Competition Act 1998

15 Effect of guidance

(1) This section applies to an agreement if the Director has determined an application under section 13 by giving guidance that—

(a) the agreement is unlikely to infringe the Chapter I prohibition, regardless of whether or not it is exempt;

(b) the agreement is likely to be exempt under—

(i) a block exemption;

(ii) a parallel exemption; or

(iii) a section 11 exemption; or

(c) he would be likely to grant the agreement an individual exemption if asked to do so.

(2) The Director is to take no further action under this Part with respect to an agreement to which this section applies, unless—

(a) he has reasonable grounds for believing that there has been a material change of circumstance since he gave his guidance;

(b) he has a reasonable suspicion that the information on which he based his guidance was incomplete, false or misleading in a material particular;

(c) one of the parties to the agreement applies to him for a decision under section 14 with respect to the agreement; or

(d) a complaint about the agreement has been made to him by a person who is not a party to the agreement.

(3) No penalty may be imposed under this Part in respect of any infringement of the Chapter I prohibition by an agreement to which this section applies.

(4) But the Director may remove the immunity given by subsection (3) if—

(a) he takes action under this Part with respect to the agreement in one of the circumstances mentioned in subsection (2);

(b) he considers it likely that the agreement will infringe the prohibition; and

(c) he gives notice in writing to the party on whose application the guidance was given that he is removing the immunity as from the date specified in his notice.

(5) If the Director has a reasonable suspicion that information—

(a) on which he based his guidance, and

(b) which was provided to him by a party to the agreement,

was incomplete, false or misleading in a material particular, the date specified in a notice under subsection (4)(c) may be earlier than the date on which the notice is given.