• The ability to search and request information from companies allows the President of UOKiK to more effectively eliminate collusion between companies that is detrimental to consumers and the economy.
• The penalties for lack of cooperation in the last three decisions amounted to a total of PLN 1.1 million.

The peculiarity of agreements that restrict competition is the lack of overt evidence of illicit activities. The participants in the collusions communicate via e-mail, text messages or instant messaging. Evidence of their activities cannot be found in official documents or agreements, therefore the President of UOKiK has the option to conduct unannounced searches at the headquarters of entrepreneurs suspected of illegal practices. The searched party is then obliged to allow the Office’s employees to enter the buildings and premises, as well as to provide access to all documents, data carriers and telephones used for business purposes. 

- During a search, which is approved by a court, the actions of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) employees are aimed at finding specific evidence of practices that are harmful to competition, and thus to consumers and the entire economy. It is then the legal duty of entrepreneurs to fully cooperate with the Office’s employees, including by providing the requested media, e-mail correspondence or documents - says Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK.

Hindering the transfer of data

It is very important for entrepreneurs to cooperate with the Office during the proceedings in order to quickly and efficiently eliminate agreements restricting competition from the market. Entities against which proceedings are pending, at the request of the President of UOKiK, must provide all information, data or documents relevant to the investigation of the case. The President of UOKiK made such a request, among others, in the proceedings concerning the collusion between KIA Poland and dealers of KIA vehicles. As a result of the collusion, car buyers lost the opportunity to purchase vehicles from the sellers of their choice at competitive prices.

During the proceedings, one of the dealers, Landcar, did not provide the data requested by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection despite several requests. This included information about one of the managers who was the subject of proceedings, as well as data about the company’s turnover, which was necessary to calculate the penalty for competition infringement. The company did not provide the requested information during the proceedings, or did so with a gross disregard for deadlines. Therefore, the President of UOKiK imposed a fine of PLN 700,000 on Landcar. The maximum penalty for failure to provide information requested by the antitrust authority is 3 percent of the annual revenue generated by the business.

The decision is not final and may be appealed to the court. 

Hindering the search 

The breach of the duty to cooperate with the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection during the search occurred, among other things, during the investigation into suspected bid rigging for the supply of cooling and ventilation equipment. The President of the Management Board of M.A.S. from Starachowice did not provide the business phones and email addresses of two employees who could have made unauthorised arrangements, as requested by the Office’s employees. In the case of one of them, he provided the data with a delay of more than two months. Meanwhile, the data from the second employee’s storage media was not provided at all. The President of UOKiK issued two decisions in this case. He imposed a fine of PLN 350,000 on M.A.S. and PLN 50,000 on the company’s President Dariusz Niesiobęcki. Pursuant to the law in force at the time when the search was conducted, the maximum fine could have amounted to the equivalent of EUR 50 million. Currently, it is 3 per cent of the entrepreneur’s annual turnover.

The decisions are not legally binding and have been appealed in court. 

Notify UOKiK

Businesses and managers involved in anti-competitive agreements are reminded that they can avoid severe fines through the leniency programme. Please call the special phone number for details: 22 55 60 555. UOKiK lawyers will answer all of your questions related to the leniency programme, including those asked anonymously.
UOKiK also operates a programme to acquire information from anonymous whistleblowers. Visit https://uokik.whiblo.pl/ and fill out a simple form. The pan-European system we rely on guarantees full anonymity, including from UOKiK.