Brussels steps up cartel fight with first damages claim

Brussels is seeking millions of euros in damages from four international lift companies that it has found guilty of running a decade-long price-fixing cartel.
The European Commission has fined Otis of the US, Finland's Kone, Swiss-based Schindler and Germany's ThyssenKrupp a total of €992m ($1.5bn, £784m).
But yesterday the Commission said it was taking the four to court in Belgiumover a claim of financial damage caused by inflated contract prices for its buildings and those of other EU institutions in Brussels and Luxembourg. The multi-million euro contracts covered the installation and maintenance of lifts and escalators from 1995 to 2004.
It is the first time Brussels has sued a cartel on its own behalf in the civil courts and comes as the Commission puts increasing pressure on companies that fix prices.
Fines have risen sharply underguidelines linking them more closely to the size of the market affected and the duration of the abuse. Brussels raised more than €3.3bn in cartel fines last year compared with €390m in 2004 and there is speculation two more blockbuster penaltiesare in the pipeline.
Officials have also been trying to help private victims to win damages. The Commission's competition department this year forwarded proposals to make it easier for groups of consumers to bring proceedings against cartels.
"We are leading by example," Neelie Kroes, competition commissioner, said.
The Commission would not specify the amount of damages it sought, but did hint that the move would not be its last: itis consideringaction against 10 Belgium-based removal companies found guilty of cartel behaviour and fined nearly €33m this year.
Schindler, the only one of the four lift companies to comment yesterday, said that there had been evidence of collusion but that it did not believe that this had resulted in higher prices. "It had no effect," an official claimed.