- Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
- Advice at the highest level
- Specialized in warning letters in competition law
Lawyer helps with Warning letter from VGU
Lawyer Peter Weiler
Your contact person
Lawyer Peter Weiler Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
Experienced in warnings from the VGU
- Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
- Years of experience in the defense against warning letters from the VGU
- Free initial consultation for warning letters from the VGU
- Available for you nationwide
How we work with you
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Submit warning
Submit your warning via our contact form. Please feel free to describe the background to your case. We will usually get back to you on the day of the request.
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Free advice
We take a look at the warning letter. One of our lawyers specializing in cease-and-desist letters will then contact you and discuss the prospects of success of your case with you. The consultation is free of charge.
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Our offer
Immediately after the initial consultation, you will receive our order documents, with which we will once again confirm in writing what we have discussed. You can then consider at your leisure whether you want to continue with us.
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We get started
We will start work and take the necessary steps to successfully defend you against the warning letter. We will keep you transparently informed at all times about the progress of the matter up to the final deletion.
Who is behind the VGU?
The "Verein gegen Unwesen in Handel und Gewerbe Köln e.V." (VGU for short) is an association that campaigns for the protection of fair competitive conditions. The VGU is a registered association based in Cologne and was founded in 1898. The association's tasks include prosecuting infringements of competition law and issuing warnings to companies that engage in unfair business practices. The VGU pursues the goal of ensuring fair competition and protecting companies from unfair competition.
What is a VGU warning?
A VGU warning letter is a formal request sent by the Verein gegen Unwesen in Handel und Gewerbe Köln e.V. to another company or individual to draw their attention to alleged misconduct under competition law.
The objective of such a VGU warning letter is to put an end to the offending behavior and to refrain from it in the future. Typical infringements that may be the subject of a VGU warning letter include misleading advertising, infringements of copyright or trademark rights, unfair business practices or violations of competition law.
As a rule, the company or individual who has received a VGU warning letter is requested to submit a declaration to cease and desist in which they undertake to refrain from the offending behavior in the future. If they do not comply with this request, the company that issued the warning letter can take legal action and claim damages.
Do I have to respond to the warning from VGU?
Yes, you should always respond to a warning letter from VGU. Ignoring or failing to act can have legal consequences and increase the risk of claims for damages.
Check the warning carefully beforehand and consult a lawyer. The lawyer can check the legal aspects of the warning letter and give you recommendations on how you should best respond.
The sender of the warning letter will request a declaration to cease and desist from you. A cease-and-desist declaration is a written declaration in which you promise to refrain from the objectionable behavior in the future. If you submit the cease-and-desist declaration, you undertake not to repeat the offending conduct
In any case, take the warning seriously and act quickly to avoid legal consequences. First of all, however, keep calm and do not rashly sign the attached cease-and-desist declarations. Contact us using our free initial consultation form and we can decide together which course of action makes sense here.
Do I have to sign VGU's cease-and-desist declaration?
You are not obliged to sign a cease-and-desist declaration from VGU if you have received a warning letter under competition law. However, it is generally recommendable to submit a cease-and-desist declaration in order to avoid legal consequences, provided that you have committed the infringement in question.
You should check the declaration to cease and desist carefully beforehand and, if necessary, consult a lawyer before signing it. A declaration to cease and desist can have far-reaching legal consequences, so you should make sure you understand all the consequences before signing it.
A modified cease and desist declaration can be a sensible option if the allegation in the warning letter is imprecise or inaccurate or if the required cease and desist declaration goes beyond the actual matter. A lawyer can help you understand the consequences of a modified cease-and-desist declaration and develop an appropriate response to the warning letter.
Do I have to pay the warning costs immediately?
If you have received a warning letter under competition law, you do not usually have to pay the warning costs immediately. The sender of the warning letter will set you a reasonable deadline within which you must pay the warning costs.
It is important to note that the warning costs are a component of the total costs of a warning letter under competition law and that they can often make up a considerable proportion. You should therefore check the caution costs carefully and discuss them with a lawyer before paying them.
If you do not pay the costs of the warning letter within the set deadline, the sender of the warning letter may take further legal action against you, such as taking you to court. However, under no circumstances should you rush to pay the warning letter fees. First of all, have a lawyer check whether the warning letter was justified at all and therefore whether you are entitled to payment.
What does the VGU demand?
The following is usually required in a warning letter:
1. elimination of the objectionable conduct: The person being warned is requested to immediately cease the objectionable conduct and to ensure that it is not repeated in the future.
2. submission of a cease-and-desist declaration: The warned party is requested to submit a cease-and-desist declaration subject to penalty. With this declaration, the warned party undertakes to refrain from the conduct complained of in the future and to pay a contractual penalty in the event of a breach of this obligation.
3. reimbursement of warning costs: The warned party is requested to reimburse the costs incurred as a result of the warning. This includes, in particular, the warning party's legal fees.
Which infringements does VGU most frequently issue warnings for?
The Verein gegen Unwesen in Handel und Gewerbe Köln e.V. (VGU) generally issues warnings for violations in the area of competition law. The most common infringements for which the VGU issues warnings include:
1. misleading advertising: This includes, for example, false or misleading statements in advertising that may deceive consumers.
2. breach of the obligation to provide a legal notice: Companies are required by law to provide a legal notice on their website and in other business documents. A breach of this obligation can result in a warning.
3. Violation of the Price Indication Regulation: Companies must indicate the prices of their products or services in a certain way to protect consumers from misleading advertising. A violation of this regulation can also be cautioned.
4. Breach of competition law in e-commerce: Various breaches of competition law can occur in connection with online commerce, such as breaches of the button solution, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the right of withdrawal.
Sign and don't pay?
Signing the cease-and-desist declaration sent by VGU without further ado but not paying anything is not promising. The association will then sue for the claims. This also makes the matter unnecessarily expensive. In addition, you could face severe contractual penalties if you sign the cease-and-desist declaration without consultation and examination and then violate it because you have not or not completely eliminated the infringement of competition before you have submitted the cease-and-desist declaration. We therefore advise against this approach.
Sign and pay?
It is not in your interest to simply sign the cease-and-desist declaration sent by VGU and pay the amounts demanded. Firstly, you may have to pay nothing or less. In addition, you may also face high contractual penalties if you sign the cease-and-desist declaration without consulting and reviewing it and then violate it because you have not or not completely remedied the infringement of competition before you have submitted the cease-and-desist declaration. Use our free Mueller.legal initial assessment to find out more. You will already receive helpful tips on how to deal with the warning letter.
Ignore the warning?
Under no circumstances Ignoring a VGU warning is the worst possible solution. In competition law in particular, you must expect that the VGU will apply for an interim injunction against you after the deadline set for submitting the cease-and-desist declaration has expired. This not only makes the matter significantly more expensive, but also completely unnecessary.
Call the club?
This approach is not recommended. Please do not disclose any information that makes your legal defense unnecessarily difficult. Even and especially if the infringement of competition law actually exists and you are responsible for it, a legal defense makes sense. This is simply because you must prevent further infringements of competition law in the future in order to avoid being repeatedly warned or confronted with contractual penalty claims.
Warning free check
Use our free initial assessment from an experienced lawyer. And this is how it works:
1. Simply send us your warning letter using our free warning letter check.
2. One of our experienced lawyers will take a look at your warning letter and call you back as soon as possible. Guaranteed free of charge!
3. After the phone call, you will receive an email with all the relevant information.
