The Norwegian Competition Authority has imposed on Norges Turbileierforbund an administrative fine of NOK 400,000 for violating the competition law. The association had repeatedly encouraged its members to raise the price for chartering buses.
The association has also prepared and distributed a model for calculating prices to be charged for chartering busses. The model was supplied with certain elements pre-filled, among others the price per kilometre and the prices for waiting time, overnight and daily allowance for the driver.
Price advice in the members’ newsletter
«In this issue, we initiate the idea that we call “The Five Hundred,” something as simple as our encouraging our members to raise prices by NOK 500 on every order!»
Such was the form of one of several clear invitations to members of the trade association to increase prices. The invitations were made in the members’ magazine, “Norsk Turbil.” Further, the price calculation model was reported in the magazine. In addition, both the price recommendations and the price calculation model were presented at a meeting of members of the association.
Trade association responsibility
The prohibition in the competition law against cooperation that harms competition applies not only to agreements among two or more independent companies. Also decisions made by organizations, typically trade associations, are covered by the law. Therefore, it is, for example, prohibited for a trade association to encourage members to increase prices.
– Trade associations have, similarly to independent undertakings, a responsibility to know the competition rules and to stay within the law. Violating the competition law is punishable, and both undertakings and individuals may be liable, pointed out the head of investigations, Håkon Cosma.
– Trade associations must therefore abstain from encouraging members to increase prices or in other ways, facilitate the weakening of competition, he emphasized.