• President of UOKiK Tomasz Chróstny imposed a penalty in the amount of over PLN 375 thousand on two participants in a tender collusion.
• The entrepreneurs agreed that the more expensive bid from one of them would be awarded.
• The aggrieved party in the case in question was the organiser of the tender – the Tarnobrzeg Commune and indirectly also the taxpayers.

The President of UOKiK issued a decision in which he established the conclusion of an illicit agreement by two entrepreneurs competing in a tender organised by the Tarnobrzeg commune in 2014. The public procurement concerned the supply and installation of arrangement walls under the Tarnobrzeg Industrial and Technological Park project. The cheapest bid was made by an entrepreneur operating under the name Janusz Kurek Firma Budowlana J & S from Kazimierza Wielka. Once the results were announced, he declined to sign the contract. As a result, the commune chose the Brimat company from Rzeszów, which offered a price that was almost PLN 315 thousand higher.

It was determined by UOKiK that this was a concerted action agreed upon by the entrepreneurs and their goal was to select the more expensive bid. Therefore, the President of the Office imposed on the participants in the tender collusion penalties in the total amount of nearly PLN 375 thousand (PLN 216.9 thousand for Brimat and PLN 157.47 thousand for Janusz Kurek Firma Budowlana J & S).

- Whatever bid rigging mechanism is used by businesses, it constitutes a restrictive agreement and a violation of applicable laws serving fair and competitive access to public procurement. Only a few get rich from tender collusion, while households, reliable entrepreneurs and the Polish economy lose – says President of UOKiK Tomasz Chróstny.

The decision is not final and may be appealed against to court. Maximum penalty for the participation in a restrictive agreement amounts up to 10% of the entrepreneur’s turnover achieved in the year preceding the issuance of the decision.

UOKiK runs a programme of acquiring information from anonymous whistle-blowers. Visit https://konkurencja.uokik.gov.pl/sygnalista/ and fill out a simple form. The pan-European system we rely on guarantees full anonymity, also towards the Authority’s staff.

The President of the Authority would also like to remind the public that anyone who has suffered a loss as a result of a breach of competition law may file a civil lawsuit against any of the entities that have violated the law. When filing a claim, it is necessary to indicate the amount of compensation sought. In determining the amount due, consideration should be given to the counterfactual scenario, i.e. what the market situation would have been like in the absence of the infringement. As a rule, the loss shall be the excess price paid as a result of the anti-competitive practices.

Additional information for the media:

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