Emma RadmoreThe Financial Services and Markets Bill had its second reading in the Lords on 8 June and has now been scheduled for the Committee stage starting from 22 June. At second reading, Lord Stockwood introduced the Bill for...
Category - Consumer Credit
Stephen WilsonFCA publishes guide for smaller credit brokers
The FCA has published a guide intended for smaller credit brokers to understand what is required of them, and is aimed at both full permission and limited permission firms, and also those appointed as ARs or IARs for...
FCA updates on BNPL registrations
The FCA has updated its website resources on the upcoming changes to buy now pay later (deferred payment credit) regulation. The window for unregulated firms currently providing services that will require regulation...
FCA updates firm guidance on motor finance redress scheme
The FCA has updated its guidance page that sets out key dates and checklists for firms within scope of the motor finance redress scheme. The page: notes the end of the implementation period for the 2 schemes; reminds...
FCA makes BNPL temporary permission directions
The FCA has published a set of directions and a notification form for firms wishing to enter the Temporary Permissions Regime for the newly regulated deferred payment credit activities. As a reminder, the new regulated...
FCA to make motor finance announcement on 30 March
The FCA has confirmed that it will set out its approach on motor finance redress soon after markets close on 30 March.
FCA updates on CCR009
The FCA has published resources on the new CCR009 return that replaces the CCR004 and CCR005 and elements of CCR002 and CCR007 for ancillary credit firms. Most firms will need to submit annually, but firms with annual...
FCA sets out roadmap for mortgage rule reforms
The FCA has published a roadmap on modernising mortgage rules. The FCA launched a discussion paper in June 2025 on areas in which changes could be made to the current mortgages framework. It now publishes its feedback...
Laura WilesDomestic supplier BNPL exemption confirmed
HM Treasury has made the legislation confirming that domestic premises suppliers will be exempt from the credit broking activity in relation to deferred payment credit (or BNPL) agreements, when the activity becomes a...
FCA sets out expectations of CMCs involved in motor finance commission claims
Following the launch of its much awaited consultation on the motor finance redress scheme, the FCA has written a letter to claims management companies (CMCs) involved in motor finance commission claims, setting out key...
FCA blogs on evolution of consumer credit
Alison Waters, director of consumer finance at the FCA, has looked at what the next decade holds for consumer credit. She noted the 2024 Financial Lives survey which found that 84% of UK adults had at least one credit...
Is HNW declaration valid where exact words do not match CONC?
In a case relating to action against guarantors of a loan facility, the Commercial Court has considered unfairness under the CRA and the application of the High Net Worth exemption for credit agreements. Three...
FOS motor finance appeal scheduled for September 2025
Following the much awaited Supreme Court judgment in the Johnson, Wrench and Hopcraft cases, FOS has announced that the Court of Appeal hearing on DCAs in motor finance will take place from 16 – 18 September 2025...
Motor finance commission: Supreme Court allows lender appeals
The Supreme Court has delivered its long-awaited judgment on motor finance commissions, and has allowed lender appeals on 2 of the 3 matters under appeal. It upheld only the CCA unfair relationship claim.�This post has been drafted on the basis of Lord Reed’s speech. We will publish updated and more detailed articles in the light of the published judgment.
Delivering the judgment, Lord Reed described the nature of the relationships involved. He focussed on how the car dealer is dependent on the finance being agreed in order to sell a car. He spoke of various actions the dealer could take if, for instance, the lender would not advance enough credit or the monthly payments would be too much for the customer to pay. The key, he said, is that the dealer has a commercial interest in the negotiations over the finance package, which will continue until the package is entered into.
He moved on to discuss how the consumer does not deal directly with the finance company, although the loan agreement is directly between the consumer and the finance company. The motor dealer will make all the arrangements. It does not act as agent of the customer, is not remunerated by the customer and does not give the customer any reassurance that it is putting its commercial interests aside – and it could not do that! The Supreme Court noted that FCA rules require the dealer to disclose that commission is receivable if it could affect the dealer’s impartiality or have a material impact on the customer’s decision, but that nothing in the regulatory regime requires lender or dealers to disclose the existence or amount of any commission payment or to get the customer’s consent.
The customers seeking to recover from the lenders the commission that had been paid to the brokers all contended that:
the finance companies committed the common law tort of bribery by paying commission to the dealers
the dealers owed the customers a fiduciary duty and as such could not have any personal interest in the conclusion of the transaction and if that is so, acceptance of the commission was a breach of this, and the lenders had dishonestly assisted in the breach by paying the commission
Mr Johnson additionally claimed the relationship was unfair under the CCA.
The Supreme Court, noting that the Court of Appeal’s stance had shocked the lenders and the FCA, stated:
the payment of commission was not a bribe. The car dealers clearly and properly had an interest in the finance being arranged, and clearly wanted to sell the vehicles at a profit, and so clearly owed no duty to the customers. Each of the 3 parties (lender, dealer, customer) was engaged at arm’s length pursuing their own interests, and no-one could think otherwise;
for the same reason, no-one could think the dealer was acting as a fiduciary because it was at all times pursuing its commercial interests. The Supreme Court said that the distinguishing obligation of a fiduciary is often described as a “duty of single-minded loyalty to the person for whom they act”;
the Court of Appeal had failed to understand that the dealer had its own interests and mistakenly thought the dealer was acting in the interests of the customer once the customer had chosen the car. It was also wrong to take the approach that because the customer trusted the dealer and may have been vulnerable this meant that the dealer was acting as fiduciary.
So the Court of Appeal was wrong on the first two issues. On the unfair relationships issue, the Supreme Court said that the fact there may have been no or only partial disclosure of commission did not of itself make a relationship unfair. There are many factors to consider. Here, a major factor was that the commission was 55% of the total charge for credit, and that large figure is a good indication of unfairness.� Additionally here the documentation was misleading in that they did not disclose that the dealer and lender had an agreement that gave the lender first refusal – in fact it gave the impression that the dealer would go to a panel of lenders to get the best price for the loan. The fact that Mr Johnson did not read any of the documents he was given was not a persuasive factor against a decision of unfairness, given that the information in question was well hidden – even though, had Mr Johnson read it, it could have led him to discover the amount of the commission. The Supreme Court said the lender should pay to Mr Johnson the amount of commission plus a commercial rate of interest, and that because what the Court of Appeal had said was full of mistakes, the lender’s appeal had to be allowed so as to substitute an order in Mr Johnson’s favour on different terms to the Court of Appeal’s.
The Supreme Court also explained that it had refused the Treasury’s application to intervene since the Treasury wanted to discuss the economic impact of any decision, which is not within the Court’s interest.
SRA and FCA warn claims managers over motor finance commission claims
The SRA and the FCA have put out a warning to relevant law firms and CMCs reminding them they must comply with the correct rules on handling motor finance commission claims. It warns that if, following the Supreme Court...
FCA announces more firm failures
The FCA has announced that two more firms have failed: Argentex LLP, authorised to provide e-money and payment services and also wealth management, went into special administration under the Payment and EMI Insolvency...
FCA consults on rules for Deferred Payment Credit lending
The FCA has published CP 25/23 to consult on its approach to regulated Deferred Payment Credit lending, which is now in FCA’s regulatory perimeter following legislative change. The consultation, which closes on 26...
Court looks at “business test” when loans are refinanced
In a repossession case brought by an unregulated lender, Principal Bridging Limited (PBL), the County Court found that where a loan is used to refinance previous borrowing, it is the purpose for which the original loan is taken out which determines whether it is “wholly or predominantly for the purposes of a business” for the purposes of Articles 60C and 60O of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities Order) 2001 (the RAO).
In this case, the borrower, Mr Lewis took out a bridging loan with PBL (secured as a second charge loan against his primary residence) which was used to refinance an earlier loan (with a different lender) which in turn had been use to refinance an original loan (from a third lender). It was taken as a matter of fact that Mr Lewis had used a maximum of 50% of the original for business purposes and, therefore, it had not been used “wholly or predominantly for the purposes of a business” carried on by him (and, therefore, was as a matter of fact a regulated mortgage contract as the exemption under Article 61A(1)(c) of the RAO. However, the Court found that PBL had no way of knowing this and that Mr Lewis had made repeated representations that he would use the loan PBL made for business purposes and, therefore, the loan was unregulated and not a regulated mortgage contract.
In the alternative, the Court also found that if the PBL loan�was a regulated mortgage contract, it would still have been just and equitable for PBL to enforce the loan due to the repeated representations made by Mr Lewis.
Following on from these findings, and taking into account Mr Lewis history of defaulting on previous lending the interest rate charged by PBL was not an unenforceable penalty.
Lastly, it followed that the relationship between PBL and Mr Lewis could not be said to be unfair for the purposes of Sections 140A-C of the Consumer Credit Act 1974.
FCA updates data flow diagrams for consumer credit firms
The FCA has updated its website to provide data flow diagrams to help firms complete the new CCR009 return, which replaced the CCR004 and CCR005 returns from 7 May.
Treasury publishes BNPL legislation
The Government has finally published its response to its consultations on regulation of buy-now-pay-later products and services and laid the necessary legislation before Parliament.
The Government had already decided that the BNPL products that should no longer benefit from the article 60F(2) RAO exemption would be those offered by third-party providers – so that those offered by merchants would continue to benefit so long as the products met the conditions of the article. It subsequently consulted on the draft legislation it had drafted to achieve the changes.
However, in response to the draft consultation, it received many representations that allowing merchants to carry on using the exemption created an unlevel playing field, and particularly expressing concerns that large tech and e-commerce platforms would start offering BNPL agreements on a similar scale to third-party lenders. The Government acknowledges this risk but says it is important that low-risk everyday transactions should continue to be within the exemption.� It will monitor developments and respond it if sees any significant change or potential consumer harm.
The Government also intends to proceed with its proposals:
to disapply the CCA information disclosure requirements to BNPL products, so that the FCA can draft its own bespoke rules;
to retain the possibility for the court to make time orders where appropriate; and
to exempt most merchants from the need to become authorised credit brokers in order to promote BNPL products; and
urgently to put in place a temporary permissions regime for firms needing authorisation.
Once the enabling legislation is made, the FCA will then have 12 months to draft, consult on and finalise its rules, and regulation will start from mid-2026. The FCA will consult soon on its rules and will, in its consultation, set out its timescales.
Government consults on CCA reform
The Government is consulting on how it will take forward reform of the CCA. It has decided to split the reform into 2 phases. The first phase covers information requirements, sanctions and criminal offences. on...
FOS publishes half yearly complaints data
The FOS has published its complaints data for the period July to December 2024. Key statistics include: an increase of nearly 50% in new complaints compared to the same period in 2023 (141,000 new complaints) –...
BoE publishes Q1 2025 credit conditions survey
The BoE has published its credit conditions survey for Q1 2025. The quarterly survey covers secured and unsecured lending to households, and lending to non-financial corporations, non-bank financial firms and small...
FCA publishes work programme 2025-6
The FCA has published its work programme for 2025-26, which builds on the 4 priority areas in its 5 year plan. Specific initiatives additional to those set out in the 5 year plan (which we summarised in this article)...
FCA updates on motor finance complaints
FCA has further updated its page containing guidance on the handling of motor finance complaints to include the link to its submission to the Supreme Court. It had previously updated its guidance in the light of the...
FCA publishes final motor finance Supreme Court submissions
As the appeal against the Court of Appeal Decision in Johnson v FirstRand Bank Limited, Wrench v FirstRand Bank Limited and Hopcraft v Close Brothers has begun in the Supreme Court, FCA has published its final...
Court of Appeal rules motor finance commission cases can be dealt with using omnibus claim forms
The Court of Appeal (CoA) in Angel & Ors v Black Horse Ltd [2025] EWHC 490 (KB) has overturned the case management decision taken at first instance that the eight claim forms covering 5,800 claimants could not be...
FCA publishes summary grounds of intervention in motor finance appeal
The FCA has published summary grounds of intervention in support of its application to intervene in the appeals relating to motor dealer-broker commissions. The FCA wants to intervene in writing and for up to an hour...
FCA Chief Executive responds to House of Lords motor finance commission questions
In a letter dated 17 January 2025, Nikhil Rathi (Chief Executive of the FCA) responded in detail to questions raised by the Rt. Hon Lord Forsyth of Drumlean in his capacity as Chair of the Financial Services Regulation...
FCA sets out strategy for credit reference agencies and service providers
The FCA has published a portfolio letter to credit reference agencies (CRAs) and credit information service providers (CISPs) setting out its strategy for the next two years. The priorities will focus on: Embedding of...
High Court backs FOS on DCA complaint
The High Court has dismissed all 3 grounds of appeal brought by a lender under a discretionary commission arrangement (DCA) for motor finance, following a FOS decision to uphold a customer complaint. The grounds of...
FCA quarterly consultation includes PEMC limit increase
The FCA’s latest quarterly consultation includes proposals to: clarify some consumer credit product PSD reporting; increase the current £100 medical condition premium trigger that means firms must signpost...
FCA to consult on time extension for non-discretionary motor finance commission complaints
Following the Court of Appeal’s decision to allow appeals to the Supreme Court in relation to three cases of non-disclosure of non-discretionary commission for motor finance (we covered this in FIN here), the FCA...
FOS warns on lack of understanding of s75
The FOS has said that failing to understand the rules around claims under s75 CCA can affect consumers’ chances of getting their money back. Its guidance debunks several myths: that s75 only helps if the purchase...
FCA fines finance company over fair treatment
The FCA has fined Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited over £5m in a package that also involves the firm in paying £21.5m redress to customers who may have suffered harm over the firm’s failure to treat...
FCA updates website on consumer credit reporting
The FCA has updated its website on reporting requirements for consumer credit firms to take account of the upcoming changes to Product Sales Data reporting that will take effect from October 2025 and April 2026 for...
FCA consults on new consumer credit regulatory return
The FCA is seeking views on its proposal to issue a new regulatory reporting return for consumer credit firms carrying on any one or more of the regulated activities of credit broking, providing credit information...
BoE publishes Q2 Credit Conditions and Bank Liabilities Surveys
The BoE has published the results from its quarterly survey of banks and building societies looking at credit conditions in the quarter to the end of May 2024. As usual, the survey covers: secured and unsecured lending...
FCA bans individual for failing to disclose conviction
The FCA has banned Graham Lilley, formerly an authorised sole trader, from carrying on any regulated activity carried on by any person and has cancelled his permissions. It discovered that Mr Lilley had been convicted...
FCA publishes hire purchase agreement undertaking
The FCA has published a notice of undertaking under the Consumer Rights Act in relation to vehicle hire purchase contracts issued by Mercedes-Benz Financial Services (UK) Limited. The FCA had been concerned that an...
FOS publishes half-yearly complaints data
FOS’ latest half-yearly complaints data shows a rise of 20% in complaints during H2 2023, with the rise driven mainly by banking and credit complaints. Within that sector, current accounts and credit cards...
FCA finalises consumer credit sales data rules
The FCA has finalised its new rules that incorporated 3 new Product Sales Data returns into SUP. The enhanced requirements should help the FCA to get better market insights and to intervene more quickly if it sees risks...
FCA updates on motor finance complaints
Following the announcement of its review into motor finance complaints, the FCA has published a statement on progress made to date. It says that firms have engaged with the FCA constructively but many are struggling to...
FCA finalises guidance for borrowers in financial difficulty
The FCA has finalised its rules and guidance to strengthen protection for consumer credit and mortgage borrowers in financial difficulty. It has decided to bring parts of its current guidance in FG23/2 for mortgage...
FCA updates perimeter report
The FCA has updated its Perimeter Report on its website. It was last updated in March 2023. Among the issues discussed are: FCA’s general approach to the perimeter; when it will take action against unauthorised...
FCA gives guidance on consumer credit income reporting
The FCA has updated its guidance for consumer credit firms to reflect changes to the way firms now need to calculate their proxy measure of annual income. When completing their reports, credit brokers need to include...
FCA speech: investing in outcomes
Nikhil Rathi, Chief Executive of the FCA, has delivered a speech on the FCA’s broad approach to topics in which investors have recently been expressing significant interest. The speech highlighted the following as...
Harry WellsFCA commits to personal guarantee investigation
FCA has committed to conducting an investigation into the use of personal guarantees by lenders as security for loans made to small business customers. FCA is acting in response to a super complaint brought by the...
FLA launches accreditation service
FLA’s new Broker Accreditation (Asset Finance) Service will help brokers show they are compliant with FLA’s Business Finance Code and their regulatory obligations. It also says the accreditation, which...
Illegal money lender jailed for failing to pay confiscation order
FCA has issued a press release highlighting the nearly 8 year prison sentence handed down to Dharam Prakash Gopee by the City of London Magistrates’ Court for wilfully refusing to adhere to a confiscation order...
FCA takes action on motor finance complaints
FCA is unhappy that motor finance firms are rejecting high numbers of consumer complaints about commission arrangements. After FCA banned discretionary commission arrangements in 2021, many consumers complained and...
FCA proposes credit information changes
FCA has announced proposals which will: require FCA-regulated data contributors, such as lenders, to share credit information with credit reference agencies (CRAs); introduce a common data reporting format to enhance...
Lenders go into administration
FCA has confirmed that Morses Club Limited, a home collected credit lender, and its subsidiary Shelby Finance Limited (Dot Dot Loans – an online HCST lender) have gone into administration. It provided information...
FCA updates on secondary credit broker expectations
FCA has a new page on its website for secondary credit brokers, on which it sets out what it expects from applicants, including the difference between limited permission and full permission firms. The page links to...
EU adopts new consumer credit directive
The EU has adopted the new Directive on Consumer Credits (CCD), repealing and replacing the 2008 Consumer Credit Directive in order to take account of the significant changes that have taken place in the consumer credit...
Treasury responds on Edinburgh Reforms progress
Treasury has responded to a request from the Treasury Committee for an update on delivering the Edinburgh Reforms. It notes: reform of the ring-fencing regime: this is in progress with draft legislation being published...
HCSTC lender goes into administration
FCA has announced the administration of Novaloans Limited, an online only high-cost short-term lender and provided details of its administrators and the entity the administrators have instructed to collect all...
Supreme Court rules on limitation in PPI case
In the case of Smith and another (Appellants) v Royal Bank of Scotland (Respondent) [2023] UKSC 34, the Supreme Court has ruled that the claims made by claimants seeking orders under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 were...
FIN. TeamFCA consults on consumer credit reporting changes
FCA is consulting on the potential introduction of three new product sales data returns for consumer credit lenders, to enable it better to assess how firms operate and to develop appropriate supervision strategies...
FCA cancels unused permissions
The FCA has used its power to cancel consumer credit permissions which were not used for 2 years. Mr Roche was authorised by the FCA in January 2015 and held consumer credit permissions of: agreeing to carry on a...
FCA warns consumers on loan fee fraud
FCA has issued a consumer warning to help customers avoid loan fee fraud as they look to cover the costs of summer spending. This type of fraud, which involves customers paying for a loan they never receive, typically...
FOS updates on car finance commission complaints
FOS has published a blog on complaints about car finance commission. It is seeing an increase in complaints about the fairness of commission arrangements when customers took out a car finance agreement – often...
FOS warns on credit hire risks
FOS is warning that many consumers do not understand the risks of credit hire, which could leave them facing large bills. Credit hire is used as an alternative to claiming on motor insurance, and involves claims or...
FOS highlights Morses Club scheme of arrangement
FOS has updated its website to reflect the court’s approval for a scheme of arrangement between Morses Club and its creditors. Morses Club was the UK’s largest doorstep lender, which had increasingly faced...
FLA publishes consumer credit research
The Finance and Leasing Association has published a research paper that looks at what improvements consumers would like to see in consumer credit. While many respondents thought the products and markets are functioning...
FCA censures Amigo for inadequate affordability checks
FCA has publicly censured Amigo Loans Ltd following a finding that it did not have appropriate processes in place to assess borrower and guarantor circumstances before granting loans for a period of around 18 months...
Treasury consults on BNPL legislation
Treasury has published the long-awaited consultation on draft legislation to bring those who offer Buy-Now-Pay-Later and similar products within the scope of financial regulation. It has published both the draft law...
FCA publishes supervisory notice on high-cost lender
FCA has published a “further first supervisory notice” to Indigo Michael Limited, a high cost consumer credit lender. It first imposed a notice on the firm in July 2022, and now requires that: the firm must...
Court holds “debtor” must be contractual party
The Court of Appeal has held that an individual cannot bring a claim under s75 CCA unless they were party to the relevant credit agreement, as otherwise they cannot be a “debtor” for those purposes. In ...
FCA extends confirmed guidance on motor ads
FCA has extended its confirmation of the Radiocentre industry guidance on ensuring financial promotions for motors brands on radio are clear, fair and not misleading and compliant with CONC. The guidance is now...
EU provisionally agrees new Consumer Credit Directive
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...
FCA consults on credit information improvements
FCA has set out its initial findings from a credit information market study in an interim report and discussion paper and its annexes. The study was launched because of concerns about the quality of credit information...
FCA asks consumer credit firms for credit data
FCA is asking several consumer credit firms to provide it with data on their credit activities, to enable it to monitor and assess the impact of the rising cost of living. It is not making a formal information request...
Claimant permitted to apply for judicial review of FOS ‘fairness’ decision
The High Court have granted a Claimant permission to make an application for judicial review in respect of a decision of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) against the Claimant in respect of the provision of credit...
FCA allows Amigo to re-start lending in pilot
FCA has published a letter sent to Amigo Loans which approves its request to start lending again on a pilot basis. In 2020, following a large number of customer complaints, Amigo paused new lending and announced that it...
FCA portfolio letter to high-cost lenders
FCA has published its portfolio supervision letter in relation to high-cost lending products. The letter sets out the risks FCA believes high-cost firms pose to their customers and the markets in which they operate and...
Emma RadmoreFCA warns again on misleading BNPL ads
FCA has written to BNPL providers and to the British Retail Consortium, warning them that even while some BNPL agreements remain currently unregulated, this does not mean that the financial promotion rules don’t...
Clarity for lenders dealing with borrowers in distress
The Supreme Court has refused the Appellant’s application for permission to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision in Morley (t/a Morley Estates) (Appellant) v The Royal Bank of Scotland Plc...
Harshil PatelCourt refuses permission to appeal on CCA default notice
The Supreme Court has refused the Appellant debtor’s application for permission to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision in Goodinson (Appellant) v PRA Group (UK) Ltd (Respondent) [2021] EWCA Civ 957...
European Parliament proposes new online credit suitability rules
MEPs have proposed legislation designed to protect consumers online from credit card debt, overdrafts and loans that are unsuitable for their financial situation. The proposed new rules would require that: consumers are...
FCA Portfolio letter for Mainstream Consumer Credit Lenders
On 27 June 2022, the FCA published a portfolio letter setting out its supervisory strategy for mainstream consumer credit lenders (MCCLs). In the letter, the FCA outlined the key risks of harm for MCCL firms, their...
Treasury confirms BNPL proposals
Treasury has published its consultation response to its plans for regulating the buy-now-pay-later credit market. It has confirmed that: lenders offering BNPL will need to be authorised by FCA; lenders will need to...
Government commits to Consumer Credit Act reform
The Government has announced its commitment to seeking reform of the rules contained in the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (the CCA) in an effort to modernise them, cut costs for business and ensure the rules are easier for...
Council adopts new rules on EU regulation of consumer credit
The Council has published its agreed position on the revision of the Consumer Credit Directive (Directive 2008/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2008 on credit agreements for consumers and...
High Court approves Amigo scheme of arrangement
The High Court has approved the scheme of arrangement that will provide redress for customers who were mis-sold loans by Amigo and who have raised a complaint. FCA has reiterated that the scheme is an improvement on the...
FCA warns firms to stop using misleading credit ads
The FCA has written to c.28,000 consumer credit firms warning them not to use terms such as ‘no credit check loans’, ‘loan guaranteed’, ‘pre-approved’ or ‘no credit...
FCA to remove credit broker permissions
FCA has published its first supervisory notice against Semantic Business Services Ltd, a secondary credit broker. It plans to remove the firm’s permissions because: the firm has links with a number of other firms...
FCA confirms non-opposition to Amigo scheme
FCA has written to Amigo Loans to confirm it will not be attending the hearings to oppose its proposals for its Scheme of Arrangement. FCA has previously said the new proposal is an improvement on the failed proposal of...
FCA speaks on credit regulation in tough times
Brian Corr, Interim Director of Retail Lending at FCA delivered a speech on 23 March 2022 to the Credit Summit addressing the impact credit will have on consumers as the economic situation continues to deteriorate and...
APP Fraud and the extent of the Banks Duty – to be determined at trial
In the case of Philipp v Barclays Bank UK plc [2022] EWCA Civ 318, the Court of Appeal has allowed the appeal from Mrs Philipp against the decision of the High Court in 2021 to give judgment to Barclays Bank UK plc on...
CAT determines the ‘domicile date’
CAT has published its Judgment giving further guidance on the ‘domicile date’, which is the date specified in a CPO. The domicile date operates to determine the persons who fall within the class definition...
High Court rules on application of CCA ‘business purpose’ exemption to multi-borrower loans
In Campbell v Tyrrell & Ors [2022] EWHC 423 (Ch), the high court considered the application of the ‘business purpose’ exemption in s.16B(1) of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (the “CCA“) to a...
FCA portfolio letter for Credit Unions
The FCA has published a portfolio letter to Credit Union Boards setting out the usual key risks of harm that are present for Credit Unions, their members and the markets in which they operate. The letter asks firms to...
ECON publishes draft opinion on consumer credits proposal
On 1 February 2022, the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee (ECON) published a draft opinion on the European Commission’s legislative proposal for a Directive on consumer credits to...
FCA updates on borrowers in financial difficulty
The FCA launched the borrowers in financial difficulty (BiFD) project in March 2021, with the aim of ensuring firms continue to support borrowers facing financial difficulties. The project covers a range of retail...
UK Finance responds on BNPL consultation
UK Finance has published its response to HM Treasury’s consultation on the regulation of BNPL products. The response shows that there is a consensus amongst UK Finance members: that BNPL products should be brought...
Commons Library publishes “Black Friday promotions” paper
The House of Commons Library has published a research briefing on the promotion and regulation of financial products on Black Friday. A debate has been scheduled for 23 November and has been initiated by Stella Creasey...
Treasury consults on BNPL
Treasury has published the long-awaited consultation on buy-now pay-later regulation, following the announcement on 2 February that the Government would implement the Woolard Review recommendation to bring interest free...
European Commission adopts work programme for 2022
The EU Commission has adopted its 2022 work programme which sets out the next steps in its agenda towards a greener, fairer, more digital and more resilient Europe. The programme contains 42 new policy initiatives...
CMA to take no action against Lloyds for Retail Banking Order breach
CMA has confirmed it will not be taking any further action against Lloyds Bank following the bank’s failure to display required information in relation to SME loans on one page of its website, which potentially...
FCA looks at next steps in consumer credit regulation
Nisha Arora has spoken on FCA’s priorities in regulating consumer credit. She noted that FCA has significantly improved outcomes for consumers using credit since FCA took over its regulation, but that there is...
FCA updates rules on credit card instalment plans
FCA has issued its latest Handbook update, which confirms: changes to CONC, effective from 1 October, so firms can offer a greater variety of fixed instalment plans in their credit card products. FCA has routinely been...
Treasury answers questions on BNPL and pension transfer advice
Published answer to written questions include: in answer to a question on when the BNPL legislation will be put forward, Lord Agnew said there would be a consultation document “soon”; in answer to a question...