Investigation and a pending price fixing class action lawsuit against several leading automobile filter manufacturers, including Champion, Purolator, Honeywell, Wix Filtration Products, Cummins, Baldwin Filters, Bosch, Mann + Hummel, Arvinmeritor, and United Components (collectively, the "Defendants").
The class action complaint alleges that the Defendants conspired to fix, maintain, stabilize prices, rid bids and allocate customers for oil, air, fuel, and transmission filters in the aftermarket (i.e., the market for replacement filters) in the U.S. between January 1, 1999 and the date of the filing of the complaint (the "Class Period"). In support of the conspiracy and price fixing allegations, the class action complaint cites to information provided by a former senior sales executive who was employed by two of the Defendants during the Class Period. According to this confidential informant, the complaint avers that the Defendants conspired at meetings at industry events and elsewhere to coordinate prices, time price increases, and allocate customers. It has recently been reported that the United States Department of Justice has commenced an investigation into allegations that several of the Defendants colluded to fix the prices of aftermarket filters.
If you have purchased, directly from any of the Defendants during the Class Period, an aftermarket oil, air, fuel, and/or transmission filter for use in an automobile, please contact the attorneys listed below.
Defendant Details
Name (Stock Symbol)
Brief Description
Champion Laboratories, Inc.
Champion Laboratories, Inc. manufactures and sells automotive parts, primarily filters.
Wix Filtration Products
Wix Filtration Products designs, manufactures and distributes products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial and specialty filter markets.
Cummins Inc. (CUM)
Cummins Inc. designs, manufactures, distributes, and services diesel and natural gas engines, electric power generation systems, and engine-related component products worldwide.
Baldwin Filters, Inc.
Baldwin Filters manufactures and sell automobile filters. Clarcor, Inc. (NYSE CLC) wholly owns Baldwin Filters. Clarcor is a global provider of filtration products and services.
Bosch Group, The
The Bosch Group designs, manufactures and sells automotive parts and systems, industrial products and consumer products, including such diverse products as automobile steering systems to washing machines.
Mann Hummel Group
Mann Hummel Group develops, produces, and markets MANN HUMMEL filter and air intake systems and other components for the automotive industry. Mann Hummel Group also develops and produces industrial filters and filtration systems for the engineering industry and units and systems for materials handling in the plastics processing industry.
ArvinMeritor Inc. (ARM)
ArvinMeritor Inc. supplies integrated systems, modules and components to the motor vehicle industry. ArvinMeritor serves commercial truck, trailer and specialty original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and certain aftermarkets, and light vehicle manufacturers.
United Components, Inc.
United Components, Inc. designs, manufactures and distributes a filtration products, fuel and cooling systems products and engine management systems for the automotive, trucking, marine, mining, construction, agricultural and industrial markets.
Purolator
Purolator, a subsidiary of Clarcor, manufactures HVAC filtration products for residential, commercial/industrial,
and HEPA applications.
Bosch Group in North America, The
The Bosch Group in North America is a subsidiary of The Bosch Group. The Bosch Group designs, manufactures and sells automotive parts and systems, industrial products and consumer products, including such diverse products as automobile steering systems to washing machines.
Honeywell International Inc. (HON)
Honeywell International Inc. operates as a diversified technology and manufacturing company worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Aerospace, Automation and Control Solutions, Specialty Materials, and Transportation Systems.
Cummins Filtration
Cummins Filtration is a designer and manufacturer of filtration products and exhaust systems for heavy-duty diesel powered equipment.