Contesting open tenders with special features – the price of contesting the winner of the tender

Open bidding with features is one of the key procedures in the field of public procurement in Ukraine. This type of procurement ensures transparency, competition and efficient use of public funds. However, sometimes during open bidding, situations may arise when the participants of the procedure believe that their rights were violated or the bidding conditions were unfair. In such cases, contesting the decisions and actions of the customers of open tenders becomes a relevant topic.

It is important to understand:

The appeals process can be costly and require a time-consuming effort on the part of the complainant. Therefore, before filing a complaint, it is advisable to weigh all the pros and cons and carefully prepare the necessary evidence and arguments or seek help from specialists.

The procedure for contesting open tenders after the auction is regulated by the Law of Ukraine "On Public Procurement", as well as Resolution of the CMU No. 292 dated 04/22/2020.

After the auction, the procurement participant is guaranteed the following rights in the field of appeal:

• the right to appeal the rejection of a participant's tender offer;
• the right to challenge the selection of the procurement winner;
• the right to appeal cancellation of bids.

The complainant should take into account that complaints are subject to a number of legislative requirements, including the deadline for filing a complaint, correctness of documents, proper justification of violated rights, etc. Failure to comply with even one of these requirements may lead to rejection of the complaint without further consideration of its merits.

One of the most important requirements that should be considered by the Customer is that filing a complaint is paid. The cost of filing a complaint after the auction is 0.6% of the expected value of the purchase item, but not less than UAH 3,000. and no more than UAH 170,000. The amount of payment is automatically calculated by the site for the convenience of participants.

The submitted complaint is automatically registered in the electronic procurement system and is considered by the appeal body within a period of no more than 10 working days (in exceptional cases, this period can be extended to 20 working days).

In the process of reviewing the complaint, the authorized body may request additional written explanations from the procurement participant and/or customer, which must be published in the electronic procurement system within 3 working days.

Based on the results of the review of the complaint, the appeal body makes a decision on the presence or absence of violations of the procurement procedure, as well as the right to make decisions aimed at eliminating the violations committed by the Customer and to oblige him to partially or fully cancel his decisions, provide the necessary explanations, documents, and in the event that it is impossible to eliminate the specified deficiencies, cancel the procurement procedure.

It can be seen from the above that the appeal of unlawful decisions of the customer is an effective tool that allows bidders to protect their rights and interests. This helps to ensure transparency, fairness and competition in the procurement process, as well as prevents possible abuses and violations of standards in the field of public procurement.

Appealing the wrongful decisions of the customer plays an important role in ensuring a system of balance between the rights of bidders and the requirements of the law. It provides an opportunity for complainants to influence procurement processes and achieve redress in situations where their rights have been violated or the requirements for conducting open tenders have not been met.

The specialists of our team have deep knowledge in the field of public procurement and appeal procedures, which will allow us to carefully analyze your situation, identify possible violations and determine the most effective mechanism for preparing a complaint about the results of the tender. To calculate the price of the appeal of the winner of the tender - fill out the form below!