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A Quebec man claims that price-fixing agreements between producers and manufacturers of forged aluminum led to inflated prices for car owners.
The lead plaintiff, identified only by his surname Noel, claims that a slew of auto part manufacturers who provide products for many popular vehicles conspired to drive up prices of those parts. As a result, says Noel, he and other car owners were forced to pay inflated prices for vehicles and vehicle replacement parts containing forged steel.
The car manufacturers that allegedly have vehicles with the forged aluminum parts include Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Ford, Jaguar, Lamborghini, MINI, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Rolls-Royce, Volkswagen, and Volvo.
The products at issue include “forged aluminum and aluminum alloys in various states of processing, from semi-finished aluminum products in need of further machine processing to finished aluminum products that require no further machine processing,” explains the lawsuit, noting that the demand for forged aluminum is “inelastic” because there are no realistic substitutes for the products.
“[T]he Defendants unlawfully conspired together, in the form of arrangements, agreements or otherwise, to fix supply, allocate sales and production markets, to eliminate competition, and to rig bids for certain Forged Aluminum Products…that are essential to the production of automobiles,” claims the class action lawsuit.
According to Noel, the forged steel price-fixing conspiracy began in 2006 when several manufacturers entered into an agreement that would effectively maintain an artificially high price for their products worldwide. The terms of this alleged agreement included price controls for forged aluminum products, eliminating production to further drive up prices, sales allocations, and bid-rigging.
The price-fixing conspiracy came to light in December of 2020, says the lawsuit, when German authorities imposed a €175 million fine on the defendants as a result of a whistleblower’s report.
The class action lawsuit accuses the manufacturers of violating competition laws in the U.S., Japan, and Europe, as well as Canada. The plaintiff seeks to represent all car owners or lessees of Quebec, including those who purchased replacement parts containing forged aluminum between April 2006 and April 2018.
What do you think of the allegedly inflated prices for forged aluminum car parts? Do you think you paid more? Tell us in the comment section below!
The lead plaintiff and proposed Class Members are represented by Sébastien A Paquette of Champlain Avocats.
The Forged Aluminum Price-Fixing Class Action Lawsuit is Noel v. Otto Fuchs Betteiligingen KG, et al., Case No. 500-06-001124-219, in the Superior Court of Canada, Province of Quebec, District of Montreal.
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