The President of Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) has imposed nearly PLN 340 million (approximately EUR 80 million) in fines on eight companies and two individuals for participating in a long-running cartel in the sale of agricultural machinery. The decision concerns anticompetitive agreements involving the brands New Holland, Case and Steyr, which restricted competition for more than eleven years and deprived farmers of access to competitive prices and alternative suppliers.
According to UOKiK’s findings, the undertakings involved unlawfully divided the market and coordinated prices. Farmers seeking to purchase agricultural machinery were unable to freely compare offers from different dealers, as sales were restricted on a territorial basis. Dealers were instructed not to sell machines to customers located outside their assigned areas, or to offer higher prices to such customers, effectively discouraging cross-territorial sales.
The investigation revealed that CNH Industrial Polska, the manufacturer and distributor of the relevant brands, played a leading role in the infringement. The company coordinated the implementation of the market-sharing arrangement, monitored customer inquiries, and intervened when dealers attempted to sell outside their allocated territories. Evidence gathered during inspections included internal correspondence in which dealers were warned of consequences for selling to customers outside their regions and were asked to withdraw offers or inflate prices to avoid “disrupting the market.”
UOKiK established that dealers routinely asked potential customers about the location of their farms before providing quotations. If a farmer was located outside the dealer’s exclusive territory, the customer was either redirected to the local dealer or presented with a less favorable offer. These practices amounted to a restriction of passive sales, a serious infringement of competition law. Price coordination further reinforced the territorial division, ensuring that farmers had no meaningful opportunity to obtain more competitive offers.
In his statement, UOKiK President Tomasz Chróstny emphasized that farmers were unlawfully deprived of their right to choose among competing offers and to benefit from price competition, particularly significant given the high financial burden associated with purchasing tractors and combine harvesters. He underlined that independent dealers are required to set prices autonomously and compete fairly for customers, rather than coordinating their conduct with competitors or suppliers.
The total fines imposed amount to PLN 339,080,125 (approximately EUR 79–80 million). The largest penalty, PLN 241.6 million (around EUR 56 million), was imposed on CNH Industrial Polska. Significant fines were also levied on seven dealers, including Perkoz, Rolserwis, Raitech, Pol-Agra, Adler Agro, Kisiel Agrotech and Kisiel. In addition, two managers directly responsible for the cartel were fined personally. The authority found that different combinations of companies participated in the infringement depending on the brand concerned. The decision is not final and may be appealed before the courts.
UOKiK noted that this is another enforcement action in the agricultural machinery sector, following an earlier decision concerning Claas equipment. Proceedings involving the brands Valtra, Fendt and Massey Ferguson are still ongoing. The authority also reminded affected parties that farmers who suffered harm as a result of the cartel may seek damages before civil courts under Poland’s private enforcement rules, which have been in force since 2017.