Stellantis’s Occupant Safety Systems claim against Autoliv fails

24/02/25

Stellantis SAS & Others v Autoliv AB & Others [2025] CAT 9 (“Occupant Safety Systems”)

On Friday, the Competition Appeal Tribunal handed down its much-anticipated judgment in Occupant Safety Systems (above). It dismissed Stellantis’s claim.

Peugeot, Fiat and Vauxhall/Opel, all of which now form part of the Stellantis group of companies, initially claimed more than €770m from Autoliv and other suppliers of steering wheels, airbags and seatbelts (known collectively as “Occupant Safety Systems”), alleging overcharges between 2002 and 2011. The undertakings to which the Defendants belonged had in the past been found by the European Commission to have engaged in anti-competitive practices in respect of their supplies to particular car manufacturers. But no equivalent finding had been made in relation to supplies to Stellantis.

By its Judgment, the Tribunal held that there had been some “cartel activity” against Stellantis. But the Tribunal could not conclude that that activity was “more than sporadic, or that it extended over the entire Cartel Period, or that it was effective and resulted in an overcharge”. The Judgment contains a detailed and important examination of Stellantis’s expert evidence, with a view to determining whether it was capable of establishing the effects alleged by the Claimants. The Tribunal held that it was not, being unreliable in multiple respects.

All of the defendant suppliers apart from Autoliv and its associated companies settled with Stellantis, either before or in the course of the five-week trial before the Tribunal.

The Tribunal’s judgment can be seen here.