Fair Trade Commission imposes fines of 11.2 billion won on Mercedes Benz Korea, 'accusing prosecutors even to headquarters in Germany'

*This content was translated by AI.

The Fair Trade Commission decided to impose a corrective order and a fine of 11.239 billion won for deceiving consumers as if all vehicles were equipped with world's No. 1 CATL batteries, and to file a complaint with the prosecution against Mercedes Korea and its headquarters in Germany.

In June 2023, Mercedes-Benz intentionally concealed the installation of the Parasis battery while producing the "EQ Sales Playbook" for distribution to dealers, emphasized only the superiority and share of CATL batteries, and instructed them to actively utilize them for sales. The investigation revealed that four of the six EQE models released at the time and one of the seven EQS models were equipped with parasitic batteries, and Mercedes-Benz Korea and its headquarters in Germany were already aware of this through educational materials in May 2021.

Parasis batteries had a history of being recalled in large scale due to fire risks in China in March 2021, just before the domestic launch of Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles, and despite being inferior to CATL in terms of technology and recognition, Mercedes provided distorted information to ease consumer anxiety. Mercedes-Benz Korea reported the main contents of the guidelines to the German headquarters in advance and requested supplementation, and the German headquarters directly and indirectly participated in violations of the law, such as spreading them to other countries and approving the publication of internal education platforms.

Between June 8, 2023, and August 12, 2024, the period of violation of the case, about 3,000 vehicles equipped with parasis batteries were sold, with a sales value of about W281 billion. Dealers guided customers to CATL products without knowing that they were loaded with parasitic batteries, and consumers also misunderstood this and purchased vehicles, resulting in significant customer attraction effects, including more than 90 complaints.

The Fair Trade Commission determined that the act constituted an "unfair inducement of customers by hierarchy" that mistaken the product as significantly superior than it actually was, and calculated the penalty by applying 4% of related sales, the legal maximum imposition standard. The move is the first time that automakers have sanctioned consumers for deceiving them by concealing information on electric vehicle battery manufacturers, and is expected to be used to remedy rights and interests, such as filing a lawsuit for damages by victims in the future. In the future, the FTC plans to strengthen surveillance to ensure that key information that affects consumers' purchasing decisions is accurately provided and sternly respond to deceptive acts that undermine the fair trade order.

Mercedes-Benz Korea said it has been sincerely cooperating with the FTC's decision but does not agree with the committee's judgment and will express its position through legal procedures such as filing an administrative lawsuit in the future.

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*This content was translated by AI.