Finnish airline proposed to face fine of EUR 7.6 million for procedural competition law infringement

The pricing activities of a Finnish airline have recently come under scrutiny by competition authorities in Finland and Sweden. The Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority ("FCCA") has proposed that the airline be imposed a penalty of EUR 7.6 million for providing incorrect, incomplete and misleading information during its competition investigation.

This marks the first time the FCCA has proposed a penalty payment specifically for providing false or incomplete information in response to an authority information request – a so-called procedural infringement under competition law.

Background: Investigations in Sweden and Finland 

The case traces back to 2020, when both the FCCA and the Swedish Competition Authority ("SCA") received complaints regarding the airline's conduct towards online travel agencies. The SCA concluded its case in 2023 with the airline agreeing – without admitting wrongdoing – to commitments preventing it from requiring agencies to display ticket prices separately from agency discounts for routes connected to Sweden.

Following this, the FCCA opened its own investigation into similar conduct in the Finnish market and issued several information requests to the airline. Under competition law, companies must provide complete and accurate information in response to such requests. Failing to do so can constitute a procedural infringement – separate from any underlying substantive competition law violation.

The Finnish investigation and procedural infringement

In 2024, the FCCA conducted an inspection at the airline’s premises and found significant discrepancies between the airline’s responses and the evidence obtained. According to the FCCA, the airline’s incomplete disclosures could have led the authority to prematurely close the investigation.

The FCCA alleges that the airline:

• misrepresented its pricing practices in Finland,
• denied having internal documents related to pricing guidance changes,
• omitted information regarding the restoration of sales rights to certain agencies, and
• failed to disclose relevant contacts with online travel agencies.

The airline has publicly disputed the FCCA's characterisation of events, maintaining that it has acted transparently throughout the investigations and has not provided incomplete or misleading information. 

Legal significance: First procedural penalty of its kind

The matter will now proceed to the Market Court, where the airline will have the opportunity to respond formally to the FCCA's penalty proposal. The Market Court will make the final determination on two key questions: whether the airline committed the alleged procedural infringement by providing incorrect, incomplete or misleading information; and whether the proposed penalty of EUR 7.6 million is appropriate and proportionate.

This case represents a significant development in Finnish competition law enforcement. Whilst competition authorities routinely investigate substantive violations such as cartels, abuse of dominance, or anticompetitive agreements, penalties specifically for providing false or incomplete information during investigations are less common.

The proposed EUR 7.6 million penalty underscores the FCCA's view that procedural compliance – providing complete, accurate, and timely information to competition authorities – is a fundamental obligation that will be strictly enforced.

For more information, please contact Katia Duncker, Petteri Metsä-Tokila or Maria Karpathakis.

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