The council had tendered in December 2025 a contract worth approximately 300,000 euros for Local Police vehicles, structured into two lots. The first lot, with a budget of 110,000 euros, was for the acquisition of an accident investigation van, for which Recapol and Transforma 21 competed. The second lot, for horse transport vans, had to be declared void.
In February, the Contracting Board definitively disqualified Recapol for Lot 1, alleging that the company had not submitted the responsible declaration form. The company filed a special appeal, arguing that the required information was clearly and accessibly stated in the European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) included in its offer from the start.
The TACRC ordered the award to be suspended while the claim was studied and finally upheld the appeal, annulling the municipal decision. The arbitral body recalled that the principle of antiformalism prevents excluding bidders for mere format omissions when substantive requirements of capacity and solvency are fully proven.
In compliance with the ruling, the Local Government Board of the Valencia City Council has formally approved to abide by the decision, readmit the bidder, and resume the tender. From now on, the Contracting Board will evaluate the technical and economic proposals of both bidders on equal terms to definitively award the acquisition of the police van.
