Trade associations under scrutiny: What the new DCCA guidance means for you

On 12 November 2025, the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority (“DCCA”) published revised guidance on competition law compliance and communication in trade associations.

The new guidance replaces the DCCA's 2014 guidance on information activities in trade associations and reflects an increased focus on compliance in trade association settings. 

Why does the guidance matter?

Trade associations play a central role in many industries, but when competitors meet, it may be challenging to distinguish lawful information exchange from unlawful coordination. When mistakes are made, the consequences can be serious, including heavy fines, reputational damage and increased regulatory scrutiny.

Trade associations must therefore pay particular attention to competition law when collecting and distributing information to their members, as members will often be competitors.

Increased focus on competition law compliance in trade associations

The revised guidance from the DCCA responds to increasing focus from competition authorities – both in Denmark and at EU level – on trade association activities, and the need for a clearer framework in areas such as statistics, salary data and meeting practices.

How often do things go wrong?

There are repeated examples of infringements – both nationally and internationally. A current example at EU level is the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (“ACEA”) case from 1 April 2025, which concerns the automotive industry. In this case, 15 car manufacturers and the trade association ACEA were fined a total of €458 million for coordinating practices around end-of-life management of cars as ACEA was found to serve as a platform for sharing sensitive information and commercial strategies. 

Please refer to Bird & Bird's article on the case here for more information.

Key areas of focus for trade associations 

The revised guidance highlights several areas of focus, including (i) statistics collection and information sharing, (ii) pay and employee relations, and (iii) meetings and minutes.

Based on the Commission's guidance (in the Horizontal Guidelines) and the revised guidance from the DCCA, the following guidelines are particularly helpful in a trade association setting:

(i) Statistics collection and information sharing

• Only produce historical aggregated (total) and anonymised data (usually 12 months old)
• Avoid detailed, current information on prices, or capacity

(ii) Salary and employee relations

• Avoid sharing individual members' salary costs with other members
• Avoid encouraging members to align their salaries with competitors.
• Don't encourage members to avoid hiring each other's employees.
• Instead, provide general information and guidance on wages and working conditions, including collective bargaining agreements.

(iii) Meetings and minutes

• Prepare clear agendas and stick to them.
• Take proper minutes that accurately record what was discussed.
• Establish a general compliance policy that sets out what is acceptable behaviour for trade association staff and members before, during and after meetings. 

The full guidance from the DCCA is accessible here (in Danish). 

For more information, please contact Morten Nissen, Alexander Brøchner or Selma Hjort Aslan.

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