Amendment to the Consumer Credit Act

The Ministry of Finance launched a public consultation on the draft amendment to the Consumer Credit Act in February this year. After addressing hundreds of comments, it submitted a request in July for the draft to be placed on the government's agenda. It remains unclear whether and when the proposal will be discussed, or whether this will occur under the current government.

Further changes are not out of the question, particularly in connection with potential political shifts after the elections. However, most of the proposed changes derive from the directive's harmonised provisions, so they are highly likely to be included in the law.

Which areas is the amendment likely to affect? The changes will mainly concern:

• the scope of the law – will be expanded to include providers of interest-free credit;
• advertising – new restrictions or obligations will be introduced;
• creditworthiness assessments – partial changes to the rules for assessing creditworthiness, including a change that is not related to the transposition;
• interactions with consumers – for example, the choice of a durable medium;
• the scope and manner of fulfilling information obligations – automated data processing or the obligation to remind consumers of their rights;
• the potential introduction of so-called price caps;
• the approach to consumers in default – leniency measures, debt counselling.

While some of these changes will be easy to implement, others – especially for larger consumer credit providers – may require fundamental adjustments to established processes and lead to increased costs.

By Petra Bernklau, Junior Lawyer, JSK Law firm, PONTES