The Federal Maritime Commission announced compromise agreements reached with two common carriers operating pure car carriers (PCCs) and roll on/roll off (RO/RO) vessels in U.S. inbound and outbound trades. Under these separate agreements, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. (K Line), paid $1,100,000 in civil penalties and Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line), paid $1,225,000 in penalties. Both carriers are headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, and operate diverse fleets trading in the U.S.-foreign trades and globally.
The compromise agreements resolved allegations that K Line and NYK Line violated provisions of the Shipping Act, including section 10(a) of the Shipping Act, 46 U.S.C. ยง 41102(b), by acting in concert with other ocean common carriers with respect to the shipment of automobiles and other motorized vehicles by RO/RO or specialized car carrier vessels, where such agreement(s) had not been filed with the Commission or become effective under the Shipping Act. The compromise agreements also addressed related activities and violations. Commission staff alleged that these practices persisted over a period of several years and involved numerous U.S. trade lanes, including from and/or to the Far East, Europe, the Middle East and South America.