CCI fines Hyundai Rs. 420 crore; Reva, Premier also face flak

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday imposed a penalty of ₹ 420.26 crore on Hyundai Motor India for restricting sale of spare parts in the open market. The fair trade regulator also asked two other carmakers — Reva (a subsidiary of Mahindra and Mahindra) and Premier — to "cease and desist" from indulging in anti-competitive practices.

No penalty, however, has been imposed on Reva and Premier.

Last year, the CCI imposed penalties of ₹ 2,544.64 crore on 14 other carmakers, including Honda Siel, Volkswagen, BMW, Maruti Suzuki, Skoda for the same issue.

According to the CCI these carmakers "had stringent warranty conditions, which required customers to only get automobile repaired through authorised service network of dealers, otherwise warranty would be invalidated".

Hyundai in its submission to the CCI said that its case was different from the other companies and that the penalty should be reduced. However, CCI ruled that "most of the factors cited by Hyundai are general in nature and do not qualify for reduced penalty".