Seven of the Ƶ’s largest housebuilders have agreed to pay a record £100m after a probe into breaches of competition regulations.
The Competitions and Markets Authority investigated Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry over allegations that they exchanged details about sales including pricing, number of property viewings and incentives offered to buyers such as upgraded kitchens or stamp duty contributions.
The watchdog launched the probe last February amid concerns the firms were sharing commercially sensitive information, which could be affecting the development of sites and prices of new homes. Originally eight companies were under investigation but Barratt and Redrow merged last year.
The companies have agreed to pay £100m between them which will fund affordable housing programmes around the Ƶ. They have also agreed to legally binding commitments which the CMA said would “prevent anticompetitive behaviour and promote industry-wide compliance”.
A two-week consultation on the settlement has been launched. If agreed, the CMA said it would not be necessary for it to determine whether the companies broke competition law.
It added that the proposed £100m payments would the highest amount it had secured through voluntary commitments.
Sarah Cardell, chief executive at the CMA, said: “Housing is a critical sector for the Ƶ economy and housing costs are a substantial part of people’s monthly spend, so it’s essential that competition works well. This keeps prices as low as possible and increases choice.
“As a result of the CMA’s investigation, housebuilders are taking clear and comprehensive steps to ensure they comply with the law and don’t share competitively sensitive information with their rivals. Alongside these measures, the housebuilders we investigated have agreed to pay £100m towards affordable homes programmes, which will help communities up and down the country.”
Some of the companies affected have made Stock Exchange statements about the proposed payments. Barratt Redrow is set to pay £29m, Taylor Wimpey £15.8m, Persimmon £15.2m, Bellway £13.5m and Vistry £12.8m. All of the companies’ statements said the payments did not constitute admissions of wrongdoing.
