One of the challenges for EPR agencies has always been how to deal with free-riders, grey and black market imports. A recent case brought by Aliapur may shed some light on a solution.
EPR agencies, in this case Aliapur in France, have always had a responsibility to recover and manage the tyre arisings from their members sales, that is tyres put on the market by their members. Additionally, the various agencies were tasked with removing historical stockpiles. In theory, the burden of non-member tyres should diminish over time as stockpiles are cleared. However, the ongoing rise in grey or black imported tyres resulted in the EPR agency, Aliapur, being held responsible for tyres placed on the market by players other than their members. This market share being “hidden2 in the allowance for removing historical stockpiles.
Aliapur and others decided that enough was enough and took to the courts to get a resolution to the problem. They took one of the larger suppliers of grey imports – AD Tyres International to court.
On February 16, 2026, the Paris Economic Activities Court ruled on the appeal that the companies Aliapur, France Recyclage Pneumatiques, and the “Syndicat Les Professionnels du Pneu” brought against the company AD Tyres International, due to the sales of tyres made by the latter to individuals, via the “centralepneus.fr” website without paying the eco-contribution.
AD Tyres International is a company registered in Malta with facilities in Andorra and Dubai. It operates an online ordering system, with tyres delivered to partner fitting sites in various markets in the EU and the UK. It makes no contribution to any EPR system.
The important point in the decision was that the Court recognised that AD Tyres International must be considered as a producer, within the meaning of the Extended Producer Responsibility regulations for the tyre sector. Failure to comply with this regulation was qualified as a fault constituting unfair competition, to the detriment of other players in the sector.
AD Tyres International was ordered to pay €50,000 in damages to the “Les Professionnels du Pneu” union. Aliapur stated that AD Tyres International will also have to provide a chartered accountant’s certificate detailing its sales volumes in France for the years 2023 and 2024. The Court summoned the parties again at a later date, to set the amount of damages due to Aliapur and France Recyclage Pneumatiques.
At this point the decision can be appealed, so the world awaits further developments with bated breath.
Tyre and Rubber Recycling approached EPR Agencies in other markets and all were aware of the activities of AD Tyres International. The solution to handling AD Tyres International however, lies with the various governments to put in place the laws to address the free-riders and grey imports, alongside the tools to enforce regulations against those who breach the regulations on tyres being placed on the market.
Asked if this was an issue in the UK, which remains a free market for tyres, Peter Taylor from the Tyre Recovery Association said that it was a non-issue in the UK as all tyres were collected regardless of source and fees were paid at the point of arising by the consumer at the fitter.
