Two courier companies have been ordered to pay a combined $1.2 million in penalties after a Commerce Commission investigation found they engaged in cartel conduct in the courier services market.
Aramex and GoSweetSpot were penalised $700,000 and $525,000 respectively by the High Court following separate hearings in Auckland. The companies did not enter into the agreements containing cartel provisions with each other.
The investigation will also result in warnings being issued to nine other courier service businesses for conduct the commission believes likely breaches the cartel provisions of the Commerce Act.
Commerce Commission chair John Small says the courier sector plays an important role in the country’s economy.
“The courier industry plays a critical strategic role in New Zealand’s economy, given the importance of transport for the movement of goods,” Small says.
“However, the freight and courier sector has been an area of ongoing concern and focus for us, with the commission taking five court cases in the last 15 years.”
He says the latest penalties and warnings are expected to change behaviour within the industry.
Last year, Aramex admitted entering into and giving effect to a contractual arrangement that allocated customers and fixed prices between itself and another competitor in the courier services market.
Separately, GoSweetSpot admitted entering into and giving effect to contractual arrangements that allocated customers between itself and another competitor.
Small says agreements that limit competition ultimately harm consumers.
“Stamping out cartel conduct is an enforcement priority for the commission — this outcome sends a strong message that it will not be tolerated,” he says.
“Companies engaging in cartel conduct should expect to be on the receiving end of enforcement action.”
Aramex operates as a carrier providing courier transportation services, while GoSweetSpot acts as a reseller, brokering courier services between carriers and customers.
Both arrangements investigated by the commission were negotiated within reseller and carrier supply relationships.
Cartel conduct — including price fixing, allocating customers or markets, and restricting supply — is prohibited under the Commerce Act and can carry significant financial penalties. Since April 2021, serious cartel conduct can also result in prison sentences of up to seven years.
