Tag: Consumer rights

Responsible credit in the European Union: on the pre-contractual duty to analyse the consumer’s creditworthiness when granting credit

On By revistaunioIn CommentsLeave a comment 

Mariana Marques (Master's student in European Union Law at the School of Law of the University of Minho)
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Introduction

In practice, financial institutions often grant credit without analysing the consumer’s creditworthiness. In most cases, credit is granted without analysing any variant that could compromise the borrowers’ financial capacity – and this is particularly prevalent in the granting of credit cards. Thus, any individual can obtain a credit card from most organisations without having to provide essential data, such as their salary slip, for example. Without prejudice to the consumer’s responsibility to take out credit that is appropriate to their income, would consumer credit institutions not have any duty in this regard?

On 11 January 2024,[1] the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) handed down a ruling in which it clarified the duty to analyse the consumer’s creditworthiness –imposed on financial institutions before granting consumer credit. This pre-contractual duty, which is often (and unduly) brushed aside by the entities responsible for it, has been the subject of important developments in the new law governing consumer credit – Directive 2023/2225 of 18 October 2023.

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New perspectives on sale of consumer goods – maximum harmonization and high protection of consumers as a condition for the further development of cross-border trade in single market

On By officialblogunioIn EssaysLeave a comment

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 by Maria João Pestana de Vasconcelos, Professor at the School of Law, UMINHO

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As a part of Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe published in May 2015, the Commission adopted, on 9 December 2015, two proposals of Directives: one for a Directive on certain aspects concerning contracts for the online and other distance sales of goods (“Sales of Goods proposal” or “Sales of Goods Directive”); another for a Directive on certain aspects concerning contracts for the supply of digital content and digital services (proposal for a “Directive on Digital Content” or “Digital Content Directive”).

These proposals are the basis of a future reform on consumer sales contracts based on the principle of maximum harmonisation while providing for a high level of consumer protection.

It is already clear that the minimum harmonization approach, adopted by the Consumer Sales Directive (1999/44/EC) [i] has proved not to be appropriate to ensure the proper functioning of the internal market. Member States allowed go beyond the minimum rules, and to impose a high level of consumer protection, have acted on different elements and to different extents. As a result, national provisions transposing the Consumer Sales Directive (99/44/EC) significantly diverge today on essential elements, such as the absence or existence of a hierarchy of remedies. These disparities between the national laws of the Member States constitute one of the major obstacles to the development of the cross-border trade in Single Market given that they may adversely affect business (in particularly small and medium enterprises) and consumers[ii].
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