Bayer: late-night hotel bar drinks at ISTH congress ruled not “subsistence” (breach Clause 19.1)

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Key facts

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Case	AUTH/2621/7/13
Parties	Anonymous complainant v Bayer plc
Issue	Provision of hospitality (late-night hotel bar drinks)
Event	ISTH Congress, Amsterdam (29 June – 4 July 2013)
Key alleged conduct	Entertaining in hotel bar in early hours; appearance of significant alcohol consumption
Bayer account	After BHAP awards dinner (1 July), group waited for taxi; 4 drinks purchased near midnight for £28.15
Evidence limitations	Complainant non-contactable; hotel invoice not itemised; Panel did not know drink types
Applicable Code year	2012
Breach	Clause 19.1
No breach	Clause 9.1
Sanctions	Undertaking received; additional sanctions not stated
Complaint received	26 July 2013
Case completed	30 August 2013
Appeal	No appeal

Reviewed by Dr Anzal Qurbain (FFPM) — ABPI Final Signatory

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An anonymous, non-contactable health professional complained about hospitality provided by Bayer plc at the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) Congress in Amsterdam (29 June – 4 July 2013).
The complainant alleged a senior Bayer employee entertained two consultant colleagues in a hotel bar in the early hours and it looked as though significant amounts of alcohol were being consumed.
Bayer explained that after a Bayer Haemophilia Awards Programme (BHAP) awards dinner on 1 July, three UK health professionals walked a senior Bayer UK employee back to her hotel (safety/nearest taxi rank outside her hotel).
With no taxis available, the group waited in the hotel lobby bar and four drinks were purchased (one each) at a cost of £28.15 just before midnight.
The hotel did not provide itemised invoices; Bayer provided an expense claim and a hotel invoice showing a single total for food and beverage that day (€114.50), which also included other drinks purchased earlier in the day.
Bayer’s SOP Meetings Policy (BHC-BP-UK-SOP-101) stated that drinks other than reasonable amounts of soft drinks, water, coffee and tea must not be provided after a meal.

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Breach of Clause 19.1 (hospitality must be strictly limited to the main purpose of the event and be secondary—subsistence only).
No breach of Clause 9.1 (high standards) given the Panel considered the circumstances exceptional.
No appeal.

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