In the News

Road Haulage Association seeks compensation from truck makers after cartel is exposed

Ian Pryer

14th June 2017

A virtual hat tip to one of my own students, Ben Wilkinson, for spotting this story on the BBC Business website today. It's gone straight in to my Edexcel Business A Level Theme 2 Scheme of Work for next year for the section on Competition Legislation.


5 truck makers have already been censured by the European commission for a price fixing cartel that lasted 14 years.  4 of the firms (Volvo, Daimler, Iveco & DAF) were fined a record 2.93 billion euros last year. MAN Group escaped a fine because it was the whistleblower. 

Now the UK's Road Haulage Association (RHA) is launching a claim for compensation on behalf of its members who presumably overpaid for trucks across this 14 year period.

The RHA believes that haulage firms were overcharged by £6000 per truck and 650,000 trucks were sold in the time period in question.  By these calculations the bill could reach an eye-watering £3.9 billion.  This time, MAN won't escape the financial hit if the claim is successful since this is to recompense haulage companies who paid more than a fair market price from all firms including MAN between 1997 and 2011.

Read the full BBC article here.

Ian Pryer

Head of Economics and Business, Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge since September 2014. Previously at Freman College, Buntingford for four years firstly as an NQT/class teacher and then has Head of Department. Formerly worked in retail financial services for nearly a decade. Husband, father and lover of Watford FC, darts and cooking.

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