Fair Trade Commission Sanctions Bid Rigging in Apartment Defect Maintenance Work... Myeongha Construction CEO Referred to Prosecution

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] Eight contractors, including Myeongha Construction, were sanctioned by the Fair Trade Commission for colluding in the bids for defect maintenance repair works conducted at seven apartments, including Jakjeon Hanil Apartment in Incheon.

The Fair Trade Commission announced on the 27th that it imposed corrective orders and a total fine of 19 million KRW on eight contractors, including Myeongha Construction, who colluded on the winning bidder, accomplice bidders, and bid amounts in the defect maintenance repair work bids conducted at seven apartments. The commission also decided to prosecute Myeongha Construction and its representative, who led the collusion.

According to the Fair Trade Commission, the eight contractors?Myeongha Construction, Yuil Construction, Tank Master, BD Construction, BD Chemical Construction, Seokmin Construction, Hyodeok Industry, and Samsung Polymer?agreed in advance on the winning bidder, accomplice bidders, and bid prices in the defect maintenance repair work bids conducted at seven apartments, including Jakjeon Hanil Apartment, from October 2018 to April 2019, and executed this agreement.

Myeongha Construction requested accomplice attendance from contractors attending the bid briefing sessions held at the seven apartments and informed them of the bid prices by even preparing the estimates on their behalf before the bidding. The accomplice bidders submitted bids exactly matching the estimates prepared by Myeongha Construction. To avoid detection of the collusion, Myeongha Construction sent the estimates to accomplice bidders using third-party email addresses instead of the company’s official email. As a result, Myeongha Construction won all seven defect maintenance repair work bids at the apartments, signing contracts totaling 967 million KRW.

Accordingly, the Fair Trade Commission decided to issue corrective orders to the eight contractors involved in the collusion and impose a total fine of 19 million KRW on Myeongha Construction, which led the collusion. Additionally, Myeongha Construction and its representative will be prosecuted.

A Fair Trade Commission official stated, "This action strictly penalizes collusion in defect maintenance repair work bids, which increases the burden on apartment residents," and added, "It is expected to contribute to establishing a competitive order in future defect maintenance repair work bids and reducing the management fee burden on apartment residents."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.