Consumers’ Association CONSUMER INTEREST AND SUPERCOMPLAINTS Phil Evans Principal Policy Adviser.
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Consumers’ Associatio n CONSUMER INTEREST AND CONSUMER INTEREST AND SUPERCOMPLAINTS SUPERCOMPLAINTS Phil Evans Principal Policy Adviser
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Transcript of Consumers’ Association CONSUMER INTEREST AND SUPERCOMPLAINTS Phil Evans Principal Policy Adviser.
Consumers’Association
CONSUMER INTEREST AND CONSUMER INTEREST AND SUPERCOMPLAINTSSUPERCOMPLAINTS
Phil Evans
Principal Policy Adviser
Consumers’Association
What do CA do on competition policy?What do CA do on competition policy? Scope of work
Input to policy debates
Input to mergers and competition cases
Discussion with interested parties - sounding board
Focus of work
Policy: OFT, CC, EC, OECD, WTO, Unctad
Mergers, cases: OFT, CC, EC
Discussion: OFT, CC, companies
Consumers’Association
OutputsOutputs
Case interventions Policy responses Speeches/presentations Research papers Lobbying materials
Consumers’Association
Why?Why?
Core CA belief in making markets work for consumers
Competition policy is a subset of consumer protection policy
Competition is a tool that can advance the consumer interest
Consumers’Association
Case study of CC interventionsCase study of CC interventions Date 2000-today:
64 cases (merger and market investigation) A busy time:
examples - supermarkets (twice), new cars, Lloyds/Abbey, P+O cruises, mobiles, call termination
Interesting time to pick: Pick up in mergers Big complex monopoly cases Increased professionalisation of CC and change in
processes
Consumers’Association
Case Study on CC InquiriesCase Study on CC InquiriesOverall inquiry intervention rateOverall inquiry intervention rate
Total cases Did we have an interest? 59.38 Did we do preliminary work? 37.50 Did we make a written submission? 20.31
Number of inquiries with potential consumer focus; intervention rate as % of total, 2000-present
Consumers’Association
Focus of CA workFocus of CA work
38% of all cases have preliminary work done on them – ‘screening stage’
remember only 59% are of potential interest
54% of those ‘screened’ are taken forward to written evidence stage
42% of ‘screened’ lead to oral hearings
Consumers’Association
Success criteria?Success criteria?
77% of cases that written evidence is put in on lead to oral hearings
90% of cases in which written evidence is submitted have ‘satisfactory’ outcomes
Either fully agree with results or generally do
Outliers almost always in aviation
Consumers’Association
Why is this so?Why is this so? We are not claiming great influence Happiness with results comes from:
Peculiar position of CA in debates – allows
free and open debate
Confluence of thinking on competition
problems
Refocusing of competition policy on consumer
welfare
Consumers’Association
How new powers will affect that workHow new powers will affect that work
What are the new powers?
Directly CA related Supercomplainer status: first informal one and one
coming up Appeals and damages: waiting for authorisation
and then a good case
Indirectly CA related OFT refocusing/invigorating: competition from
competition regulator! Board appointments: good appointments but also
pro-consumer people
Consumers’Association
SupercomplaintsSupercomplaints Important principle rather than power
Real power is to expose issues and trigger
debate
Broaden scope of competition debate beyond
‘usual suspects’ Where will be use it?:
Usual suspects: eg cars, warranties etc
Quasi-markets: betwixt state and market
Consumers’Association
Appeals and damagesAppeals and damages The big issue:
Ties into productivity drive – learning from USA
Ties into refocusing of competition bodies Making competition policy bite for citizens Injecting ‘fairness’ into system
We have considered before Rover case: 1986-1990 Rover had series of price fixing
agreements with dealers Ended the practice and notified OFT and EC EC closed case on condition Rover donated £1mn to compensate
consumers CA given bulk of money to spend on information service for car
buyers on safety issues – overseen by independent board
Costs/risks generally outweighed benefits for consumers
Consumers’Association
What does the future hold?What does the future hold? Mergers: will remain key focus Full status – not there yet:
Supercomplaints Probably few but large and regulation focused
Appeals/damages/class actions Wait for solid option for first case
Two big questions for future:
Will the EC follow the UK consumer focus?
What role will transatlantic developments in
information disclosure and intervention have?
Consumers’Association
ConclusionsConclusions Time to move beyond bread and butter of
mergers and policy Competition community increasingly consumer
focused Key goal building competition into WTO New powers will be built on gradually
Next informal supercomplaint tomorrow Next big step – damages New powers likely to make us more proactive and
directly involved in non-merger competition cases
