A PYMNTS Company

Australia: Colgate fined $18m for price fixing

By  |  April 28, 2016

Colgate-Palmolive has been ordered by the Federal Court to pay an $18 million fine for colluding with rival companies to fix the price of detergents.

    Get the Full Story

    Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content — no additional logins required.

    yesSubscribe to our daily newsletter, PYMNTS Today.

    By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

    The fine is a win for competition watchdog the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission in its legal action against Colgate, fellow detergent manufacturer Cussons, and supermarket chain Woolworths, claiming cartel conduct and other anti-competitive behaviour.

    The Federal Court yesterday made orders that Colgate-Palmolive pay the $18m penalty for contraventions of the Trade Practices Act, following admissions by the company in the court action brought by the ACCC.

    Colgate admitted to entering understandings which limited the supply and controlled the price of laundry detergents, and agreed with the ACCC on the penalty.

    It also admitted that one of Colgate’s most senior former sales executives, Paul Ansell, engaged in the cartel conduct.

    Mr Ansell has been disqualified from managing corporations for seven years and has been forced to pay $75,000 towards the ACCC’s costs.

    The fine is the third-largest the Federal Court has ever ordered for anti-competitive breaches.

    Full Content: The Australian

    Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.