AGCM

The company is in a dominant position in passenger ferrying in the Strait of Messina

The Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato has launched an investigation against the company Caronte & Tourist S.p.A. which carries out ferrying activities across the Strait of Messina.

The purpose of the investigation is to ascertain whether Caronte & Tourist - ferry company in a dominant position in the Strait of Messina in the maritime transport of passengers with accompanying wheeled vehicles and commercial vehicles with driver, and which presents itself as a de facto monopolist on the Villa San Giovanni-Messina Rada San Francesco route - applies excessively onerous prices and contractual conditions, thereby infringing the prescription in Article 3, paragraph 1, letter a) of Law No. 287/90.

A first analysis carried out by the Authority revealed, in particular, that Caronte & Tourist applies high prices which are significantly higher than those charged by other operators, moreover not parameterised with respect to the costs that would be expected in the performance of the service.

Moreover, these prices appear to be particularly discriminatory towards passengers with car travelling alone, since the price paid for a ferry crossing with car is the same regardless of whether one or five passengers are travelling.

Rome, 4 August 2020