BENGALURU: Australian Federal Court ordered Air New Zealand Ltd to pay a penalty after the court found that the carrier fixed fuel prices and insurance and security charges for years, Australia’s competition watchdog said on Wednesday.
The court found Air NZ fixed fuel prices and insurance surcharges on air freight services from Hong Kong, and insurance and security charges from Singapore between 2002 and 2007, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) said.
Air NZ has been ordered to pay A$15 million ($11.1 million) and an additional A$2 million towards the ACCC’s legal costs, the watchdog said.
The Federal Court’s decision comes a little over a year after Australia’s High Court dismissed Air NZ’s appeal of a lower court’s 2016 decision on the ACCC’s legal action.
Air NZ was not immediately available to comment.