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Reporting your participation in a cartel: applying for leniency

If you report your participation in a cartel, you may receive a fine reduction or you may even escape a fine altogether. This is called ‘applying for leniency.’ Would you like to report to us that the company you are working for is or was involved in a cartel? If so, you can contact representatives of ACM’s leniency office.

Ruby Dallyn

Portret van clementiefunctionaris Birgit Besseler

Birgit Besseler

Portret van clementiefunctionaris Manon van Overbeek

Manon van Overbeek

You can contact us with questions about leniency, either by calling us or sending us an email:

  • Calling us at +31-70-7222-302. Please leave a voicemail message. A representative of ACM’s leniency office will call you back during office hours as soon as possible.
  • Sending us an email at clementie [at] acm [punt] nl (clementie[at]acm[dot]nl).

Reporting your participation in a cartel

Businesses can contact us because they wish to end the illegal cartel, for example because they choose to do business fairly and in a socially responsible manner, or because they value their reputation.

You can file for leniency if the company you are working for has made illegal cartel agreements with competitors. You can contact us on behalf of your company or in connection with your own decisive involvement in a cartel. Your lawyer can give you advice regarding leniency applications, and can contact ACM’s leniency office on your behalf.

We need at least the following information:

  • Who you are or on behalf of what company you wish to file a report
  • Who or what companies were involved in the cartel
  • What product(s) or what service(s) are involved
  • The duration of the cartel

In return for evidence regarding the cartel, you will either receive a fine reduction or not receive a fine at all. The amount of the reduction depends on the timing of your application and on the value of the information provided to us.

Are you the first leniency applicant, and have we not yet started an investigation into the cartel? Only in that case could you escape a fine altogether. Are you the second, third or next applicant? In that case, you may receive a fine reduction of up to 50 percent.

Next steps following your application

  • If we have received sufficient information from you, we will determine your provisional place in the queue of leniency applicants reporting the same cartel.
  • We will set a deadline for you to supplement your application with as much information and evidence as possible. If you fail to meet that deadline, you will lose your provisional place in the queue.
  • We will assess your complete application, and will inform you whether you are eligible for leniency.
  • After a further investigation, we will inform you whether you will receive a fine reduction or no fine at all.

During our investigation into the cartel, you are required to answer ACM’s questions at any time. We will not disclose your identity until we have sent a statement of objections to the companies involved in the cartel.

Please note: do not disclose the fact that you have applied for leniency to anyone.

Contacting us first

There is no need to immediately apply for leniency. You also have the option of contacting us first. Your lawyer can contact us to inquire whether another cartel participant has already come forward.

Please note: if we inform your lawyer that you are the first leniency applicant, you are required to file for leniency immediately.

Sources

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