Home alarm businesses raided by competition watchdog

Dawn raids have been carried out by the competition watchdog on a number of businesses in the home alarm industry.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) said the searches form part of an ongoing criminal investigation into potential breaches of competition law.

Officers from the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and An Garda Síochána supported authorised officers from the CCPC during the operations.

In a statement, the CCPC said its role is to enforce Irish and European Union competition law by investigating suspected breaches.

However, it did not give any indication about the particular reasons it had for conducting the searches, where they took place, or what evidence if any was gathered.

“Competition law forbids anti-competitive agreements between two or more independent firms, such as agreements to fix prices, share markets, or restrict output,” the CCPC said.

“These agreements are often referred to as ‘cartel agreements’. Competition law also forbids firms which hold a dominant position from engaging in abusive practices, such as predatory pricing or refusal to supply.”

Under legislation, the CCPC has the power to carry out unannounced searches of business premises and private homes once it has a search warrant issued by the District Court.