Country Assesses Potential Compensation Following Heavy Penalty Imposed Post-Cartel Scandal - Post-Cartel Compensation Claims Examination by State Authorities
Hey there! Here's the lowdown on the current situation with those road construction companies in Saxony-Anhalt.
Following some hefty multi-million euro fines handed out by the Federal Cartel Office, the state and municipalities in Saxony-Anhalt are scrutinizing potential damage claims. Seems like they're trying to figure out which contracts they had with the penalized companies. Once that's sorted, they'll decide if any damage claims are warranted. A spokesperson from the infrastructure ministry spilled the beans on this. The topic will come up at a meeting between the federal and state governments at the end of May too.
You might be wondering, what's the Federal Cartel Office? Well, it's the antitrust regulator in Germany. They recently busted seven road construction companies from across the country for/coordinating with each other on tenders for public authorities for several years. You've probably heard of bid rigging, right? That's exactly what they were up to. One of the companies involved hails from Landsberg in the Saalekreis. The shenanigans stretched from 2016 to 2019 and mainly affected contracts in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, Brandenburg, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Here's the kicker: these companies had been passing numerous repair and maintenance contracts for roads to each other. over a long period. Illegal cartel agreements like these can cause major harm to public contracting authorities—friends, it's our hard-earned cash they're wasting! The president of the Federal Cartel Office, Andreas Mundt, warned that these violations impacted numerous tenders and contracts from public authorities, including simple road repair jobs like patching up the road surface.
So far, the Federal Cartel Office's fine totaled 10.5 million euros. But the affected municipalities and authorities don't have to take it lying down. They can go after the construction companies themselves if they feel like it. For instance, Altmarkkreis Salzwedel is giving legal action some thought right now. However, no damage claims have been slapped on a company involved in the cartel agreement as of yet.
- Federal Cartel Office
- Illegal cartel agreements
- Road construction companies
- Damage claims
- Bid rigging
- Germany
- Saxony-Anhalt
- Public tenders
- Overpriced contracts
To ensure transparency and accountability, Saxony-Anhalt's community policy now includes a thorough review of past contracts with the implicated road construction companies. This scrutiny may lead to the submission of damage claims for overpriced contracts resulting from bid rigging, which could be funded through public finance if proven. To improve vocational training in the construction sector, displaced workers from the affected companies might consider vocational training programs as an opportunity to enhance their skills and find new employment in the nearby businesses.
