Dawn Raids, Airport Car Park Monopoly Blocked, Thousands of Unsafe Products Removed, and Over 44,000 Consumer Queries Answered – CCPC Report

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has today published its 2024 Annual Report, detailing the investigations, enforcement actions, and public awareness campaigns carried out last year. 2024 also marked a significant milestone as the CCPC celebrated its 10th anniversary, marking a decade of work promoting competition and enhancing consumer welfare.

Key highlights from 2024:

• Blocked daa’s purchase of the former QuickPark car park site at Dublin Airport to prevent a monopoly in that market

• Cleared 71% of merger determinations within 13.3 days, under a simplified process, despite merger notifications increasing by 21%

• Opened five new investigations for suspected breaches of competition law

• Carried out dawn raids on two premises as part of an ongoing cartel-related investigation in the home alarm industry, and assisted the Italian competition authority with an unannounced search of Ryanair’s headquarters in Dublin as part of an ongoing Italian competition investigation

• Recalled, withdrew or prevented 178,596 unsafe products reaching the Irish market

• Launched proceedings against several nationwide retailers for breaches of new sales pricing laws

• Undertook 205 consumer protection inspections

• Responded to over 44,000 helpline contacts and received 1.8 million visits to ccpc.ie

Among its highlights include the CCPC’s successful intervention to prevent a potential monopoly in car parking at Dublin Airport, blocking the daa’s attempted purchase of the former Quickpark site. The deal was stopped due to findings that it would lead to higher prices, less choice and lower service quality for consumers, and facilitated the entry of a new competitor to the car park market at Dublin Airport. Recent analysis conducted by the Commission shows evidence of consumers benefiting from increased competition for car park business at the airport.

Over 178,000 unsafe products removed or prevented from reaching the Irish market

Following consumer complaints, referrals from European networks, proactive investigations and work with Revenue Customs, the CCPC recalled, removed or prevented almost 180,000 unsafe and non-compliant products from reaching the Irish market. Recalls included almost 10,000 babies’ sleepsuits and over 2,400 toy construction trucks, in addition to compliance inspections across hundreds of products.

Enforcement and legal actions

Work to protect Irish consumers from breaches of consumer protection law continued at pace with more than 200 inspections undertaken, 47 fixed penalty notices and 23 compliance notices issued. Successful prosecutions were brought against five retailers, with Tesco Ireland pleading guilty to two sample counts of failing to comply with the law in how they displayed the price of products offered on promotion to Clubcard holders.

Dawn raids

The CCPC carried out dawn raids on two premises as part of an ongoing cartel-related investigation in the home alarm industry. It also assisted the Italian Competition Authority, the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), in an unannounced search of Ryanair’s headquarters in Dublin as part of an ongoing Italian competition law investigation.

CCPC Chairperson Brian McHugh commented:

“2024 marked a major milestone for the CCPC — ten years of championing consumer rights and fostering competitive markets in Ireland. Open, fair markets are the backbone of our economy’s success, ensuring that whether consumers are making small everyday purchases or major financial decisions, their interests are protected.

“Our Annual Report highlights the vital role the CCPC plays across all sectors of the economy, from enforcing consumer law on retail pricing, to advocating proactively for reforming the legal sector to better serve the interests of Irish businesses and consumers. As we look ahead, it is clear that the CCPC’s work is more important than ever, and our vision for open and competitive markets where consumers are protected and businesses actively compete remains at the heart of everything we do.

“Following a year of notable achievements and a decade of progress, our focus remains on delivering transparent outcomes, empowering consumers with knowledge of their rights, and being a leading voice for competition and consumer welfare across Ireland.”

For more information, read the CCPC’s 2024 Annual Report.