ABSTRACT

This chapter firstly shows that the reason behind the efforts to increase private competition law enforcement is paucity of damages actions. To date, the studies carried out by and for the European Commission as well as by external researchers reveal that victims of competition infringements in the EU rarely seek compensation for their loss in courts. Especially consumers do not obtain compensation due to the way in which they are harmed by competition infringements and due to the type of loss they suffered. In this vein, the chapter presents the book’s main question: why consumer damage claims need to be facilitated to reach courts through a collective redress action.