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The European Commission will next week take the first step to re-start a controversial debate on EU legislation that would allow groups of customers to seek compensation from companies found guilty of anti-competitive practices.

Plans for legislation that would enable group compensation – or ‘collective redress’ – for practices such as price-fixing and restrictive sales policies were put on hold by the previous Commission in part because they ran into opposition from business lobbies.

The college of commissioners will hold an orientation debate on 12 October on whether action is needed at EU level. The discussion will be informed by an analysis of collective redress offered by member states. The analysis has been drawn up by three commissioners responsible for the dossier: Viviane Reding (justice), Joaquín Almunia (competition), and John Dalli (consumer policy).

If commissioners agree that there is a need for legislation, the Commission will launch a public consultation in December with the aim of publishing a communication next spring.

Past failures

In the previous Commission, the initiative was strongly supported by the commissioners for competition (Neelie Kroes) and consumer policy (Meglena Kuneva), who argued that consumers and businesses needed a legal means of obtaining compensation for losses caused by companies that, for example, refuse to offer products and services in certain markets.

BEUC, the European consumers’ organisation, also strongly backed the plans. BusinessEurope, the European employers’ federation, warned it would lead to a “litigation culture” without improving consumer protection.