Company: BCDRF
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0000891478-25-000054
Chunk: 732

Company: Banco Santander, S.A.
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 20-F
Chunk 732
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 Entities). The claim relates to the allocation of liability for compensation and associated costs in respect of a large number of PPI policies distributed by GECB pre-2005, which were underwritten by FICL and FACL. . Axa France reduced their claim from GBP 670million (EUR 807.9million) to GBP 552million (EUR 665.6million) (plus interest) in their Re-Re-Amended Particulars of Claim dated 29 June 2023. The Santander Entities strongly refute the claim. Trial has been fixed for six weeks, beginning on 3 March 2025.

There are ongoing factual issues to be resolved which may have legal consequences including in relation to liability. These issues create uncertainties which mean that it is difficult to reliably predict the outcome or the timing of the resolution of the matter. The provision recognized includes the best estimate of the Santander Entities' liability to the specific portfolio.

Annual report 2024 681

| Contents |     | Auditor's report |     | Consolidated financial statements |     | Notes to the consolidated financial statements |     | Appendix |

• Motor Finance Broker Commissions: following the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Motor Market review in 2019 which resulted in a change in rules in January 2021, Santander Consumer (UK) plc (SCUK) has received a number of county court claims and complaints in respect of its historical use of discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) prior to the 2021 rule changes. In January 2024 the FCA commenced a review of the use of DCAs between lenders and credit brokers (the FCA Review) and paused the handling of these complaints originally until September 2024. The FCA announced in July 2024 that it expected to share the outcome of its Review by May 2025 and that the pause in respect of handling of these complaints was extended to 4 December 2025. In December 2024, the FCA announced the expansion of this pause on DCA complaints handling to other motor finance commission complaints received on or after 26 October 2024, also until 4 December 2025. A claim has also been issued against SCUK, Santander UK plc and others in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), alleging that SCUK’s historical DCAs in respect of used car financing operated in breach of the Competition Act 1998. This is currently paused until the end of July 2025 connected to the outcome of the FCA