Competition Committee
The UEIL Congress and the UEIL General Assembly, which took place on 27-28 October in Dubrovnik, gave us the opportunity to present all the work done by the Competition Committee in 2010-2011.
UEIL leaflet
Following the adoption of the new Block Exemption Regulation, the Competition Committee finalized a leaflet about the legal framework concerning the purchase and use of lubricants within the European Union.
Translated into English, French, German, Dutch, Italian and Spanish[1], this document has been published in more than 75.000 copies and distributed by UEIL members throughout Europe.
By studying the UEIL leaflet, dealers, garages, workshops … will discover they have more freedom of choice they may think.
A press release is available for journalists.
European Commission
UEIL Competition Committee met Ms. Maria Rehbinder, new head of Unit E2 in DG Competition (successor to Paolo Cesarini) and had regular contacts with her team on competition issues.
DG Competion has planned to launch a FAQ document about the new regulation. We hope this document will be available before the end of 2011.
Other stakeholders
UEIL Competition Committee had regular contacts with other stakeholders from the aftermarket sector:
- To share experience, knowledge, thoughts on competition issues
- To join our forces on specific topics
- To increase the impact of UEIL actions
Competition cases
The UEIL Competition Committee has continued to study cases about uncompetitive behaviour:
- 7 cases handled in 2010
- 12 cases handled in 2011
These cases have concerned different sectors (motor vehicles, tractors, construction equipment …) and have been about:
- Misleading communication
- Misuse of warranty
- Access to technical specifications
- Approval procedures
- Exclusive agreements
- Other actions from manufacturers to foreclose the market