The Irish Road Haulage Association engaged in a concerted practice between January and June 1997 to fix haulage charges for shipping service providers, the High Court declared yesterday. That practice was in breach of the Competition Act, 1991.
The declaration was part of the settlement of an action taken by the Competition Authority against the IRHA and four hauliers which opened before Mr Justice McCracken last week and was settled yesterday. The authority had alleged the IRHA was behind an "illegal cartel" aimed at securing increases in prices for haulage services at Dublin Port. It was claimed the IRHA and other hauliers had agreed to enforce higher charges set out in a letter of May 15th, 1997, by blockading shippers and distributors at ports throughout Ireland.
The defendants had denied all the claims. Without prejudice to their denials, they conceded that arrangements entered into by the IRHA with or on behalf of certain of the other defendants amounted to a breach of the Competition Act and they undertook not to engage in such practice again.
In explanation, but not in defence of that, they said their action was taken "by virtue of the abuse by certain shipping companies of their dominant position within the market whereby rates paid to road hauliers have been reduced to uneconomic levels".
On the fifth day of the hearing yesterday, Mr Justice McCracken was told the case had been settled.
Under the terms of settlement, the court issued a declaration that the defendants engaged in a concerted practice to fix prices and that this concerted practice was prohibited and void under Section 4 of the Competition Act, 1991.
The defendants also gave undertakings that they would not blockade Dublin Port and the area around it in order to achieve a price increase.
The judge accepted the settlement and struck out the case against all defendants: the IRHA, Dowling Freight Services Ltd, Shaw's Lane, Bath Avenue, Dublin; Mr Liam Flanagan, Cabra Road, Dublin; Mr Joseph Barrett, Mount Anner, Ballydowd, Lucan, Co Dublin; and Mr John Nestor, Bennetstown, Dunboyne, Co Meath.