What is a Reasonableness Assessment?
The reasonableness assessment is the authority's obligation to check bid prices for appropriateness, with particular focus on abnormally low tenders and unreasonably high prices.
Legal Framework
- Section 60 VgV: Abnormally low tenders (above EU thresholds)
- Section 44 UVgO: Price review below thresholds
- Art. 69 Directive 2014/24/EU: Abnormally low tenders
Steps
- Price comparison among bids and with the cost estimate
- Identification of conspicuous deviations (often > 20%)
- Requesting explanation of the price calculation from the bidder
- Assessment of plausibility
- Decision: acceptance or exclusion
Abnormally Low Tenders
The authority must request written explanation of the price calculation. Exclusion is only permitted if the explanation does not satisfactorily account for the low prices.
How Patterno Helps
Patterno provides market data and benchmarks for assessing price reasonableness, supporting both authorities and bidders.