HomeTop StoriesMinnesota AG joins FTC in suing Deere & Co. for monopolizing the...

Minnesota AG joins FTC in suing Deere & Co. for monopolizing the repair market for agricultural machinery

Deere & Co. unfairly forces farmers to visit authorized dealers to repair their equipment, resulting in higher prices than if they could fix it themselves or get help from independent shops, the Federal Trade Commission alleges in a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday to the attorneys general of Illinois and Minnesota.

The Moline, Illinois-based manufacturer produces repair software that is only available to its dealers, making it impossible for owners to seek cheaper solutions, according to the lawsuit filed in US District Court in Rockford, Illinois.

The action comes as the FTC has stepped up enforcement actions in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration. Deere & Co. said in a statement that the lawsuit was based on a “blatant misrepresentation and fatally flawed legal theories.”

The complaint alleges that the “unfair steering practice” has increased Deere’s billions of dollars in profits from farm equipment and parts while burdening practitioners “who depend on affordable and timely repairs,” FTC Chairman Lina M. Khan said in a prepared statement.

See also  Bills aimed at reducing corruption in the Hawaiian government raise hope

Khan said farmers should have “the freedom to repair their own equipment or use repair shops of their choice – reducing costs, preventing catastrophic delays and promoting fair competition.”

For decades, farmers could repair their tractors and combines themselves or take them to nearby repair shops. With increased automation in recent decades, Deere, the industry’s dominant player, has made its high-tech repair tool available only to authorized dealers, who, according to the FTC, consistently eschew generic parts for more expensive Deere parts.

The company refuses to share information with independent software developers needed to build their own tools, a common practice in the auto and truck industries, the FTC said.

Attorneys General Kwame Raoul of Illinois and Keith Ellison of Minnesota, both Democrats, joined the lawsuit.

“Deere has made it virtually impossible for farmers themselves or for independent repair shops to fully repair Deere equipment, forcing farmers to rely on authorized Deere dealers, which can be more expensive, slower and, for some, a great distance from farms,” Ellison said in a statement.

See also  Alex Wagner reports from prison where J6 convicts will be released by Trump

Deere & Co. alleged that the FTC ignored the company’s “long-standing commitment to customer self-repair” and this week announced an addition to its “suite of digital solutions” available for customers to make their own repairs.

Deere Vice President Denver Caldwell said in a statement that the company was actively involved in settlement negotiations with the FTC and said it was still answering commission questions when the lawsuit hit.

Those discussions “showed that the agency still lacked basic information about John Deere’s industry and business practices and confirmed that the agency was instead relying on inaccurate information and assumptions,” Caldwell said.

Public pressure to recover yourself has increased. A 2023 right-to-repair law in Colorado forces manufacturers to provide manuals, software, tools and parts to farmers who want to get their tractors running again themselves.

A similar law that year in Minnesota exempts farm equipment. The Minnesota Farmers Union has urged lawmakers to eliminate that exception, union president Gary Wertish said.

See also  Melting snow and heavy rain are causing the German Moselle to overflow its banks

The lawsuit, which the FTC approved on a 3-2 vote, is part of a flurry of activity — providing refunds to consumers, taking enforcement action against companies the FTC accuses of deceptive practices and finalizing rules it deems necessary to to make the market fairer – in the run-up to the inauguration of newly-elected President Donald Trump on Monday.

Trump has appointed Andrew Ferguson, one of the FTC’s five commissioners, as its new chairman. Ferguson, like Commissioner Melissa Holyoak, voted against the Deere lawsuit. She said it carries “the stench of partisan motivation” and was “taken in haste to put President Trump in power.”

- Advertisement -
RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular

Recent Comments