Since July 2023, larger companies have been required to set up internal reporting points under the Whistleblower Protection Act - also known as the Whistleblower Act. From December, this obligation will also apply to medium-sized companies and non-compliance can be punished with a fine.
To date, companies with 250 or more employees and capital management companies, regardless of their number of employees, have been obliged to establish internal reporting mechanisms. People can use these to report information about violations of European and national law obtained in connection with their professional activities, Section 12 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1, Section 40 Paragraph 2 No. 2 HinSchG. From December 1, 2023, the lack of such a reporting office can be punished with a fine of up to €20.000. The facility will also be 17 December 2023 also mandatory for companies with 50-249 employees.
An internal reporting office can be in the form of
- an individual in the company,
- a department consisting of several employees or
- a third party such as an ombudsman or an external service provider
to be set up.
Procedure for Reports
The procedure after a report is specified and requires, among other things,
- oral or written and, if desired, personal reporting
- confirmation of receipt within 7 days
- immediate examination of whether the reported suspicion falls within the scope of application of the HinSchG and whether the information is conclusive
- Notification to the reporting person within three months of the subsequent measures taken
There are also other obligations such as the requirement to record reports received, maintaining confidentiality, prescribed response times and storage for a period of three years, as well as the provision of at least one reporting channel through which anonymous reports can also be submitted.
We are here to help you fulfill these obligations!
Reporting support procedures
Moore TK All-in-One approach
With our Moore TK all-in-one approach, we offer you a simple and clear system for receiving reports in accordance with the Whistleblower Protection Act. With our Whistleblower Channel, we provide you with a complete solution that includes both setting up the whistleblower system and operating the internal reporting office as a managed service. Our digital platform enables you to outsource the internal reporting office entirely to us. We take care of the implementation of a turnkey and globally deployable reporting system in your own branding as well as the subsequent support and initial assessment of incoming reports.
Together with you, we set up a central case management system with real-time statistics and dashboards for your compliance reporting.
In connection with this, we are also happy to help with the creation of guidelines, codes of conduct or procedural instructions. If required, we also offer legal advice through our law firm Moore TK Legal.
If you want to learn more, visit our solution Whistleblower Software by Formalize or book a non-binding demo appointment here.
