Prosecuting a trader who has broken the law is the ultimate sanction available to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), but the enforcement approach was only pursued in relation to one second-hand car dealer, from Limerick.
Patrick Quinn, of Raheen Auto Centre, was found to have misled a consumer in relation to the mileage of a car.
He advertised a Renault Fluence with a reading of 183,231km on the odometer, having bought it a few days earlier with 248,966 km.
Mr Quinn pleaded guilty at Kilmallock District Court last January, was fined €2,000, and ordered to pay costs of €500 to the CCPC.
In its annual report, the regulator said it carried out “dawn raids” at four premises as part of two separate cartel investigations. It issued requirements for information (RFIs) against another three businesses.
“The prosecution for suspected bid-rigging in school transport involving 13 public transport operators before the Central Criminal Court continued to progress,” the report says.
“A preliminary Central Criminal Court trial date for a first group of five accused is set for January 27, 2025.”
The CCPC’s budget allocation last year was €19.7m from the Exchequer, with a further €1.2m from a financial services industry levy.
In a foreword to the report, chairman Brian McHugh promises a higher level of activity in the future, after a new competition law gave the CCPC new fining and surveillance powers.
“This means we can choose what to investigate, gather evidence and fine guilty companies,” he said.
“With the help of these new powers, we intend to move faster, take more cases, and become even more of a deterrent to bad actors in the Irish marketplace.”
The act, which took effect last September, gave the CCPC more powers to impose non-criminal financial sanctions. There is also a new administrative leniency policy, to encourage people in cartels to come forward.
Mr McHugh said the CCPC removed more than 180,000 unsafe products from the Irish market last year, including travel adaptors, hurling helmets, water beads and toys with chemicals.
It undertook a campaign “to tackle dangerous gas hobs”, ensuring compliance by manufacturers and informing the public about the risk of poisoning or fires.
The CCPC said its increased activity to protect consumers was reflected in a doubling of compliance notices sent out to traders for misleading pricing and incorrect returns information.
The number of fixed-payment notices for offences such as failing to provide price labels increased by over 200pc, it says.
There were 183 inspections to ensure traders in various sectors were complying with consumer protection law.
