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Wilson Parking agreed to sell the leases of three parking buildings it manages in Wellington and pay the Commerce Commission half a million dollars after being investigated for anti-competitive behavior.
File photo.
Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel
Wilson acquired the lease for Capital’s parking lot on Boulcott Street in 2016 without Commission approval even though it already operates several other parking lots in the same area.
The Commission had previously granted authorization for Wilson to acquire the Plimmer Towers parking lease on Boulcott Street, and at the time noted that the competitive restriction would arise primarily from competition in Capital’s parking lot.
The Commission began receiving customer complaints about increases in the price of parking in 2017 and filed proceedings in Superior Court the following year, alleging that Wilson Parking substantially decreased competition for the supply of car parking in the Boulcott Street area.
The chair of the commission, Anna Rawlings, said the procedures were already settled.
“The acquisition of Wilson Parking eliminated one of the few alternatives for motorists wishing to park in this part of downtown Wellington, which, in our opinion, would likely result in a substantial decrease in competition.”
“The sale of three parking spaces in the central Wellington area will reintroduce a measure of competition and mean that customers will have an alternative to Wilson Parking.”
The total number of parking spaces loaned by Wilson was 850, including 659 in the Capital car park.
Wilson must also inform the Commission of any new purchases in central Wellington over the next five years.
Had an indictment been successful in Superior Court, the company could have been liable for fines of up to $ 5 million.
Wilson New Zealand CEO Ryan Orchard said the divestitures would not affect any employees.
He said the company was pleased to have reached an agreement with the Commission, although it was confident in its legal position.
“Wilson Parking is committed to continuing to invest in its operations to maintain its excellent service to our customers.
“We believe that our open collaboration with the Commerce Commission is mutually beneficial and is an example of how we are proactively working with communities and businesses to generate support for future efforts.”
He said that the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake significantly changed the market environment, because most of the damaged parking buildings – about 20 percent of the parking buildings in Wellington – were operated by other parties, some of which remain closed. .
Wilson Parking is New Zealand’s largest parking provider and operates 282 parking garages nationwide, including 52 in Wellington. It is part of the larger Wilson Group that has similar parking operations in Australia and Asia.
