Car firms have been exploiting customers for years by pressurising them to buy spare parts from original manufacturers, namely themselves, and charging exorbitant prices, from double to 5,000 times their costs, the Competition Commission of India concluded last week.
Many of these companies include clauses in warranties, typically covering four years, requiring customers to buy spare parts from the manufacturers whenever there is a need to repair a vehicle. Moreover, after the warranty period expires, the car makers supply spare parts and other diagnostic tools only to authorised dealers and not to independent repairers, thereby limiting consumer choice, the commission noted.