Report wrongdoings by ACM as a whistleblower
Do you believe that ACM has committed a wrongdoing or that it has violated certain European rules? And did you discover this while working at or for ACM? In that case, you can file a report with ACM’s Compliance Officers in confidence. As a ‘whistleblower’, you are afforded special legal protection.
On this page:
Filing a report about ACM
You can file a report about ACM in confidence with our Compliance Officers. You can do so by sending an email to %20Compliance [punt] Officers [at] acm [punt] nl (Compliance[dot]Officers[at]acm[dot]nl) or by regular mail:
The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM)
c/o Compliance Officers
P.O. Box 16326
2500 BH The Hague
The Netherlands
If you would rather get in touch with us over the phone, please tell our Compliance Officers so in an email or letter. They will call you back.
In addition, you can request a personal meeting with our Compliance Officers. You can report any wrongdoings in such a personal meeting. You can also share your suspicions in confidence with an advisor, before filing a report.
Other situations:
- If you do not meet the criteria for whistleblowers, but you do have a complaint about ACM, please consider filing a complaint with us.
- Is another business involved? File a report if you believe that another business is not complying with the rules. If you discovered this through your work, you could be considered a whistleblower. If that is the case, you are statutorily protected against any consequences you may face as a result of the filing of your report.
Criteria
If you meet the following criteria, the Dutch Whistleblower Protection Act (in Dutch: Wet bescherming klokkenluiders) automatically affords you protection as a whistleblower.
You discovered it while working at or for ACM
Your report must relate to something that you discovered while working at or for ACM.
For example, in your capacity as:
- an ACM employee
- a temporary employee working for ACM
- an intern working for ACM
- a supplier of ACM
- an applicant interacting with ACM
This also applies to situations where you had this relationship prior to or after the filing of your report.
You are reasonably certain of it
You have experienced it yourself, or you have seen something. It must be more than just hearing a rumor or reading something in the papers.
Wrongdoing or a violation
It must be about a wrongdoing. That is a situation where the public interest is in jeopardy. The consequences must be (or may become) substantial or serious, or more people than yourself are negatively affected by it, and it occurs frequently or it has occurred for a longer period of time.
It can also involve a violation of certain European rules by ACM. The Dutch Whistleblower Protection Act (in Dutch) explains which rules.
Protection for whistleblowers
If you meet the criteria, you are considered a ‘whistleblower’. In that case, you are afforded statutory protection.
The law protects you as a whistleblower against any harm that you may suffer as a result of your report. For example, ACM cannot fire you or stop taking out goods or services from you simply because of your report. This rule applies the moment you file your report.
What happens to your report?
We send you a confirmation within 7 days that we have received your report.
We assess your report. If there is reason to do so, we will launch an investigation. We contact you if we wish to know more about your report. In such an investigation, we act in accordance with the BIPO protocol, which is a protocol on workplace investigations of individuals after an integrity violation or security incident (in Dutch: Baseline Intern Persoonsgericht Onderzoek).
After 3 months at the latest, we send you more information about how we have assessed your report.
Your data
We do not share your identity with third parties without your consent. This also applies to details found in your report that refer to you. It is possible that a court requests us to disclose your identity. In such situations, we inform you of such a request in advance. The way in which ACM handles personal data has been laid down in our privacy statement (in Dutch).
Free advice regarding whistleblowers
The Dutch Whistleblowers Authority can give you free confidential advice about filing a report as a whistleblower. The Dutch Whistleblowers Authority can be reached by phone on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 12.30 p.m. at +31 88-133-1000. Its postal address is: P.O. Box 85680, 2508 CJ, The Hague, the Netherlands.