WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2534/98 by Graham MATHER to the Commission. Car prices in the EU
Date: 1998-09-01
Institutions: European Parliament, MATHER
Subjects: United Kingdom, complaint to the Commission, consumer protection, motor car, motor vehicle industry, single market, vehicle parts

22.2.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 50/149

Under these circumstances and on the basis of the information available, the Commission does not see any need
for further inquiries into the incident, and does not intend to carry out such inquiries.

The Commission will however continue to follow events in this area, and will also continue its permanent
dialogue with the government of Uganda to improve the security situation in the country.

(1999/C 50/226)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2534/98

by Graham Mather (PPE) to the Commission

(1 September 1998)

Subject: Car prices in the EU

In responding to my earlier Written Question E-1851/98 (1), the Commission states that it (cid:145)has been dealing with
many complaints from individual consumers related to the purchase of right-hand-drive cars(cid:146).

1.

In total, how many such complaints has the Commission received in the last five years?

To which Member States do the complaints relate, and how many complaints have been received per

2.
Member State over the same time period?

To which manufacturers do the complaints relate, and how many complaints have been received per

3.
manufacturer over the same time period?

Does the Commission have an estimate of the volume of sales that have been affected by the difficulty

4.
experienced in purchasing vehicles in another Member State by UK consumers?

(1) OJ C 13, 18.1.1999.

Answer given by Mr Van Miert on behalf of the Commission

(15 September 1998)

Complaints related to the purchase of right hand drive (RHD) cars arose only from mid-1997. Since then,

1.
approximately 250 individual consumers have contacted the Commission.

The majority of the complaints concern the Netherlands and Belgium. A smaller number concern Germany,

2.
France and Spain.

3.
The largest number of complaints concerns Volkswagen, followed by Mercedes-Benz, and to a lesser extent
Rover, BMW, Audi, and Peugeot/Citroºn. A small number of complaints concern Japanese manufacturers,
notably Honda, Subaru and Mitsubishi.

4.
Due to the fact that British consumers only inform the Commission in cases where they have problems, the
Commission does not know how many successful parallel imports of RHD cars take place. However, figures
supplied by three prominent manufacturers indicate an increase in RHD parallel imports in 1997/1998.

As mentioned in the Commission(cid:146)s reply to the Honourable Member(cid:146)s earlier Written Question E-1851/98,
certain car manufacturers in Europe have designated telephone lines for people who experience problems trying
to buy a car abroad. The Commission is awaiting feedback on how well these (cid:145)hotlines(cid:146) function, and will keep
the Honourable Member informed of progress in this area.

(1999/C 50/227)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2586/98

by Riccardo Garosci (PPE) to the Commission

(29 July 1998)

Subject: Murder of Erika Lehrer Grego: injustice caused by the loophole as regards extradition arrangements

between Sri Lanka and Italy

On 21 March 1998 an Italian national, Erika Lehrer Grego, was killed in Italy by a Sri Lankan national. The
murderer, Pereira Nishantha Sudath, immediately fled from Italy to his home country after admitting the crime.