Draft act on consumer credit. What changes for companies that for consumers [OPINIA]
At the beginning of July, a draft of the new Consumer Credit Act was published on the website of the Government Legislation Center, which was prepared by the President of UOKiK (UC82 No. The draft implements, among others, the provisions of the EU Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) 2023/2225 of 18 October 2023 on consumer credit agreements (the so -called CCD2 Directive).
Entry into force of new regulations about consumer loan It will entail significant changes for the financial services market. In many areas, it was decided to extend the scope of regulation relative to the solutions adopted by the EU legislator. Entrepreneurs providing deferred payments (BUY Now Pay Later should be particularly interested in the project, or BNPL), which recently gain popularity among Polish consumers. Their services will have to meet the requirements of the new law.
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Until now, BNPL products have often been offered by fintech entities or ordinary online stores, without having to take into account additional consumer protection requirements provided for in the provisions on consumer credit. If the project is adopted in the presented version, then Suppliers of this type of service will be obliged, among others down:
- carrying out creditworthiness assessment every client
- providing specific information at the pre -control stage
- meeting specific requirements for advertising and marketing communication
- reporting to supervisory authorities
Creditworthiness assessment and information requirements
One of the key elements of the project is the extension and clarification of the rules for conducting a reliable assessment of consumer creditworthiness. Until now, despite the obligation to verify creditworthiness, lenders had a lot of freedom in carrying out the entire process. The regulation proposed by UOKiK provides for many changes. Among other things, it introduces A categorical ban on granting consumer loans in the event of a negative assessment of ability.
It has also been specified in which exactly data on consumers lenders should use when conducting the examination. Importantly, introduced No use of information obtained from the consumer social media. Moreover The entire procedure will be documented.
It is also provided for the first time sanction for violating the obligation to carry out a reliable assessment of creditworthiness. If the lender grants a loan despite the negative creditworthiness of the consumer, The loan will become – by law – free. The consumer should then be reimbursement of costs related to interest, commissions and other fees incurred. Then, BNPL service providers will be obliged to perform extensive information obligationsprimarily at the pre -control stage, which are already binding on lenders.
However, the designer decided to partially simplify the information transfer process so that they were transmitted in a possible and understandable way to consumers.
This means a new business reality for BNPL service providers. They will have to carry out the consumer throughout the process in a reliable, but also efficient and engaging way that in the meantime he does not change his purchasing decisions. It is worth noting, however, that some entrepreneurs in this industry have already implemented the procedures for assessing creditworthiness and are preparing appropriate information forms, which positively affects not only consumer protection, but also the safety and responsibility of the conducted business.
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Advertising requirements and marketing bans
The bill also introduces sharpened requirements for presenting offers for offers and advertising credit products. In particular, it is planned A ban on using the wording suggesting that the loan can improve the financial situation of the consumerit is easy or quick to obtain, or that having previous debt will affect its assessment.
It will also be forbidden to suggest that a loan may increase the consumer's financial resources, replace savings or contribute to improving your lifestyle. In addition, advertising They will have to contain clear, unambiguous and understandable information about all coststhat the consumer will be obliged to bear, and all marketing messages will be subject to control in terms of reliability.
In addition to general marketing bans, covering all credit products, BNPL service providers will not be able to offer their services including other products or non -financial services in the form of packages. This seems particularly important from the perspective of consumer protection. Due to the growing interest in deferred payments, it is possible that in the future suppliers of such services will want to expand their activities with other credit products. The idea is to avoid a situation in which the consumer will not be able to separate the price of goods from the cost of the financial service.
Registration and supervision of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority
The project also provides for the introduction of a register of additional credit activities, which will be kept by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority and will include a list of sellers and service providers conducting loans in the form of deferred payments for the purchase of offered goods and services.
For BNPL service providers The obligation to enter in the register means primarily to take their activities in the supervision of the KNFcomparable to loan institutions or banks. In practice, some entrepreneurs operate on the Polish market as loan institutions, therefore they have already obtained entries in the relevant register of loan institutions, and their activities are subject to the supervision of the PFSA.
Consequences for the market
Although the road to the entry into force of the project is still far away, it arouses great emotions on the market. The Act should be planned this year, and the regulations will come into force by November 20, 2026 at the latest, in accordance with the implementation deadlines indicated in the CCD2 Directive.
Undoubtedly pRojekt means fundamental changes for BNPL service providers, which will be associated with the need to redefine business modelsadaptation of procedures and incurring the costs of implementing regulations. The introduction of a number of new regulatory, registration and information obligations may lead to market consolidation and perhaps the withdrawal of some smaller entities that will not be able to meet new requirements. Despite the unprecedented scale of changes, BNPP service providers were not surprised by them – the regulatory direction has been clearly marked out by the EU CCD2 directive, and many of them have long been taking action in accordance with future requirements, primarily in terms of verification of creditworthiness.
From the consumer perspective, the changes are to ensure greater legal protection, transparency of offers and reduce the risk of excessive debt, in particular because BNPL services, thanks to their easy availability, can promote ill -considered purchasing decisions and excessive debt, especially among less aware consumers.
It is worth remembering, however, that multiplying consumer protection instruments – including by imposing wider obligations on financial service providers – does not always translate into the real effectiveness of this protection, and in some cases it may even lead to a limitation of the availability of services. We still need financial education in Poland.
Author: Dr. Wanes Choptiany-Mańka, University of WSB Merito in Warsaw
