A startup almost goes bankrupt because of a false report from market surveillance – can that happen to anyone?

When Fritz Unger, founder of the Hanover-based startup Skywind, received an email on January 31, he said he was "moderately shocked." The Austrian Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying (BEV) had filed a complaint against his company. He was no longer allowed to sell his micro wind turbines – small wind turbines that homeowners can install on their roofs to generate sustainable electricity – and had to initiate a recall of previously sold systems, the email stated. And: All of this applies immediately, EU-wide. "We didn't even know why," Unger says. Moreover, an independent testing agency had only certified the startup's systems at the end of 2024. The founder is perplexed.

Approximately three months and a court case later, it's clear: The BEV's decision is "inadmissible." This is the ruling of the Federal Administrative Court of the Republic of Austria. Skywind's turbines are "safe." Furthermore, the ruling states that "there is no reason for a recall or obligation to issue a warning." The review process must be "discontinued in its entirety."

By that time, however, Skywind had already lost more than one million euros in sales, says CEO Unger. Sales were on hold for three months – several turbines had to be recalled – even though it later turned out that they were perfectly fine. And it won't stop there, says Unger. "Because, of course, a warning like this also has long-term consequences."

But how did it even come to this? And how could an Austrian authority apparently be able to cripple companies from Hanover?