Dr and Evo fined for misleading advertising by the antitrust:“The cars are produced in China” not in Italy

The Dr brand will appeal against the €6 million fine as it claims it never declared that its vehicles were completely produced in Italy.

• For the Italian antitrust, the Italian brand Dr would have indicated Italy as the country of origin of its cars, when in fact these are mostly manufactured in China and assembled in Italy.
• The company has announced that it will appeal against the measure.

The Italian competition authority “has ascertained that Dr Automobiles, in the context of messages and/or commercial communications disseminated at least from December 2021 through various channels, has indicated Italy as the origin and place of actual production of the cars marketed under the Dr and Evo brands. However, these are vehicles produced in China, except for marginal finishing and completion interventions".

With this motivation, the Antitrust he inflicted a fine of 6 million euros to Dr Automobiles and its subsidiary Dr Service & Parts, for having implemented unfair commercial practices.This intervention comes in a context of strict regulation of Chinese cars on the European continent.For its part, the company stated who will appeal against the fine, as he never declared that his vehicles were completely produced in Italy.

Who is Dr Automobiles and what does the Antitrust say?

Dr Automobiles, based in the province of Isernia, Molise, assembles low-cost vehicles, using components produced by Chinese car manufacturers Chery, Baic and Jac.But upon the declaration of origin, the Italian investigation ascertained that Dr, at least starting from 2022, did not guarantee an adequate supply of spare parts nor even correct after-sales assistance, through the network of dealers and authorized workshops, "who have not been provided with suitable technical training", he adds Antitrust.“This practice can hinder the exercise of consumer rights, including the right to obtain car repairs and adequate after-sales assistance, also within the scope of the legal guarantee of conformity of the purchased product.

In the end, "the deceptive practice coincided with a period of strong increase in sales of Dr and Evo brand cars on the Italian market".

Europe increases duties on Chinese vehicles

The move against Dr comes as Italy and the European Union are giving a crackdown on cars produced outside the trading bloc.Last week the EU announced the increase in duties of 38 percent on the import of Chinese electric vehicles, which could thus be worth up to 48.1 percent of the value of the good.

The EU accuses the China Of unfair competition of its producers compared to Western ones:Chinese manufacturers, in fact, receive massive subsidies from the government, thanks to which they are able to offer cars at very low prices on the foreign market.In 2023, Chinese enterprises they exported electric cars in the European Union for a value of approximately 10 billion euros, reaching a market share of 8 percent, double compared to the previous year.

The European announcement came after last month the United States raised tariffs on Chinese electric cars from 25 to 100 percent.In response, China said the tariffs violated international trade rules and characterized the Italian authority's investigation as a measure of "protectionism."

But the case of misleading advertising is not a case that only concerns Chinese cars in Europe:last month, for example, dozens of Moroccan-made Fiat Topolinos were seized in the Italian port of Livorno because they bore the insignia of the Italian flag.In that case, Fiat's parent company, Stellantis, said it had complied with the rules, but then removed the flags from the vehicles.