The European Parliament and Council have reached provisional agreement on updating EU rules on consumer credit. The new rules will cover credit agreements of up to €100,000. Key provisions will:
- require a creditworthiness assessment to be undertaken;
- give cancer survivors who apply for credit for which insurance is required the “right to be forgotten” after a certain time so their former illness does not affect insurance rates;
- require registration and supervision of non-bank creditors and intermediaries except micro enterprises and SMEs;
- require prominent warnings on credit advertisements, and banning advertisements from making certain claims;
- cap certain interest rates and charges;
- mandate forbearance measures;
- provide a 14 day cooling off period; and
- permit early repayment on terms that should be clear in pre-contractual information.