• The President of UOKiK is monitoring whether there may be breaches of the provisions the Act on Competition and Consumer Protection in the flood-affected areas.
• First of all, whether there are cases of price fixing which could result in e.g. an increase in prices of essential products or construction materials necessary for refurbishment and reconstruction of flooded buildings.
• During the proceedings conducted, the Trade Inspection Authority will dynamically react to signals from the market indicating potential breaches of law by enterprises.

The consequences of the flood are felt by thousands of persons affected by it. The victims’ tragedy may lead to the temptation to take advantage of the situation, e.g. by increasing prices of goods and services. The President of UOKiK will, as part of his competence, verify whether prices have increased and whether it might have been caused by market collusion or the abuse of the dominant position by the market leaders.

- The willingness to become rich on the tragedy of flood victims is something horrifying and unacceptable. We don’t want to make the work of enterprises which are fighting with the flood and its consequences difficult, but we’ll react to any attempts at breaking law and taking advantage of the situation by dishonest undertakings. What is currently needed on the market is, first and foremost, empathy and solidarity, as one must not take advantage of the flood victims’ difficult position. We will, in line with our competence, take decisive actions wherever there may be cases of abuse, paying particular attention to the level of prices of goods and services provided – says Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK.

According to law, enterprises are forbidden to communicate in order to fix prices of goods and services. Abuse of market position by enterprises which enjoy the dominant position in a given market is likewise considered illegal. Applying competition-restricting practices carries a financial penalty in the amount of up to 10% of the undertaking’s turnover. We would like to encourage everybody who suspects that such practices are used in the flood-affected areas to contact UOKiK. In the case of suspicion of competition restricting practices, please contact us at sygnalista@uokik.gov.pl and telephone number 22 55 60 560. Irregularities may also be reported to the Province Inspectorates of the Trade Inspection Authority.

Independently, as part of the proceedings conducted by UOKiK, also without notifying enterprises about the inspection in advance, actions will be taken by the Trade Inspection Authority, which reports to the President of UOKiK. Inspectors will react to signals from the market and control enterprises which break law. Today, a briefing took place attended by the President of UOKiK and heads of the Province Inspectorates of the Trade Inspection Authority from south-western Poland, during which the scope of the inspections was discussed in detail. We would like to ask consumers to report irregularities also directly to the Province Inspectorates.

- The residents of the flood-affected areas are in a very difficult situation. For this reason, I’d like to appeal to enterprises to be honest in their actions and refrain from taking advantage of this tragedy. Business has to demonstrate solidarity and responsibility, in particular the biggest market participants - says Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK.