Fourteen popular car-making brands in India have been imposed a hefty total penalty amount of about Rs.2,500 crore by Competition Commission of India (CCI). As per a petition filed by a complainant in 2011, fourteen car-makers in the country reportedly gave away spare parts in an anti-competitive manner. It is said that failure of these manufacturers to make genuine parts available in open market have resulted them in indulging into anti-competitive practices.
Some of the popular brand in the country that have been penalized are Mahindra & Mahindra (Rs.292 crore), Honda Car India (Rs.78 crore), Tata Motors (Rs 1,346.46 crore) and General Motors (Rs 84.58 crore). Apart from these, brands like BMW India, Ford India, Honda Siel, Volkswagen India, Nissan Motor, Skoda Auto India Fiat India, Hindustan Motors, Mercedes Benz, and Toyota Kirloskar India have also been penalized for indulging into anti-competitive practices.
CCI has noted that these companies have prevented independent repairers from entering into the market. It was found that these car-makers have reportedly violated competition norms with respect to their agreements with local Original Equipment Suppliers (OESs). It was also found that they have violated the terms of pacts with authorized dealers. As per the petition, “operate /regulate or otherwise control the operations of various authorized workshops and service stations which are in the business of selling automobile spare parts, besides rendering after-sale automobile maintenance services.” Post verdict, companies now have about 60 days to comply with the penalty amount.
