The Trucks Cartel 1997-2011

All major European truck manufacturers participated in a cartel. Victims of the cartel are entitled to compensation. The Trucks Cartel Compensation Foundation has decided to organise and manage a European collective action against the truck manufacturers.

This page contains basic information about the trucks cartel and the background of the Foundation’s initiative.

In the period 1997 — 2011, all major European truck manufacturers participated in a cartel relating to price fixing, concerted delays of introducing new emission technologies, and the passing on to customers of compliance costs for stricter emission standards.

The following manufacturers of medium (6-16 tons) and heavy trucks (weighing over 16 tons) participated in the cartel: Volvo/Renault, MAN, Daimler (Mercedes), Iveco, DAF and Scania, collectively 99% of the European market.

The cartel was created at meetings between senior managers, at trade fairs or other events. Information was exchanged by phone and e-mail.

As written by the European Commission:

'It is not acceptable that MAN, Volvo/Renault, Daimler, Iveco and DAF ... were part of a cartel instead of competing with each other. For 14 years they colluded on the pricing and on passing on the costs for meeting environmental standards to customers.'

On 19 July 2016 and 27 September 2017, the European Commission issued press releases in which it announced record fines totalling EUR 3,81 billion for the cartel relating to:

• coordinating prices at “gross list” level for medium and heavy trucks in the European Economic Area. The “gross list” price level relates to the factory price of trucks, as set by each manufacturer. Generally, these gross list prices are the basis for pricing in the trucks industry. The final price paid by buyers is then based on further adjustments, done at national and local level, to these gross list prices.
• the timing for the introduction of emission technologies for medium and heavy trucks to comply with the increasingly strict European emissions standards (from Euro III through to the currently applicable Euro VI)
• the passing on to customers of the costs for the emissions technologies required to comply with the increasingly strict European emissions standards (from Euro III through to the currently applicable Euro VI).

In addition to the fines, the European Commission encourages “victims” of the cartel to seek compensation from the cartel participants for their damage incurred. Buyers and lessees of trucks potentially have significantly overpaid for a total period of 14 years. Such overpayment, or “overcharge“, can be claimed back.