Statement of Objections issued to four driving schools

The Norwegian Competition Authority has today issued a Statement of Objections and notified four driving schools in Kristiansund of potential fines for illegal price-fixing. The proposed fines amount to a total of NOK 2.16 million.

In November 2024, the Norwegian Competition Authority carried out unannounced inspections at ABC Trafikkskole AS, Aktiv Kjøreskole AS, City Trafikkskole AS and Halaas Trafikkskole AS following suspicions of illegal cooperation.

The Competition Authority’s preliminary assessment is that, in the period from March 2020 to November 2024, the four driving schools met regularly and, among other things, agreed on prices for driving instruction services. This type of collusion constitutes a serious infringement of the Competition Act.

– Competition is essential to ensure that customers receive driving instruction services of good quality at the lowest possible price. When the driving schools in a market coordinate their prices, competition is restricted and customers may end up paying more than necessary, says Director General Mads Magnussen.

The market for driving instruction services in Norway largely consists of small and medium-sized driving schools operating in local or regional markets.

– In this case, our preliminary assessment is that the driving schools coordinated prices for driving school services, instead of competing with each other. The Competition Act applies to all markets and to all undertakings, regardless of size. It is important that also small and medium-sized undertakings comply with applicable competition law, says Deputy Director in the Department for Construction, Industry and Energy, Jan Kristoffer Høiland.

The Norwegian Competition Authority emphasises that the assessments set out in the Statement of Objections are preliminary, and that a final decision has not been made in the case. The driving schools have until 25 September to submit their comments on the Statement of Objections.