Responsible Credit

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The news below, in French, concerns the updates that professionals “selling” consumer credits should follow to be considered respecting the Consumer code. In a nutshell, it is about different types of credit, legislation, rights and duties of the borrower and the intermediates, reasons of over indebtedness and prevention. Crédit à la consommation proposé sur le lieu de... [more...]

The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO), European Parliament has held an additional hearing on the basic bank account following hearings by both the IMCO and ECON hearings from last year. Prof. Reifner from ECRC partner iff contributed to the debate on EU basic banking legislation with a presentation and paper on the role of overindebtedness... [more...]

Please find the link below to the press release of the German Federal Ministry of Finance on product information sheets for consumers of old-age pension savings and investments. The study and designed sheets are available in German at the link, and a short summary of the work led by iff and others is available in English as an attachment below. [more...]

Presentations from last years' European Consumer Debt Network conference in Gdansk are available at the link below [more...]

Financial institution and credit intermediary compliance with the relevant EU consumer rules on information duties of only 30% is shocking news. Why are so many firms not taking legal provisions seriously? Only France and Portugal flagged less than 1 of every 2 provider websites checked ( [more...]

NEW REPORT: EUROPEAN BANKS FUELLING FOOD PRICE VOLATILITY AND HUNGER   European banks, pension funds and insurance companies are increasing global hunger and poverty by speculating on food prices and financing land grabs in poorer countries,... [more...]

The UK partner CfRC reports the following from its newsletter bulletin to subscribers of the service. FSA edges backwards on responsible lending requirements in the mortgage market The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published a new set of proposed responsible lending requirements for consultation as part of its Mortgage Market Review, following considerable... [more...]

Current Issues in Consumer Law 6/2011 Theme: Senior citizens EDITORIAL Sprightly old age cannot be taken for granted The issue of the elderly and their needs has recently been raised in various contexts. There has been some debate, for example, as a result of the Finnish Act on Services for the Elderly, now being drafted, the standard of service in care homes, and the... [more...]

See the attachments below for more information on BEUC opinion and study on the EU Commissioner Reding's project.   Optional Soft Law Instrument on EU contract law for businesses and consumers - Study for BEUC by Geraint Howells, Hans-W. Micklitz and Norbert Reich European contract law: 28th regime - BEUC's 10 reservations More can be found at the European Commission... [more...]

Credit and low income consumers: new Policis study opposes caps on credit A new study published by the Friends Provident Foundation argues that low income borrowers tend to incur high behaviour-driven costs on mainstream credit and can struggle to avoid unmanageable debt that they cannot pay off. In contrast, it argues that those low-income borrowers choosing to use... [more...]

HM Treasury and BIS have now published their response to the consumer credit aspects of the Consumer Credit and Personal Insolvency Review. The response sets out details of a new agreement with the main banks concerning current account default charges, as well a new agreement with store card providers. It also provides further details of newly commissioned research to... [more...]

DG SANCO along with several other DGs have been running significant programmes to promote consumer protection and empowerment. The results of the evaluation are not the same and DOLCETA comes out badly as a value for money project in the best interests of consumers, whereas TRACE courses for capacity building in national consumer organisations is evaluated more favourably... [more...]

The School of Social Policy at the University of Birmingham welcomes applications for a funded PhD scholarship on the topic of ... Personal finance education: What is it for?  And how best to do it? Context During the 1980s and 1990s, the financial landscape in the UK, as in many Western states, became increasingly complex with the growth of the credit industry, the... [more...]

A Draft Report on the Treatment of Insolvency of Natural Persons is being discussed and will serve as the basis for the discussions at the meeting of the expert group next week. The meeting will take place in the Preston Auditorium at the World Bank Headquarters located at 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, DC 22043. The Thursday, Nov 17, morning session is also open to... [more...]

BEUC has called for strong independent Financial Consumer Protection Authorities at the national level. Recommendations were based on those of a study conducted earlier this year (see attached document below). ----- See Proposal for a Consumer Programme 2014-2020 The proposal for a 2014-2020 Consumer Programme was adopted by the European Commission on 9 November 2011. It... [more...]

Call for Papers The Center for Consumer Law at the University of Houston Law Center  Teaching Consumer Law Conference – Houston, Texas, 18 & 19 May 2012 The Center for Consumer Law at the University of Houston Law Center is organizing its sixth international law teaching conference. The subject is “Teaching Consumer Law in an Evolving Economy.”  The Conference will focus... [more...]

Damon Gibbons, Chief Executive of the Centre for Responsible Credit, delivers a keynote address at BDAC's 21st Anniversary Conference 'Debt in the 21st Century' Please click here to hear Damon’s talk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2xyVdxf2pU [more...]

Are Anglo-Saxon regulators in Australia and the UK really trying to improve the past failures of credit insurance products for consumers. In both countries, reports have shown the intentional low-value design by providers and exposed the dirty tactics and uncountable instances of misspelling that have gone unpunished. See the recent market report from Australia and the... [more...]

ECRC has been involved in the Greek consumer bankruptcy scheme that has been passed 2011 and is now open for overindebted Greek citizens. This happened last minute after the situation for Greek citizens deteriorated so significantly. Our Greek member gives us the first impression how well international cooperation not only of banks but also of stakeholder groups can word.... [more...]

Ahead of the G20 Meetings this week, the Financial Stability Board outline their findings and recommendations for regulators and supervisors in charge of consumer protection in consumer finance world-wide. The report can be accessed at the following link and is available below. [more...]

DG MARKT will launch a pilot project setting up a European financial expertise centre for the direct benefit of European end-users and non-industry stakeholders in the financial services area. An open call for proposals will be launched in 2012.   As communicated in its current edition of Single Market News, the Commission has added a new webpage to the DG MARKT website... [more...]

Veuillez trouver ci-joint le programme et le formulaire d'inscription de la 10ème rencontre internationale "Finance, Ethique et Responsabilité", ainsi que celui de la remise du prix Robin Cosgrove qui aura lieu le jeudi 10 novembre prochain à Genève.  Au cours de cette manifestation vous pourrez entendre, parmi d'autres interventions de grande qualité, celles de: -... [more...]

ECRC supporter Dr Georges Gloukoviezoff, is an excellent economist and specialist researcher in issues of financial exclusion. He continues to make a large contribution to the debate on responsible credit with a recent publication from Dublin’s Trinity College Policy Institute for the Irish Government.   Book outline: “Unlike the UK, France and Belgium, Ireland has not... [more...]

BankTrack to Equator Principles banks; ‘get the Outside Job done’ Equator Principles update must lead to new Principles focused on people and planet Washington, October 23rd 2011 , for immediate release BankTrack, the global NGO network monitoring private sector bank operations, calls upon the Equator Principles Financial Institutions (EPFIs) to ensure that the next... [more...]

Brussels, 20 October 2011 - In recent years, financial markets have changed enormously. New trading venues and products have come onto the scene and technological developments such as high frequency trading have altered the landscape. Drawing lessons from the 2008 financial crisis, the G20 agreed at the 2009 Pittsburgh summit on the need to improve the transparency... [more...]

European Commission - Press release: EU consumers rate poorly financial services and fuel markets Brussels, 21 October 2011 – Financial services, investments (including pensions and securities), mortgages and real estate services are the markets which are the most likely to be failing consumers across the EU, according to the latest Consumer Markets Scoreboard. Among... [more...]

Can consumer credit be affordable to low income households? CfRC's latest report, published on Monday, models the impact of consumer credit repayments on the ability of low income households to afford a socially acceptable standard of living. The study, which has been funded by the Friends Provident Foundation, draws on the work of Loughborough University's Centre for... [more...]

The microfinance industry is stepping up its efforts around responsible finance, including consumer protection measures and efforts to prevent over-indebtedness, according to CGAP, the global industry body dedicated to advancing financial access for the world's poor. The rapid growth of microfinance into new markets is being accompanied by a renewed emphasis on providing... [more...]

Draft legislation and directives to be published by the European Parliament in October were leaked in Sept. A draft copy of the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation, the new European legislation covering the financial markets will significantly increase the regulation of derivative trading in Europe. Read the full text of the draft directive here. Read the full text... [more...]

While iff's long-term database on consumer information through law and newspaper articles, once sponsored by the EU-Commission as an outstanding example of consumer information about malpractice in financial services, is now under the attack of the German newspapers F.A.Z. and Süddeutsche Zeitung, the public discussion whether the press itself retains the monopoly of... [more...]

The EU has delivered its draft for a mortgage regulation which has been successfully prevented for 20 years by effective lobbying. The mortgage industry is still the part of finance with little to no harmonisation in the EU. All attempts failed to harmonise the securities, to give access to foreign suppliers, to use online facilities for cross-border banking and to stop... [more...]

Perhaps the Commission should have thought about elaborating standards before having invested in fostering microcredit at all cost. But better now than never. Why doesn’t the Commission also conduct research on evaluating microcredit ventures in the EU. Improvements in regulation, policy and institutional characteristics can only benefit from critical analysis. Below the... [more...]

The institute for financial services (iff) with support from the Nuremberg based charitable foundation “Deutschland im Plus” has published its iff Over-indebtedness report 2011 in Germany this week. Key findings of the 2011 edition are: - Rise in personal insolvencies in 2010, turn in trend for 2011 - “Irresponsible consumption” at its lowest level since 2005 -... [more...]

The UK debt charity Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) is analysing the phenomenon of indebtedness and over-indebtedness using data from those persons subject to the counselling. Such empirically founded research informs policy makers about the true nature of the problems being faced by those experiencing problematic debt. Similar research is taking place elsewhere... [more...]

In February 2011, G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors called on the OECD, the Financial Stability Board (FSB) and other relevant international organisations to develop common principles on consumer protection in the field of financial services. An OECD-led Task Force on Financial Consumer Protection, which is open to all G20 and FSB members, other relevant... [more...]

Below are the links to the OECD online public consultations: Deadline for comment: 5 September 2011 Draft Guidelines on Financial Education at School and Guidance on Learning Framework Draft High-level Principles for the Evaluation of Financial Education Programmes Draft Guidelines on Financial Education at School & Guidance on Learning Framework   Governments... [more...]

European Parliamentary Committee calls for greater consumer protection measures in the proposed Mortgage Directive The Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament has called for greater consumer protection measures to be built into the proposed Mortgage Directive, which was published... [more...]

The EU becomes the first jurisdiction implementing the international Basel III agreement. This should improve its legitimacy when negotiating and leading the other banking reforms expected of the global leaders who will be meeting at the G20 meeting in France in October 2011. The CRD IV Proposal and Commission’s implementation of the Basel III rules take the form of a... [more...]

As a professor of bank law I am increasingly inundated by competitions in which the industry offers prize money for master and doctoral thesis. Not only the issues are defined by the interest of these industries but where also the industry plays an important role in the evaluation of the thesis. Since the industry already is the doorkeeper for the professional careers of... [more...]

A cross national comparision of data on consumer indebtedness is less easy than one can assume. The European Consumer Credit Research Institute (ECRI) a research institution between lobbying and research financed by major banks provides the only annual statistics on houshehold borrowing and consumer credit (see http://www.ecri.eu/new/node/165). Since its basis are... [more...]

ECON Committee meeting in Starasburg on 7.7.2011 gave MEPs the chance to hear the authors of the report and ask them questions. Below are links to the Presentation provided by the authors and the report of the Study. The iff together with its Research director Prof Neuberger and her team from Rostock University and Mr Rissi from the Institut für Finanzdienstleistungen... [more...]

July 2011 Mortgage Arrears – A Consumer Guide to Dealing with Your Lender http://www.centralbank.ie/regulation/processes/consumer-protection-code/Documents/Consumer%20Booklet%20-%20FINAL%20Feb%202011.pdf   Industry Standard Financial Statement http://www.centralbank.ie/consumer/info/Documents/Industry%20Standard%20Financial%20Statement.pdf Probe into sky-high charges on... [more...]

The new 2011 MIS report has been launched today.   The report, A Minimum Income Standard for the UK in 2011, is available to download from http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/minimum-income-standard-uk-2011 This report is JRF’s annual update of the ‘minimum income standard’, based on what members of the public think people need to achieve a socially acceptable standard of... [more...]

Taken frome Consumers International website: Netherlands: Consumentenbond's financial services campaign 'Do you understand money? Make sure you do' 02 Jun 2011 Consumentenbond has launched its campaign titled Do you understand money? Make sure you do. Consumentenbond, a Netherlands-based consumer organisation, says this campaign attempts to challenge the financial sector... [more...]

Australia: Mortgage exit-fees banned in banking reform win by CHOICE 22 Jun 2011 Australian consumer watchdog, CHOICE, has welcomed the Australian Federal Parliament's decision to uphold the ban on mortgage exit fees, which will now come into effect from 1 July, 2011. The ban was put to a vote in the Senate today, which threatened to see the key consumer banking reform... [more...]

The conference was a success and a number of our coalition partners were present. Brasilcon had a strong delegation and will be organising an event next year around the issues of responsible credit. See the Conference website and programme below to find out more. Examples of some of the presentations related to financial services can be found below: Use of default:... [more...]

FSA publishes further details of proposed approach for the Financial Conduct Authority The FSA has published details of the proposed approach to be taken by the Financial Conduct Authority when this takes on the responsibility for consumer protection at the end of 2012. Government has previously set out ... [more...]

Extracts from Finnish partner Kuluttajavirasto’s Current Issues in Consumer Law 3/2011 PDF version Consumer safety net extends across borders This spring, the latest Consumer scoreboard, which analyses consumer conditions in each EU member state, was published in the EU. In Finland, citizens still have faith in the state and organisations. Three out of every five consumers... [more...]

The French Presidency of the G20 and the Financial Stability Board have committed to enhancing consumer protection in the area of financial services. In October, when the Finance Ministers of the G20 meet, global standards will be agreed upon. The OECD along with Consumers International have already worked on developing some recommendations for the G20. This CI/OECD... [more...]

The Future of Financial Inclusion and Money Advice Conference, 20 July 2011, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Birmingham NEC Fees range from £55 – £100 +VAT Early booking discount now available until 17 June You can book by credit card, request an invoice or complete a booking... [more...]

Brussels, 8 June 2011 Environment: Commissioner Janez Potočnik welcomes European Parliament votes on the Beyond GDP Report and on a new Regulation on Environmental Economic Accounts "I warmly welcome the results of two votes in Parliament yesterday and today – one on the Report on Beyond GDP, and the other on a new Regulation on Environmental Economic Accounts. These... [more...]

« Renewing the research and teaching in finance, economics and management to better serve the common good» (Geneva-Fribourg-Zürich March 2011)  Appel français English Appeal Deutscher Aufruf Llamamiento... [more...]

A consortium led by the University of Birmingham has completed an EU FP7 research project called DEMHOW (Demographic Change and Housing Wealth). Links to the various reports of the research team are available here: http://www.demhow.bham.ac.uk/reports/ DEMHOW (Demographic Change and Housing Wealth) was funded by the EU under its Framework 7 Programme. It involves research... [more...]

The BEUC study on "Financial Supervision in the EU - A consumer perspective" was made public on their website on Wednesday 18 May 2011. The study gives an overview of how consumer protection fits into financial supervision in the EU. Consisting of a main report, defining consumer protection, exploring elements of non-prudential supervision and outlining structures of... [more...]

The financial crisis which now cost us billions of Euros to support States like Ireland, Portugal and Greece is also triggering rightist parties like the "True Finnish" Party to block the further development of Europe. What they ignore is that this help for such States is in fact help for the big bank monopolies in Europe who provided insane credit to such states because... [more...]

The financial crisis which now cost us billions of Euros to support States like Ireland, Portugal and Greece is also triggering rightist parties like the "True Finnish" Party to block the further development of Europe. What they ignore is that this help for such States is in fact help for the big bank monopolies in Europe who provided insane credit to such states because... [more...]

Why too much Lobbying in Brussels may have hurt the Banking Industry In 1998 the EU mandated a study from iff on Payment Protection Insurance with regard to consumer credit. The findings were alarming: up to 50% of credit cost were hidden in such factually linked contracts. Most of this money consisted out of hidden interest since it flew back to the banks in the form of... [more...]

New Approach to Bank Lobbyism in Brussels? The European Union has generated billions from Member States for the rescue of banks. The European Union is also largely responsible for the deregulation of bank supervision and capital markets in the last 15 years. An important group of deputies from all parties in the European Parliament find that bank lobby is far too strong in... [more...]

Friends and colleagues at iff, ladies and gentlemen, The year is already well underway and my good wishes have only nine months left to go with you. As we all know, that time is enough to form a human being to the point where he or she can survive as an independent being in the world. This letter had a difficult birth and it was not until I read on our new... [more...]

Consumer research that featured in the Commission’s report that helped inform its own impact assessment of mortgage credit markets and its proposal for a Mortgage credit Directive, is available on DG Internal Market’s website: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/finservices-retail/credit/mortgage_en.htm The Study on the costs and benefits of the different policy options... [more...]

DG SANCO is increasinglying focussing on "empowerment". Is this not a dangerous policy drift towards promoting self-protection at the expense of defending and delivering protection? The conclusion to be drawn from low outcomes of the survey should be that there is no substitute to strong consumer protection rules now and into the forseeable future. Text from the press... [more...]

The international association of consumer organisations from both advanced and emerging economies calls for: A new permanent international organisation to support work on financial consumer protection; Mandatory financial consumer protection bodies; Clearer contracts, charges and practices; Effective redress and dispute resolution; Measures to promote stability and safety... [more...]

The annual event gathering key stakeholders from Germany and from the EU will be taking place in Hamburg on the 19th and 20th of May 2011. Organised by the Coalition partner iff and supported by the German consumer organisations and debt advice association, issues on the first day, Thursday 19th of May will have English translation provided and will feature international... [more...]

While Prof Warren has been subject to Congressional Republicans attempting to portray her as the "unaccountable" head of a bureaucracy immune from oversight from Congress or federal agencies (with aims to cut CFPB funding and weigh down its rulemaking procedures by replacing its single director with a five-member board of directors), she has presented lawmakers with 34... [more...]

Please find attached the current issue of CfRC's Journal, featuring articles on: • A summary of the recent CfRC study of bank CSR reporting • Professor Iain Ramsay on the need to rethink the role of consumer credit • Professor Toni Williams on the framing of the financial education debate • Reverend Paul Nicholoson on the impact of welfare cuts on the demand for high cost... [more...]

Treasury sets out further details of proposed new regulatory framework HM Treasury has set out further details of its proposed new regulatory framework for financial services in a consultation document – ‘A new approach to financial regulation: building a stronger system’. The consultation period runs to 14th April, following which Government will issue a White Paper ... [more...]

Raising the standard of bank CSR reporting With financial support from the Citi Foundation, the UK Centre for Responsible Credit together with the institute for financial services (iff) conducted a study of CSR reports issued by twelve major retail banking operations in the UK, France, Spain and Germany (HSBC, Santander, Credit Agricole, Barclays, BBVA, Royal Bank of ... [more...]

European Commission: Regulating financial services for sustainable growth - a progress report Source: European Commission 1. Introduction The European Union is in the midst of an ambitious and intensive programme of regulatory reform in the sector of financial services in the aftermath of the financial crisis. As soon as the crisis broke, the EU acted promptly,... [more...]

The French Presidency of the G20 will have consumer protection as a key priority! While G20 Finance meetings were already held on 14 February 2011, the priority for consumer protection in financial services was laid out by the Finance Minister Ms Lagarde on 8 February at the financial services consultative committee (CCSF). These include tackling bank fees and payment... [more...]

On 4 February, the European Commission launched a public consultation “Towards a more coherent European approach to collective redress”. Contributions can be sent until 30 April. Press release Consultation paper and background Commission launches public consultation on collective redress The Commission, as a public authority and the guardian of the EU Treaties, enforces... [more...]

Brazil: 'bank accountless' cornered into expensive credit cards 17 Jan 2011 A new study shows that nearly 40% of Brazilians do not have bank accounts. Without any alternative, consumers use store credit-cards that charge higher interest rates. Bank accountless Although the number of bank accounts in Brazil nearly doubled between the years 2000 and 2008, the number of... [more...]

In 2010, ECRC partner, iff together with the economic research institute ZEW, conducted research into the subject of interest rate restrictions in the EU on behalf of DG Internal Market and Services of the European Commission. The report was published on the Commission’s website last week and the authors will be issuing a joint-press release in the coming days. The... [more...]

The EuSoCo Group, a spin off of legal academics from within the network of ECRC who are working on issues of social contract law, have responded to the European Commission initiative on European Contract Law by sharing with them the Group's declaration and its arguments as to why the frame of reference for the work being conducted should be adjusted.Attached below is the... [more...]

While the UK parliamentarians will indicate their preferences with regard to interest rate ceilings in the UK, the industry has been trusted to develop responsible behaviour with rgeards to dangerous secured lending in the form of bills of sale (as opposed to banning them outright). Let's see how both turn out.. News from the CfRC January e-newsletter: Stella Creasy MP... [more...]

“Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?” asks an ECRC partner from Ireland regarding major law reform. See the links below: Personal Insolvency Bill On 24 January, 2012, the Government approved the Minister for Justice and Equality proposals for the drafting of the Personal Insolvency Bill. The drafting of the Bill, will be arranged on a priority basis, so that it... [more...]

See presentations from the 2010 Responsible Credit Convention at: www.responsible-credit.org.uk/events/responsible-credit-convention-2010 Responsible Credit Convention 2010 Our first Responsible Credit Convention took place in London on 19th and 20th October 2010, drawing 200 delegates from money advice agencies, credit unions, housing associations, local authorities,... [more...]

Some selected press releases from the EUROPA search for 2011: IP/11/10 Date: 06/01/2011 Commission seeks views on possible EU framework to deal with future bank failures HTML: EN FR DE MEMO/11/6 Date: 06/01/2011 Consultation on Technical Details of a Possible Crisis Management Framework for financial institutions - Frequently Asked Questions HTML: EN MEMO/11/1 Date:... [more...]

"The New Consumer and the Contracting of On-line Financial Services" Zaragoza, December the 17th -18th 2010. ON-LINE screening of the Seminar. The Conference will be held in Spain, but there is the possibility to watch it on-line, so ECRC partners from elsewhere can follow the discussions from outside of Spain. The event is being organised by ADICAE (Association of... [more...]

Below is a translation of Brasilcon’s news update, our Brazilian partner of the Global Coalition for Responsible Credit. Dear friend and associate of Brasilcon, We inform you with satisfaction on the launch of the Handbook about overindebtedness, the result of a partnership between the Department of Consumer Protection and Defense (DPDC) and experts: Claudia Lima Marques,... [more...]

On 15/11/2010, last week, BEUC organised a conference on Group Action. Documents available on the conference webpage are reproduced below. Group Action: a necessity for consumers Conference organised jointly by BEUC (the European Consumers’ Organisation) and Test-Achats/Test-Ankoop (Belgian Consumer Association) to highlight legislative initiatives needed in order to... [more...]

Belgian ECRC partner l'Observatoire du Crédit et de l'Endettement organises a seminar on responsible credit and lessons from the crisis. Details and programme attached below. «Personal loans in the crisis: from challenges to solutions» Charleroi – Belgium, Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd December 2010 Introduction: Credit is indispensable to the proper functioning of the... [more...]

While ECRC conferences took place in Brussels, London and Hamburg this year without participation of high ranking EU-officials and fading support from the banking industry, the supplier side now hosts its 9th conference in Brussels on Februrary 10, 2011. Since the second workshop is dedicated to "Re-regulation" ECRC is very much concerned that the quite timid prospects of... [more...]

ECRC attended the opening sessions of the Eurofi Financial Forum 2010 in Brussels on 28 September 2010. Below are some comments from these sessions. Monique Goyens from BEUC was the only speaker from among the many experts invited that represented the consumer/ user perspective on retail investments. Below are some views expressed by the speakers and some additional... [more...]

The situation in Ireland is getting worse. While we hope that ECRC partner FLAC is able to influence outcomes of parliamentary committees that are as helpful to Irish consumers and debtors as possible, as recognised by Paul Joyce at the ECRC/CfRC London Conference last month, the fight against mass mortgage default is unfortunately very much dependent on house prices. As a... [more...]

Through their mortgage report, the consultants at Policis have once again shown that the research they produce is aimed at assisting the finance industry in defending its own interests. It brings us back to the beginning of this decade when a similar industry-friendly study they did was presented as solid empirical research. In its campaign against usury ceilings in the UK... [more...]

The Commission Work Programme for 2011 The Commission Work Programme (CWP) 2011 translates the President's political guidelines into action. Overarching objectives for the Work Programme are: exiting the economic crisis and creating sustainable growth and jobs (Europe 2020 Strategy) enhancing the rights and security of European citizens strengthening Europe's role in the... [more...]

Our UK ECRC partner CfRC publishes a weekly newsletter (see www.responsible-credit.org.uk/subscribe-to-cfrc) which shows a major concern of UK policies with access to financial services issues including now especially questions of affordability and social justice. Among rules concerning the overriding in overdraft credit (extreme and non-transparent fees), access by... [more...]

The UK CfRC looks at the details of the US reform and compares it to the promises made so far in the UK in the Issue of its Responsible Credit Journal (Vol1 No2 - Oct 2010) Redesigning Consumer Financial Protection: how will the UK compare with the US? The US is establishing a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with explicit duties to both improve consumer protection... [more...]

While lawyers are still working on the scope of its authority, the new agency is already hiring and initiating research and is already causing providers to change their behaviour. Focussed on clarity, it will be deeply reliant on outreach and collecting data about how consumer markets are working. Can Europeans learn from the US direction and ensure that funds are also... [more...]

Coalition partner Damon Gibbons from the CfRC has produced a report on payday lending in the UK which has attracted media attention from the BBC. This report alongside the one produced by the UK consumer body Consumer Focus last August ( ‘Keeping the plates spinning’ by Marie Burto) will hopefully feed into the BIS call for evidence on consumer credit issued in October. In... [more...]

Payment protection insurance is known to be expensive and often of little value to consumers because of inadequate policy coverage, consumers pressured or deceived into buying PPI and not having their policy properly explained to them. The FSA has taken action against 24 firms and individuals for PPI failings with fines of £13 million and issued a defacto ban on single... [more...]

At the Pittsburgh Summit in 2010, the G-20 said it would create the Financial Inclusion Experts Group (FIEG) to expand access to financial services, including credit, to the poor. Nothing has happened so far and ACCION a leading microfinance specialist suggests its definition of financial inclusion to bring the debate forward. While there may be a growing consensus on the... [more...]

While the EU is conducting intensive work in the field of investments, for credit and current accounts, banking markets are far from perfect for consumers. Can we hope that the situation will improve by the time of the next scoreboard? Remember that the first Scoreboard triggered a study on the market of current accounts which was published in September 2009 and that bank... [more...]

EU consultation on possible duty to ensure access to basic bank accounts Comments on the Commission's document due before 17th November. A proposal expected by February 2011. ECRC partners have already contributed to the broad consultation on this issue carried out in 2009, but are once again sollicited to give their views. The European Commission has issued a Consultation... [more...]

A group of our European elected officials from a range of political families have put their weight and some initial financing to help make their initiative of creating a Finance Watch organisation become a reality for representatives of civil society. ECRC supports this initiative and invites all its coalition partners to share their ideas and expectations with regard to... [more...]

CI launches G20 financial services campaign 08 Oct 2010 www.consumersinternational.org/news-and-media/news/2010/10/ci-launches-g20-financial-services-campaign Demanding more from our leaders on financial consumer protection. Consumers everywhere need access to stable, fair and competitive financial services. They have had to put up with abusive practices for too long and... [more...]

If an uncompromising Commissioner leading our EU civil service through strong personal ideology is not bad enough, Mr McCreevy has subsequently flaunted unapologetic unethical behaviour since having lost his former influential position in charge of the EU’s internal market. On top of Mr McCreevy’s generous pension entitlements as former Irish minister, his “transition”... [more...]

Behavioural Economics, so What: Should Policy-Makers Care? Albert Borschette Centre 36, Rue Froissart 1040 Brussels Monday November 22 2010 CONFERENCE DESCRIPTION The aim of the conference is to understand how behavioural economics could be used to influence public policy and regulatory design across the Commission, in a way that benefits EU consumers and citizens. The... [more...]

The ECRC has today sent the Commission its views on its preliminary proposals to regulate mortgage markets in the EU. On September 13th, the ECRC was invited by the European Commission to attend a meeting with DG Markt on 13.9. to discuss and collect feedback on their responsible lending proposals. Attended by a number of ECRC partners and consumer representatives, the... [more...]

"Regional and local treatment, prevention and assessment of over-indebtedness" Namur (Belgium), 30th Sept - 1st Oct 2010 Sir, Madam, Within the framework of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Observatory of Credit and Indebtedness is holding a symposium. This will be about actions implemented by Regions and territorial communities concerning... [more...]