DR defends itself and will appeal the sanction that accuses it of hiding its Chinese cars as Italian ones

The Italian competition authorities fined DR Automobiles last Thursday with 6 million euros for promoting cars manufactured in China, under the DR and EVO brandsas if they were made in Italy since at least December 2021. The Chinese-made vehicles were put on the market after receiving the “finishing touches” in Italy, authorities say.

Immediately, DR stated that their vehicles are pre-assembled in a 60-70% in China, adding that the company is making significant changes to its factory to comply with European regulations, including fuel systems and crash standards.

The appeal of the Italian brand

After this reaction, DR Automobiles has quickly stepped up to the plate facing the accusation of fraud by the Italian Competition and Market Guarantee Authority (AGCM). He has indicated that he “takes note of the decision” of the Italian authority, although he does not “agree with its substance” and HE ready to challenge it. In a statement, he states that during the procedure he offered “maximum availability”, proposing tangible commitments to remedy the authority’s concerns, that were not accepted.

Regarding the substance of the matter, DR emphasizes that it has never hidden from the public “the relocation to the Far East” of part of its vehicle production, adding that it is a common practice in the automotive sector. “Numerous press articles and television reports, as well as information disclosed through the group’s official channels and social networks, demonstrate this,” he said.

The group assured that its advertising campaigns “they have never had the intention of advertising a complete manufacture of automobiles in Italy”, but rather of underlining the strong link with the country and the region of Molise, where their headquarters is located, “from an ownership and historical point of view.” Furthermore, they highlighted the completed phases at the Macchia d’Isernia (IS) headquarters, such as research and development, design, planning, adding functionality and finishing until production is complete.

DR maintains that these aspects “were not adequately assessed by the resolution of the Italian AGCM” and expressed its intention to increase the production phases in Italy. To do this, it plans expand your production center in Macchia d’Isernia with a new plant to develop new models, including those of fully electric propulsion.

Regarding the sanctioned conduct related to the after-sales assistancethe Italian authorities questioned the waiting times suffered by some consumers for the repair of their cars.

DR argues that this was due to the “objective unavailability of some spare parts” due to the disruption of the automotive sector supply chain after the pandemic. He added that this situation, common throughout the sector, “is already in the absorption phase”, as demonstrated by the data recorded by the group since 2023 and improved in the first quarter of 2024, which show average delivery times for spare parts slightly higher than to 2 days.