings at the suppliers' business premises but also in restaurants and hotels, as well as through phone calls and e-mail exchanges.
The cartel is likely to have had a significant effect on European customers, since the customers affected by the cartel, the Volkswagen Group and the BMW Group sell around three of every ten cars bought in Europe. The Commission's investigation revealed the existence of two separate infringements.
Separately, Autoliv confirmed that the European Commission has completed the previously communicated investigation regarding suppliers of occupant safety systems.
The EU Commission has completed the investigation, which has been ongoing since June 2011, of anti-competitive behavior among suppliers of occupant safety systems in the European Union and has decided to impose a fine of 179 million euros for Autoliv ($203 million). The fine will be payable within 90 days.
The fine is less than the accrual of $210 million made by Autoliv in the fourth quarter of 2018. The difference between the actual fine and the accrual will be reported in Other income (expense), net, in Autoliv's first quarter 2019 report.
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