The Court of First Instance resolved the interpretation dispute Article 49(1) Act dated 12 May 2011 on consumer credit (codification: Journal of Laws of 2019, item 1083). According to that provision, in the event of repayment of the entire loan before the date specified in the contract, the total cost of the loan is reduced by those costs which relate to the period by which the duration of the contract has been reduced, even if the consumer had incurred it before that payment.
To date, no dispute has raised that in the case of early repayment of the debt, the borrower is not obliged to pay interest for a shortened loan period. It raised doubts as to whether a similar ‘lease’ relates to other fees charged for the granting of credit, in particular commissions.
Consumer-friendly TEU judgment
The recovery of part of the commission a few months ago was decided by the Court of Justice of the European Union (judgment of 11 September 2019 on Lexitor (C-383/18). In its legal analysis, the CSF referred to Article 8 Council Directives dated 22 December 1986, replaced Directive 2008/48.
According to that provision, in the event that the obligations laid down in the contract are fulfilled before a fixed time limit, the consumer is entitled to a reasonable reduction in the total cost of the credit.
The CJEU indicated that this provision should be interpreted as meaning that the consumer's right to reduce the total cost of credit in the event of early repayment of credit covers all the costs that have been imposed on the consumer.
The TEU therefore took the position of favourable consumers who paid off the entire loan before the deadline.
Consumer-friendly SN judgment
The title resolution of the SN was issued on 12 December 2019, Composition 3-personal, on the signature case III CZP 45/19. This resolution repeats the interpretation adopted by the TEU ruling and is equally favourable to borrowers in dispute with banks.
In the resolution of the SN he addressed the legal issue presented by the District Court in Lublin. The question was: ‘Is the commission for the granting of a consumer credit a cost for the entire duration of the contract, which, in the event of repayment of the loan before the deadline specified in the contract, is reduced on the basis of Article 49(1) Act dated 12 May 2011 about the consumer credit (Journal of Laws, item 715 as amended) the period for which the duration of the contract has been reduced or the cost which does not relate to the duration of the contract?’
In reply, the SN adopted a resolution which gave consumers repayments before the deadline another important tool in the fight against banks. The resolution of the SN provides that the envisaged under Article 49(1) The Consumer Credit Act also includes a credit commission to reduce the total cost of the credit in the event of its repayment in full before the date specified in the contract.
Unfortunately, it still happens that banks do not want to pay their fees back to borrowers who have previously paid their loans. If the submission of a complaint to a bank with a request for reimbursement of any commissions and charges does not yield the desired results, the consumer remains on a judicial path. Resolutions such as those discussed in this article give borrowers real chances of an effective request for a refund from the bank due to early repayment of the loan.